atco

We still think investors will profit most—and with the least risk—by buying shares of well-established, dividend-paying stocks with strong business prospects.



These are companies that have leading positions in healthy industries. They also have strong management that will make the right moves to remain competitive in a changing market.



Stocks like these give investors an additional measure of safety despite today’s volatility....

Dear Reader: Most successful investors describe themselves as buy-and-hold investors. But for many, their strategy is more like buy-and-hold-till-I-get-bored, or until I see or hear about something better on TV or the Internet.

Instead, rather than ―buy and hold‖, we prefer a “buy and watch closely” strategy....

CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY LTD., $189.30, Toronto symbol CP, ships freight over a 22,000-kilometre rail network between Montreal and Vancouver, with links to hubs in the U.S. Midwest and Northeast. The company reported 4.4% lower freight volumes in the latest quarter. That’s mainly due to weaker prices for oil, minerals and other commodities. They forced many producers in Canada and the U.S. to reduce their production and so their shipping. As more U.S. power utilities switch to natural gas, coal shipments have also suffered. In the three months ended March 31, 2016, CP’s revenue fell 4.4%, to $1.59 billion from $1.67 billion a year earlier. That missed the consensus forecast of $1.61 billion....

CANADIAN UTILITIES LTD. (Toronto symbols CU [class A non-voting] $35 and CU.X [class B voting] $35; Income Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 267.0 million; Market cap: $9.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.8; Dividend yield: 3.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.canadianutilities.com) distributes electricity and natural gas in Alberta and Australia. It also operates 15 power plants in Canada (13) and Australia (2). ATCO Ltd. (see right) owns 53.1% of the company. Due to lower power prices in Alberta and the sale of its information technology subsidiary, the company’s earnings in 2015 dropped 50.5%, to $352 million from $711 million in 2014. Per-share earnings fell 56.0%, to $1.11 from $2.52 on more shares outstanding. Without unusual items, earnings fell 16.0%. Revenue declined 9.3%, to $3.3 billion from $3.6 billion. In December 2015, the company completed and started operating a 485-kilometre power line in eastern Alberta. This is the longest transmission line in Alberta’s history. Other new projects include a gas pipeline and power plant in Mexico, and four underground gas-storage facilities in Alberta....

ATCO LTD. (Toronto symbols ACO.X [class I non-voting] $39 and ACO.Y [class II voting] $39; Income Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 115.0 million; Market cap: $4.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.1; Dividend yield: 2.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.atco.com) gets most of its earnings from its 53.1% stake in Canadian Utilities (see page 44). It also owns 75.5% of ATCO Structures & Logistics, which makes temporary buildings for construction, mining and energy exploration firms; Canadian Utilities owns the other 24.5%. In December 2015, the company sold its ATCO Emissions Management subsidiary for $60 million. This business helps producers of oil, gas and electricity reduce air and noise pollution....

In addition to TransCanada (see page 41), we like the outlook of these four utilities. Like TransCanada, Emera and Fortis are expanding in the U.S. These purchases cut their reliance on Canada, and should enhance their earnings and dividends for years to come. Canadian Utilities and ATCO have both suffered lately due to their high exposure to Alberta, where low oil prices have hurt the economy and power prices. However, their new projects should let them continue to raise their dividends....

ATCO INC. $38 (www.atco.com) has increased its quarterly dividend by 15.2%, to $0.285 a share from $0.2475. The new annual rate of $1.14 yields 3.0%. ATCO has now raised the rate each year for the past 22 years. Best Buy.

TORONTO-DOMINION BANK $50 (www.td.com) owns 41.54% of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (Nasdaq symbol AMTD), one of the largest online brokerage firms in the U.S. TD expects Ameritrade will contribute $109 million (Canadian) to its earnings in its 2016 first quarter, which ended January 31, 2016, up 21.1% from $90 million a year earlier....

ATCO LTD. (Toronto symbols ACO.X [class I non-voting] $35 and ACO.Y [class II voting] $35; Income Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 115.1 million; Market cap: $4.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 3.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.atco.com) has sold its ATCO Emissions Management subsidiary for an undisclosed sum. This business helps producers of oil, gas and electricity reduce air and noise pollution. Small deals like this help simplify ATCO’s complex holding company structure, which should enhance its long-term value. The class I (X) non-voting shares are more liquid than the class II (Y) voting shares....

SHAWCOR LTD. $27 (Toronto symbol SCL; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares out- standing: 64.5 million; Market cap: $1.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 2.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.shawcor.com) has acquired certain businesses from Flint Field Services. These operations inspect and make plastic liners for pipelines. The company paid $35.5 million for the Flint businesses, which is equal to 93% of the $38.1 million, or $0.59 a share, it earned in the third quarter of 2015. The purchase will add $46 million to its annual revenue of $1.9 billion. ShawCor is a buy....