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TELUS CORP. $43.80 (Toronto symbol T.A; Shares outstanding: 335.6 million; Market cap: $14.7 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.8%; www.telus.com) expects its revenue to rise between 1% and 4% in 2011. As well, its earnings per share should rise 9% to 22%, to between $3.50 and $3.90. The stock now trades at 11.8 times the midpoint of that range. The gains will mainly come from Telus’ recently upgraded wireless and high-speed Internet networks. That’s helping the company attract new customers and deal with new competitors in Canada’s wireless market. Telus is still a buy....

Riverbed Technology Inc., $37.26, symbol RVBD on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 73.5 million; Market cap: $2.7 billion, www.riverbed.com), is a leader in wide area network (WAN) optimization. As more workers move outside the office and computer users increasingly access remote datacenters, programs and data that were initially intended for local area networks (LAN) are being slowed down by WAN connections, which have less bandwidth capacity. Riverbed’s products aim to improve the performance of programs, and increase data transmission speed across networks, while lowering the need to add new hardware. Riverbed’s sales and profits are rising. Most important, it’s making sales to large, well-established customers in a range of industries....

Shaw Communications, $20.70, symbol SJR.B on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 463.6 million; Market cap: $9.0 billion, www.shaw.ca), is Canada’s largest cable-television operator, with 2.3 million basic cable subscribers in Alberta, B.C., Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario. The company also owns Shaw Direct, which has 902,000 satellite subscribers. Shaw also provides high-speed Internet and telephone services. Shaw trades at 14.7 times this year’s forecast earnings of $1.41 a share. The shares yield a high 4.3%. However, the company faces strong competition for Internet subscribers from Telus Corp., $44.66, symbol T.A on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 320.7 million; Market cap: $14.7 billion). As well, Telus offers an Internet-based television service, which it is planning to expand....

We display our TSINetwork ratings (Highest Quality, Above Average, Average, Extra Risk, Speculative and Start-up) next to every stock we recommend in our newsletters — including our flagship publication, The Successful Investor. We designed our TSINetwork ratings to help you quickly and easily identify great stock picks for long-term profits. These stocks have the asset size and investment quality to weather market downturns and changing industry conditions. Here are three factors we consider when we assign a rating to a stock....

IMPERIAL OIL $37.45 (Toronto symbol IMO; Shares outstanding: 847.6 million; Market cap: $31.7 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 1.2%; www.imperialoil.com) owns 70% of the massive Kearl oil-sands project in Alberta. Imperial’s parent company, ExxonMobil Corp. owns the remaining 30%. It will cost a total of $8 billion to bring Kearl into operation. Imperial’s share is $5.6 billion. Imperial has made some changes to this project. That will add to Kearl’s initial costs, but will raise its expected production by 5%. Meanwhile, Imperial’s earnings fell 23.6% in the three months ended September 30, 2010, to $418 million, or $0.49 a share. A year earlier, it earned $547 million, or $0.64 a share. Planned maintenance at Imperial’s oil-sands operations pushed down production by 7.0% in the latest quarter. That was the main reason for the earnings drop....

In the past few years, Telus has invested heavily in its wireless networks. These upgrades have been costly, but they are paying off, particularly as more people use mobile devices to access the Internet. The shift to wireless has forced Telus to restructure its traditional phone business. One-time costs, including severance payments, have held back its earnings in the past two years. The company has completed most of these changes, so its earnings should start rising again. As well, its improving outlook is freeing up more cash for dividends. TELUS CORP. (Toronto symbols T $45 and T.A $43; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 320.7 million; Market cap: $14.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.5; Dividend yield: 4.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.telus.com) is Canada’s second-largest telephone company after BCE Inc. (Toronto symbol BCE, see Updating BCE Inc., Royal Bank of Canada and Pengrowth Energy Trust)....

BCE INC. $33 (www.bce.ca) earned $621 million before unusual items in the three months ended September 30, 2010, down 4.3% from $649 million a year earlier. Because of fewer shares outstanding, earnings per share fell 2.4%, to $0.82 from $0.84. The company had a lower tax bill in the year-earlier period. This was the main reason behind the lower earnings. Best Buy. ROYAL BANK OF CANADA $54 (www.rbc.com) continues to expand in Asia. It recently paid an undisclosed sum for the Hong Kong-based wealth management business of Belgium bank BNP Paribus Fortis. This purchase will help Royal profit from China’s growing middle class, who are preparing for retirement. Buy. PENGROWTH ENERGY TRUST $12 (www.pengrowth.com) saw its cash flow per share fall 14.3% in the latest quarter, to $0.54 from $0.63 a year earlier. That’s because unusually wet weather cut its combined oil and natural-gas production by 3.7%. Buy.

BCE INC. $33.76 (Toronto symbol BCE; Shares outstanding: 755.6 million; Market cap: $25.5 billion; SI Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 5.4%; www.bce.ca) provides telephone and Internet services in Ontario and Quebec. It also sells wireless and satellite-TV services across Canada. In the three months ended June 30, 2010, BCE’s revenue rose 3.3%, to $4.4 billion from $4.3 billion in the prior year. Before one-time items, earnings rose 32.8%, to $0.77 from $0.58. Strong demand for wireless and television services offset falling revenue from the company’s traditional telephone operations. As well, the company bought “The Source” chain of electronics stores in 2009, as well as the remaining 50% of the Virgin Mobile Canada joint venture. BCE is buying full control of CTVglobemedia, the private company that owns the 27-station CTV Television Network. CTVglobemedia also owns 30 specialty channels, 34 radio stations and The Globe and Mail newspaper. Right now, BCE owns 15% of CTVglobemedia. It will pay $1.3 billion for the remaining 85%. Following the purchase, BCE will sell 85% of The Globe and Mail to Woodbridge Co....

BCE is using its strong cash flow of almost $6 billion a year to make acquisitions and add to its services. That will help fuel the company’s long-term growth. It will also let BCE keep expanding and improving its wireless and high-speed Internet networks, buying back shares and paying (and possibly raising) its dividend. BCE INC. $33.76 (Toronto symbol BCE; Shares outstanding: 755.6 million; Market cap: $25.5 billion; SI Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 5.4%; www.bce.ca) provides telephone and Internet services in Ontario and Quebec. It also sells wireless and satellite-TV services across Canada. In the three months ended June 30, 2010, BCE’s revenue rose 3.3%, to $4.4 billion from $4.3 billion in the prior year. Before one-time items, earnings rose 32.8%, to $0.77 from $0.58. Strong demand for wireless and television services offset falling revenue from the company’s traditional telephone operations. As well, the company bought “The Source” chain of electronics stores in 2009, as well as the remaining 50% of the Virgin Mobile Canada joint venture....

TORSTAR CORP. $13 (Toronto symbol TS.B; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 79.1 million; Market cap: $1.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.7; Dividend yield: 2.8%; SI Rating: Above Average) will get $345 million for its 20% of CTVglobemedia, which BCE is acquiring. That’s roughly a third of Torstar’s market cap. Torstar may use some of this cash to reduce its long-term debt of $519.2 million. That would cut its interest costs, and free up cash for expanded Internet growth. Torstar recently paid an undisclosed sum for the 86% of travelalerts.ca that it did not already own. This site offers travel information and links to airfares....