commodity

SNC-LAVALIN GROUP INC. $40 (Toronto symbol SNC; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 149.8 million; Market cap: $6.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.6; Dividend yield: 2.5%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.snclavalin.com) has won a contract from the United Arab Emirate’s state-owned aluminum company to supply engineering services to its two smelters. SNC did not say how much the deal is worth, but it should complete the work in July 2018. The company’s $12.7-billion order backlog, as of September 30, 2015, is equal to 1.3 times its annual revenue. However, oil and mining jobs account for a third of that total. Low commodity prices could force these clients to postpone or cancel these projects. SNC-Lavalin is a hold....

These 13 tips will let you create a list of penny stocks that will help you generate investment profits.

BCE INC., $58.16, Toronto symbol BCE, continues to benefit from strong demand for its wireless, high-speed Internet and Fibe TV services. That’s offsetting weaker revenue from traditional telephone services. In the three months ended December 31, 2015, the company’s earnings rose 0.8%, to $615 million from $610 million a year earlier. Per-share profits were unchanged at $0.72 on more shares outstanding. These figures exclude unusual items, such as costs related to acquisitions and early debt repayments. On that basis, the latest earnings matched the consensus estimate....

CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY $159.03 (Toronto symbol CP; Shares outstanding: 153.8 million; Market cap: $25.5 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Yield: 0.9%; www.cpr.ca) reported 5.9% lower freight volumes in the latest quarter, mainly because of falling prices for oil, minerals and other commodities. In the three months ended December 31, 2015, CP earned $419 million, down 8.9% from $460 million a year earlier. However, per-share earnings gained 1.5%, to $2.72 from $2.68, on fewer shares outstanding. Revenue fell 4.1%, to $1.69 billion from $1.76 billion. Still, revenue from forest products jumped 20.4%, and fertilizer shipments rose 18.0%....

CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY $159.03 (Toronto symbol CP; Shares outstanding: 153.8 million; Market cap: $25.5 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Yield: 0.9%; www.cpr.ca) reported 5.9% lower freight volumes in the latest quarter, mainly because of falling prices for oil, minerals and other commodities. In the three months ended December 31, 2015, CP earned $419 million, down 8.9% from $460 million a year earlier. However, per-share earnings gained 1.5%, to $2.72 from $2.68, on fewer shares outstanding. Revenue fell 4.1%, to $1.69 billion from $1.76 billion. Still, revenue from forest products jumped 20.4%, and fertilizer shipments rose 18.0%....

Selling your oil company stocks at the bottom is a bad idea.

North West Company Inc. $28.42, symbol NWC on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 48.5 million; Market cap: $1.4 billion; www.northwest.ca), sells food and everyday products and services through 225 stores, mainly in northern communities across Canada and Alaska. It also operates stores in remote regions of Hawaii, the South Pacific and the Caribbean. North West converted from an income trust to a conventional corporation on January 1, 2011. In 2002, North West and privately held Giant Tiger signed a 30-year agreement that grants North West the exclusive right to open and operate Giant Tiger stores in Western Canada. Ottawa-based Giant Tiger operates over 200 discount stores that sell value-priced clothing, food and seasonal merchandise....

PLEASE NOTE: One week from today, on January 29, 2016, shortly after the stock market closes at 4:00 p.m. Toronto time, we will reveal our top U.S. stocks for 2016 to subscribers of Wall Street Stock Forecaster.

You can be among the first to hear about our top picks for 2016....

We’re still positive on the long-term outlook for stocks. But in a time of rising market volatility, plunging commodity prices and international tension, it’s more important than ever to diversify, rather than focus on a single pick of the year. Moreover, we find lots of attractive long-term buys among the stocks we cover.

With that in mind, we’ve chosen to highlight three picks from our Stock Pickers Digest recommendations....

SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL $0.65 (Toronto symbol S; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800-704-6698; www.sherritt.com; Shares outstanding: 293.9 million; Market cap: $199.8 million; No dividends paid) owns 40% of the Ambatovy nickel mine on the island nation of Madagascar, off Africa’s east coast. The $5.3-billion U.S. project started up in 2015. However, nickel prices have fallen sharply, from $12.00 U.S. a pound in January 2011 to $3.87 today. To reflect the lower value of the mine’s reserves, Sherritt will now take a $1.6-billion after-tax writedown on the value of its Ambatovy stake. The charge will show up in its 2015 fourth-quarter results....