diversification

SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL $5.26 (Toronto symbol S; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800-704- 6698; www.sherritt.com; Shares outstanding: 296.7 million; Market cap: $1.6 billion; Dividend yield: 2.9%) is a diversified natural resource company that produces nickel, cobalt, thermal coal, oil and gas. It also manages 376 megawatts of power generation capacity in Cuba. Sherritt is a major nickel producer, with operations in Cuba and Canada. It is also close to finishing a mine at its 40%-owned Ambatovy project on the island nation of Madagascar, off Africa’s east coast. As well, Sherritt produces oil and gas in Cuba, Spain and Pakistan. It is also Canada’s largest thermal coal producer. In the three months ended March 31, 2012, Sherritt’s revenue fell 2.6%, to $462.2 million from $474.5 million a year earlier. Lower nickel prices were the main reason for the decline. Cash flow fell 17.0%, to $117 million, or $0.40 a share, from $141 million, or $0.48 a share. That was due to the lower revenue and higher production costs....

SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL $5.26 (Toronto symbol S; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800-704- 6698; www.sherritt.com; Shares outstanding: 296.7 million; Market cap: $1.6 billion; Dividend yield: 2.9%) is a diversified natural resource company that produces nickel, cobalt, thermal coal, oil and gas. It also manages 376 megawatts of power generation capacity in Cuba.

Sherritt is a major nickel producer, with operations in Cuba and Canada. It is also close to finishing a mine at its 40%-owned Ambatovy project on the island nation of Madagascar, off Africa’s east coast. As well, Sherritt produces oil and gas in Cuba, Spain and Pakistan. It is also Canada’s largest thermal coal producer.

In the three months ended March 31, 2012, Sherritt’s revenue fell 2.6%, to $462.2 million from $474.5 million a year earlier. Lower nickel prices were the main reason for the decline. Cash flow fell 17.0%, to $117 million, or $0.40 a share, from $141 million, or $0.48 a share. That was due to the lower revenue and higher production costs.

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CANADIAN REIT $38.74 (Toronto symbol REF.UN; Units outstanding: 67.6 million; Market cap: $2.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 3.7%; www.creit.ca) owns over 190 properties, including retail, industrial and office buildings, located across Canada and in the Chicago area. These properties contain over 24 million square feet of leasable area. Its occupancy rate is 94.4%. In the three months ended December 31, 2011, the real estate investment trust’s revenue rose 8.9%, to $90.0 million from $82.6 million a year earlier. Cash flow per unit rose 6.9%, to $0.62 from $0.58. The REIT bought $264.5 million of properties in 2011, including its June purchase of two fully leased malls in Mississauga, Ontario, for $174.4 million. In March 2012, it bought 50% of the 310,000- square-foot Altius Centre in Calgary for $89.9 million. In April, it paid $156.0 million for 50% of Calgary Place, a 575,000-square-foot office and retail complex, also in Calgary....

SCITI Trust, $13.69, symbol SIN.UN on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 21.4 million; Market cap: $293.0 million; www.scotiamanagedcompanies.com), first issued units at $10, and began trading on Toronto in April 2003. It was scheduled to wind up on April 29, 2008. However, unitholders voted to continue the trust in March 2008. SCITI Trust is now scheduled to wind up on August 13, 2013. The trust’s portfolio is based on the Scotia Capital High Yielding Equity Index, which tracks the highest yielding stocks and income trusts (mostly REITs) on the Toronto exchange. SCITI Trust now holds the top 50 highest-yielding issues in the index, on a roughly equal-weight basis. The trust’s top 10 holdings are Just Energy Group, Liquor Stores NA, Canexus Corp., Inter Pipeline Fund, Artis REIT, Cominar REIT, Dundee REIT, Poseidon Concepts, Sun Life Financial and Wajax Corp....

ISHARES MSCI EMERGING MARKETS INDEX FUND $44.33 (New York symbol EEM; buy or sell through brokers), is an exchange traded fund that aims to track the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. Its geographic breakdown includes: China, 17.6%; Brazil, 15.6%; South Korea, 14.7%; Taiwan, 10.7%; South Africa, 7.4%; India, 6.8%; Russia, 6.5%; Mexico, 4.4%; Malaysia, 3.3%; and Indonesia, 2.6%.

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index Fund’s top holdings are Samsung Electronics (South Korea: electronics), 3.2%; Gazprom (Russia: gas utility), 1.8%; China Mobile, 1.7%; Petrobras Petroleo preferred (Brazil: energy), 1.6%; Vale SA (Brazil: mining), 1.3%; Taiwan Semiconductor (Taiwan: computer chips), 1.3%; China Construction Bank (China: banking), 1.3%; America Movil (Brazil: wireless), 1.3%; Itau Unibanco Holding (Brazil: banking), 1.3%; and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (China: banking), 1.2%.

The fund’s industry breakdown is as follows: Financials, 24.0%; Energy, 14.4%; Materials, 13.4%; Information Technology, 13.3%; Consumer Staples, 7.7%; Consumer Discretionary, 7.7%; Telecommunication Services, 7.6%; Industrials, 7.0%; Utilities, 3.7%; and Health Care, 1.0%.

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SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL $5.58 (Toronto symbol S; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800-704-6698; www.sherritt.com; Shares outstanding: 296.7 million; Market cap: $1.7 billion; Dividend yield: 2.7%) reports that its revenue rose 10.6% in the three months ended December 31, 2011, to $536.8 million from $485.2 million a year earlier. Despite the higher revenue, earnings fell 34.2%, to $28.1 million, or $0.10 a share, from $42.7 million, or $0.15 a share. However, without one-time items, such as a charge for the early redemption of debentures, Sherritt would have earned $0.19 in the latest quarter....

SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL $5.58 (Toronto symbol S; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800-704-6698; www.sherritt.com;
Shares outstanding: 296.7 million; Market cap: $1.7 billion; Dividend yield: 2.7%) reports that its revenue rose 10.6% in the three months ended December 31, 2011, to $536.8 million from $485.2 million a year earlier.

Despite the higher revenue, earnings fell 34.2%, to $28.1 million, or $0.10 a share, from $42.7 million, or $0.15 a share. However, without one-time items, such as a charge for the early redemption of debentures, Sherritt would have earned $0.19 in the latest quarter.

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Every Wednesday, we publish our “Investor Toolkit” series on TSI Network. Whether you’re a new or experienced investor, these weekly updates are designed to give you specific investment advice on a wide range of topics, including the best strategies to use in international stock markets. Each Investor Toolkit update gives you a fundamental piece of investing strategy, and shows you how you can put it into practice right away. Today’s tip: “There are 3 convenient ways to invest in foreign growth without getting out of your comfort zone.”...

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) offer very low management fees. As well, the best ETFs offer well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios of high-quality stocks. We think conservative investors could hold up to, say, 10% of their portfolios in foreign stocks. You need to be highly selective with your ETF selections, but they’re a great way to hold those stocks. Here are six foreign ETFs we like:...

NEWMONT MINING $59.43 (New York symbol NEM; Shares outstanding: 488.2 million; Market cap: $29.0 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 2.4%; www.newmont.com) operates gold mines in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Peru, Indonesia and Ghana. The company’s worldwide diversification, plus its strong cash flow and balance sheet, make it our favourite gold stock for safety-conscious investors. In 2011, Newmont had record cash flow of $3.6 billion, or $7.27 a share, up 12.9% from $3.2 billion, or $6.46 a share, in 2010. The company holds cash of $1.8 billion, or $3.61 a share. Its long-term debt of $3.6 billion is a low 11.7% of market cap....