dividends paid

SYMANTEC CORP. $15.07 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; SI Rating: Average) (1-408-517-8000; www.symantec.com; Shares outstanding: 798.9 million; Market cap: $12.0 billion; No dividends paid) is buying the identity and authentication operations of VeriSign Inc. for $1.3 billion. This business makes Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) software certificates, which web site operators use to cut down on fraud and identity theft. Over 2.3 million web sites use VeriSign’s certificates, which makes it the leader in this market. Symantec sees VeriSign’s technology as a good fit with its existing data-security products. As well, demand for these products should continue to rise as more businesses shift to a cloud-computing model. That’s where data and software are kept on one or more centralized computer networks....

GABRIEL RESOURCES $4.95 (Toronto symbol GBU; SI Rating: Speculative) (416-955-9200; www.gabrielresources.com; Shares outstanding: 341.0 million; Market cap: $1.7 billion) is up almost 30% since early June after Romania’s supreme court ordered the country’s environment ministry to award approvals for the company’s Cetate and Corna dams. The dams are necessary for Gabriel’s Rosia Montana project. The decision regarding the dams is a step forward, but the environment ministry has still not said when it will restart the environmental-review process for the entire Rosia Montana project. Some Romanian political parties and environmental groups argue that Rosia Montana would destroy ancient Roman mines. As well, the company will use cyanide to extract the gold. The mine’s opponents contend that this would harm the environment....

AMERICAN WOODMARK $21.45 (Nasdaq symbol AMWD; SI Rating: Speculative) (540-665-9100; www.americanwoodmark.com; Shares outstanding: 14.2 million; Market cap: $303.9 million; Dividend yield: 1.7%) is a U.S.-based maker of cabinets for kitchens and bathrooms. It offers more than 380 cabinet lines in a variety of designs, materials and finishes. The company mainly sells its cabinets through a network of dealers and distributors. It also sells them directly to major homebuilders and retailers, such as Home Depot. American Woodmark operates 14 plants and 10 builder centres across the U.S. In the three months ended April 30, 2010, American Woodmark lost $1.5 million, or $0.11 a share. A year earlier, it lost $2.9 million, or $0.21. Sales fell 20.1%, to $112.4 million from $140.7 million. ...

DUNDEE CORP. $13 (Toronto symbol DC.A; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 73.8 million; Market cap: $959.4 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.9; No dividends paid; SI Rating: Average) is a holding company with subsidiaries in three main areas: wealth management, real estate and resources. In the three months ended March 31, 2010, Dundee earned $23.9 million, or $0.27 a share. That’s a big improvement over the $8.2 million, or $0.11 a share, it lost a year earlier. In the latest quarter, Dundee realized an $18.6-million gain on the sale of securities. In the year-earlier quarter, it wrote down $9.0 million of securities. That was the main reason for the improved earnings. Dundee is a hold.

Consumer confidence is rising in the U.S., but the recovery remains fragile. To cut your risk, we look for consumer companies with well-known brands, like these three clothing retailers. Their strong brands should help them keep increasing sales, both in the U.S. and overseas. But only two are buys right now. LIMITED BRANDS INC. $24 (New York symbol LTD; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 323.4 million; Market cap: $7.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.9; Dividend yield: 2.5%; WSSF Rating: Average) operates two main retail chains: Victoria’s Secret (lingerie) and Bath & Body Works (soaps and bath oils). It also operates the La Senza lingerie chain in Canada and 30 other countries. Limited has introduced new products that are lifting its sales and increasing customer visits. As well, its Victoria’s Secret chain has introduced several low-priced items to attract cost-conscious shoppers....

AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES INC. $31 (New York symbol A; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 348.0 million; Market cap: $10.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.3; No dividends paid; WSSF Rating: Average) makes testing systems that help manufacturers improve the quality of electronic products, such as cellphones and high-speed Internet equipment. It also makes measurement equipment for medical-research labs and drug developers. The company has completed its $1.5-billion purchase of California-based Varian Inc. Varian makes a wide range of medical and drug-testing equipment, such as mass spectrometers that detect and measure substances in blood and other patient samples. It also makes vacuum pumps and equipment that helps keep labs clean. Medical-equipment demand is much less cyclical than electronic-testing products. As well, clients must buy replenishable materials, like filters, for Varian’s products. That gives Agilent a new source of recurring revenue. So adding Varian cuts Agilent’s risk....

SYMANTEC CORP. $14 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 798.9 million; Market cap: $11.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.9; No dividends paid; WSSF Rating: Average) is buying the identity and authentication operations of VeriSign Inc. (Nasdaq symbol VRSN). This business makes Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) software certificates, which web site operators use to cut down on fraud and identitytheft. SSL certificates protect sensitive data, such as names and credit-card numbers, that customers send to web sites when they order products online. Over 2.3 million web sites use VeriSign’s certificates, which makes it the leader in this market. However, this business faces increasing competition from cheaper, though less secure, products. Still, Symantec sees VeriSign’s technology as a good fit with its existing data-security products. Symantec is paying $1.3 billion for these operations. To put this figure in context, Symantec earned $1.2 billion, or $1.51 a share, in its latest fiscal year, which ended April 2, 2010. The deal should close by September 30. The company expects the purchase to lower its earnings by $0.09 a share in its 2011 fiscal year. However, the new business will begin adding to its earnings by September 2011....

ZHONGPIN INC. $12.27 (Nasdaq symbol HOGS; SI Rating: Extra Risk) (086-10-8286-1788; www.zpfood.com; Shares outstanding: 34.7 million; Market cap: $426.1 million; No dividends paid) is a China-based company that processes meat and other foods. The company specializes in pork and pork products, as well as fruit and vegetables. It sells 358 meat products, including chilled pork, frozen pork and prepared meats, as well as 34 fruit and vegetable products. Zhongpin focuses on prepared meat products, with their higher profit margins, rather than bulk pork. The company has 12 processing plants, and sells its foods through over 3,200 retail stores. These outlets consist of 145 independently owned Zhongpin specialty boutiques, 1,012 Zhongpin retail stores and 2,048 exclusive supermarket counter locations. Aside from retail outlets, Zhongpin sells its foods to domestic and international fast-food chains, such as McDonald’s and KFC. Other customers include school cafeterias, factory canteens and army posts. In the three months ended March 31, 2010, revenue rose 32.8%, to $204.3 million from $153.8 million a year earlier. Earnings rose 36%, to $13.3 million, or $0.38 a share, from $9.7 million, or $0.33 a share. The company’s $144.1 million of debt is a manageable 33.8% of its market cap. It holds cash of $56.4 million, or $1.63 a share....

CALIAN TECHNOLOGIES $17.65 (Toronto symbol CTY; SI Rating: Speculative) (613-599-8600; www.calian.com; Shares outstanding: 7.8 million; Market cap: $137.5 million Dividend yield: 4.5%) operates in two areas: The business and technology services division accounts for 67% of Calian’s revenue and provides engineers, health-care workers and other skilled professionals to clients on a contract basis. The systems-engineering division contributes the remaining 33% of revenue and sells hardware and software that is used for testing, operating and managing satellite and other communication systems. In the three months ended March 31, 2010, Calian’s earnings fell 40.7%, to $3.1 million, or $0.40 a share, from $5.2 million, or $0.67 a share, a year earlier. Revenue fell 11.3%, to $53.1 million from $59.9 million. Several unusually large satellite-engineering projects pushed up results in the year-earlier quarter. Calian’s order backlog stands at $970 million, or about four years of revenue. It holds cash of $36.3 million, or $4.65 a share, and has no debt. The company raised its quarterly dividend by 17.6%, to $0.20 from $0.17, with the March 2010 payment. The shares now yield 4.5% on an annualized basis....

FIRSTSERVICE CORP. $23.95 (Toronto symbol FSV; SI Rating: Extra Risk) (416-960-9500; www.firstservice.com; Shares outstanding: 28.5 million; Market cap: $683.2 million; No dividends paid) is making a major investment in Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler (Colliers B&K), which is Chicago’s leading commercial real-estate services firm. Terms were not disclosed. Colliers B&K manages 50 million square feet of property and employs more than 200 real-estate agents and property managers. Adding Colliers B&K will help FirstService expand its commercial real-estate brokerage operations in the key Chicago market....