monthly dividend

ARC RESOURCES $24.16 (Toronto symbol ARX; Shares outstanding: 335.0 million; Market cap: $8.2 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative; Dividend yield: 5.1%; www.arcresources.com) produces oil and natural gas in Western Canada. Its average daily output of 117,986 barrels of oil equivalent is 61% gas and 39% oil. In the quarter ended December 31, 2014, ARC’s cash flow per share rose 3.9%, to $0.79 from $0.76 a year earlier. Realized oil prices fell 12.5%, to $72.49 a barrel from $82.85, but ARC’s production gained 17.0%, and its realized gas prices rose 15.0%. Like many oil and gas producers, ARC plans to cut back on exploration and development spending. This year, the company will devote $750.0 million to this purpose, down from $945.5 million in 2014....
PENGROWTH ENERGY CORP. $4.15 (Toronto symbol PGF; Aggressive Growth and Income Portfolios, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 530.2 million; Market cap: $2.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.8; Dividend yield: 5.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.pengrowth.com) recently started up its Lindbergh oil sands project in eastern Alberta, which should produce 16,000 barrels a day by the end of 2015.

Due to falling oil prices and Lindbergh’s completion, Pengrowth plans to spend $200 million to upgrade and maintain its properties in 2015, down 74.0% from $770 million last year.

But even with the lower spending, Pengrowth expects to produce between 73,000 and 75,000 barrels a day (57% oil and liquids, 43% natural gas) in 2015, or about 1.5% more than in 2014, thanks to Lindbergh.

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ENERPLUS CORP. $13.06 (Toronto symbol ERF; Shares outstanding: 205.4 million; Market cap: $2.7 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 4.6%) produces an average of 105,591 barrels of oil equivalent a day (56% gas and 44% oil). The company’s properties are mainly in Alberta, Saskatchewan, B.C., North Dakota and Montana, as well as the Marcellus shale, which passes through Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio and West Virginia.

In the quarter ended December 31, 2014, Enerplus’s production rose 12.1% from a year earlier. That increase, plus higher realized gas prices, pushed cash flow per share up 15.7%, to $1.03 from $0.89.

Like ARC, Enerplus will cut spending this year. Its outlays will now total $480 million, down 24.4% from its original estimate of $635 million and 40.8% from $811.0 million in 2014.

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ARC RESOURCES $24.16 (Toronto symbol ARX; Shares outstanding: 335.0 million; Market cap: $8.2 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative; Dividend yield: 5.1%; www.arcresources.com) produces oil and natural gas in Western Canada. Its average daily output of 117,986 barrels of oil equivalent is 61% gas and 39% oil.

In the quarter ended December 31, 2014, ARC’s cash flow per share rose 3.9%, to $0.79 from $0.76 a year earlier. Realized oil prices fell 12.5%, to $72.49 a barrel from $82.85, but ARC’s production gained 17.0%, and its realized gas prices rose 15.0%.

Like many oil and gas producers, ARC plans to cut back on exploration and development spending. This year, the company will devote $750.0 million to this purpose, down from $945.5 million in 2014.

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PENGROWTH ENERGY CORP. $4.15 (Toronto symbol PGF; Aggressive Growth and Income Portfolios, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 530.2 million; Market cap: $2.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.8; Dividend yield: 5.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.pengrowth.com) recently started up its Lindbergh oil sands project in eastern Alberta, which should produce 16,000 barrels a day by the end of 2015. Due to falling oil prices and Lindbergh’s completion, Pengrowth plans to spend $200 million to upgrade and maintain its properties in 2015, down 74.0% from $770 million last year. But even with the lower spending, Pengrowth expects to produce between 73,000 and 75,000 barrels a day (57% oil and liquids, 43% natural gas) in 2015, or about 1.5% more than in 2014, thanks to Lindbergh....
POWER CORP. $31.38 (Toronto symbol POW; Shares outstanding: 412.6 million; Market cap: $15.1 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Divd. yield: 3.7%; www.powercorporation.com) is a diversified holding company. It holds its financial assets through 65.7%-owned Power Financial. These financial assets include 68.1% of Great- West Lifeco, one of Canada’s largest life insurers, and 58.7% of IGM Financial, a leading Canadian mutual fund provider. Power Financial also owns 50% of holding company Parjointco, which holds 55.5% of Switzerland- listed Pargesa Holdings SA. Pargesa has 95% of its assets in five large European companies: Imerys (minerals), Total SA (oil), Pernod Ricard (wine and spirits), SGS (inspection, testing and certification services) and Lafarge (cement and building materials). Power Corp. also has investments in Asia....
CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY LTD., $218.78, Toronto symbol CP, has agreed to form a 50/50 joint venture with DREAM Unlimited Corp., Toronto symbol DRM. This new business—called DREAM Van Horne Properties—will redevelop several of CP’s real estate holdings, including surplus land near its rail lines in Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton and Chicago. This venture should help CP unlock some of these assets’ hidden value. Meanwhile, CP earned $460 million in the quarter ended December 31, 2014, up 36.1% from $338 million a year earlier. Earnings per share jumped 40.3%, to $2.68 from $1.91, on fewer shares outstanding. That beat the consensus estimate of $2.58....
CARFINCO FINANCIAL $8.80 (Toronto symbol CFN; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-888-486-4356; www.carfinco.com; Shares outstanding: 26.5 million; Market cap: $232.9 million; Dividend yield: 3.4%) is down sharply since mid-January from $11.25 to today’s price. The company provides car loans to consumers who don’t meet the criteria of traditional lenders, like banks. In November 2014, Carfinco’s shareholders voted to accept a friendly $11.25-a-share takeover bid from Spain’s Banco Santander SA (ADR symbol SAN on New York). The company’s directors and executive officers, who collectively own a 12.9% stake, also agreed to support the sale. But neither Carfinco nor Santander have announced anything about the $268-million deal, which was expected to close by the end of 2014 or early this year. Santander has been in the news lately with the appointment of a new executive chairman, a share issue to raise 7.5 billion euros ($10.4 billion Canadian) to shore up its capital base and a dividend cut....
BONAVISTA ENERGY $6.56 (Toronto symbol BNP; Shares outstanding: 203.4 million; Market cap: $1.5 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 6.4%; www.bonavistaenergy.com) explores for oil and natural gas in Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. Its production is 69% gas and 31% oil.

In the three months ended September 30, 2014, Bonavista’s cash flow per share fell 1.6%, to $0.60 from $0.61 a year earlier.

Production rose just 1.5%, to 74,720 barrels of oil equivalent a day from 73,632. However, that’s because Bonavista sold heavy-oil projects, which are less of a focus for the company.

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PENGROWTH ENERGY $3.35 (Toronto symbol PGF; Shares outstanding: 530.1 million; Market cap: $1.8 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 14.3%; www.pengrowth.com) has started injecting steam into its Lindbergh oil sands project in Alberta to loosen the tar-like bitumen and pump it to the surface.

Pengrowth believes that Lindbergh’s low operating costs will let it generate positive cash flow, even at today’s depressed oil prices.

As well, now that construction on Lindbergh has ended, the company’s 2015 capital spending will fall sharply from the $740 million to $770 million it probably spent in 2014.

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