oil prices
SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL, $0.81, symbol S on Toronto, has suspended its $0.01-a-share quarterly dividend to conserve cash. The company had previously cut its payout from $0.043 a quarter to $0.01 in early 2014. Nickel prices have fallen 32%, to $4.50 U.S. a pound, since it made that cut. The elimination of the dividend should save $12 million a year. Sherritt has also said it will cut its 2016 capital spending by as much as 25% to 35%. Earlier this year, it lowered its planned 2015 capital spending to $195 million from $210 million....
SUNCOR ENERGY INC., $35.07, Toronto symbol SU, has agreed to buy an additional 10.0% of the Fort Hills oil sands project in northern Alberta from France’s Total S.A. Following the purchase, Suncor will own 50.8% of Fort Hills, while Total will hold 29.2%. Teck Resources (see below) will continue to own the remaining 20.0%. Owning a majority interest will make it easier for Suncor to cut costs and make other changes in response to low crude prices....
CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY LTD. $190 (Toronto symbol CP; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 161.3 million; Market cap: $30.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 4.5; Dividend yield: 0.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.cpr.ca) transports freight over a 22,000-kilometre rail network between Montreal and Vancouver, as well as hubs in the U.S....
ISHARES MSCI SOUTH KOREA INDEX FUND $47.66 (New York symbol EWY; buy or sell through brokers) aims to track the MSCI Korea Index.
The ETF’s top holdings are Samsung Electronics, 19.1%; Hyundai Motor, 3.8%; SK Hynix Semiconductor, 3.7%; Shinhan Financial, 3.0%; KB Financial, 2.4%; Hyundai Mobis (auto parts), 2.4%; Naver (Internet), 2.4%; Korea Electric Power, 2.2%; Kia Motors, 2.2%; Posco (steel), 2.2%; Korea Electric Power, 2.2%; KT&G Corp. (tobacco), 2.0%; and AmorePacific Corp. (cosmetics), 2.0%;
The iShares MSCI South Korea Index Fund was launched on May 9, 2000. Its expense ratio is 0.62%.
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The ETF’s top holdings are Samsung Electronics, 19.1%; Hyundai Motor, 3.8%; SK Hynix Semiconductor, 3.7%; Shinhan Financial, 3.0%; KB Financial, 2.4%; Hyundai Mobis (auto parts), 2.4%; Naver (Internet), 2.4%; Korea Electric Power, 2.2%; Kia Motors, 2.2%; Posco (steel), 2.2%; Korea Electric Power, 2.2%; KT&G Corp. (tobacco), 2.0%; and AmorePacific Corp. (cosmetics), 2.0%;
The iShares MSCI South Korea Index Fund was launched on May 9, 2000. Its expense ratio is 0.62%.
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Don’t let yourself get caught up in a tide of optimism or pessimism when it comes to stock market advice
Mosaic Capital Corp., $6.99, symbol M on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 8.5 million; Market cap: $59.3 million; www.mosaicfund.com), acquires majority stakes in small industrial companies in what it sees as mature market niches. Right now, it controls 11 firms, including one commercial real estate investment company, all in Western Canada. These holdings are: Printing Unlimited (100% interest), First West Properties (100%), Remote Waste (98%), Kendall’s Supply (90%), Polar Geomatic (90%), Allied Cathodic (80%), Ambassador Mechanical (75%), Place-Crete Systems (75%), South East Construction (75%), Streamline Mechanical (70%) and Industrial Scaffold Services (67.5%). In the three months ended June 30, 2015, Mosaic’s revenue jumped 42.0%, to $50.1 million from $35.2 million a year earlier. That’s mostly due to contributions from Place-Crete (acquired in September 2014) and South East Construction (November 2014). Mosaic lost $0.32 a share, compared to a $0.14-a-share profit a year ago, but cash flow per share fell only slightly, to $0.62 from $0.63....
We recommended Canadian Pacific Ltd. in our very first issue in January 1995. At that time, CP held a variety of businesses beyond railways, such as hotels, coal, and oil and gas. We saw these as undervalued assets. In 2001, CP unlocked some of this hidden value by spinning off these businesses as separate firms. As a stand-alone railway, we still felt CP had plenty of room to improve. A prominent American hedge firm shared our opinion, and in 2012, it installed former CN Rail chief executive Hunter Harrison as CP’s new CEO. Thanks to a major costcutting plan, CP hit a record high of $248 in October 2014. The stock has moved down lately on slowing volumes of grain, oil, coal and other commodities. However, CP’s improving efficiency sets it up for more gains as the economy rebounds....
A reputation for friendlier service, lower fuel costs and 41 consecutive profitable quarters help make WestJet one of our top value stocks.
We think conservative investors could hold up to 10% of their portfolios in foreign stocks. One way to do that is to buy carefully chosen exchange traded funds (ETFs) that have an overseas focus. The best ETFs offer very low management fees and well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios of highquality stocks. Here’s a look at five international ETFs:...
