price to sales ratio
SUNCOR ENERGY INC. $31 (Toronto symbol SU; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 1.4 billion; Market cap: $43.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.5; Dividend yield: 3.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.suncor.com) has extended its hostile all-stock takeover offer for Canadian Oil Sands (Toronto symbol COS) to January 27, 2016. Under the proposal, Canadian Oil Sands investors would still receive 0.25 of a Suncor share for each share they own. Based on Suncor’s current share price, the offer is worth $3.8 billion. Suncor hoped to wrap up the deal on January 8. However, it seems less than 50% of Canadian Oil Sands’ shareholders supported the offer, which was short of the two-thirds Suncor needs to complete the purchase....
We recommend that you limit aggressive holdings to 30% of your overall portfolio (10% for more conservative investors). That’s especially true in light of the recent stock market volatility. We like the long-term outlook for these five aggressive stocks. However, only four are buys right now. RIOCAN REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST $23 (Toronto symbol REI.UN; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Units outstanding: 320.4 million; Market cap: $7.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 5.7; Dividend yield: 6.1%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.riocan.com) owns all or part of 305 shopping centres in Canada, including 16 under development....
SAPUTO INC. $32 (Toronto symbol SAP; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 392.9 million; Market cap: $12.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.2; Dividend yield: 1.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.saputo.com) reported that its sales rose 3.4% in its fiscal 2016 second quarter, which ended September 30, 2015, to $2.8 billion from $2.7 billion a year earlier....
CANADIAN UTILITIES LTD. (Toronto symbols CU [class A non-voting] $31 and CU.X [class B voting] $31; Income Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 265.2 million; Market cap: $8.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.6; Dividend yield: 4.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.canadianutilities.com) is down 24% in the past year, largely due to concerns over Alberta’s slowing economy and new carbon taxes. However, most of the company’s 11 plants in the province generate power by burning natural gas, which produces fewer emissions than coal. Meanwhile, Canadian Utilities has raised its quarterly dividend by 10.2%, to $0.325 a share from $0.295. The new annual rate of $1.30 yields 4.2%. The company has now raised its payout each year since 1972. Canadian Utilities class A stock is a buy....
BLACKBERRY LTD. $10 (Toronto symbol BB; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 525.7 million; Market cap: $5.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.7; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative; www.blackberry.com) continues to expand its software business, which provides it with recurring licensing fees and cuts its reliance on selling smartphones. The company recently paid $250 million for AtHoc, whose software lets users securely exchange messages during crises (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars.). AtHoc’s clients include the U.S. defence and homeland security departments. BlackBerry also bought Good Technology, whose software improves the security of messages sent through mobile devices, for $425 million....
Enbridge and TransCanada are facing strong opposition to their big pipeline proposals, so they’re focusing on smaller projects instead. This will give both companies more cash for dividends, but we feel TransCanada is the better buy right now. ENBRIDGE INC. $43 (Toronto symbol ENB; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 867.6 million; Market cap: $37.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.1; Dividend yield: 4.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.enbridge.com) received regulatory approval for its $7.9-billion Northern Gateway pipeline in June 2014. This project would pump crude from Alberta to Kitimat, B.C. From there, tankers would ship it to customers in Asia. However, Ottawa recently banned oil tankers off the northern B.C. coast. Meanwhile, Enbridge is making progress on its ambitious $38-billion growth plan, which includes expanding its oil and gas pipelines and wind farms. The company will finish building these projects between 2016 and 2019....
ANDREW PELLER LTD. $20 (Toronto symbol ADW.A; Income Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 14.3 million; Market cap: $286.0 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.9; Dividend yield: 2.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.andrewpeller.com) is Canada’s second-largest wine producer, after Constellation Brands. Peller continues to successfully launch premium-priced brands. In the second quarter of its 2016 fiscal year, which ended September 30, 2015, the company’s sales rose 2.9%, to $85.2 million from $82.8 million a year earlier. Earnings jumped 41.7%, to $0.51 a share from $0.36. Without unusual items, such as losses on hedging contracts Peller uses to lock in foreign exchange rates, earnings gained 58.1%. Andrew Peller is a buy....
ATCO LTD. (Toronto symbols ACO.X [class I non-voting] $35 and ACO.Y [class II voting] $35; Income Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 115.1 million; Market cap: $4.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 3.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.atco.com) has sold its ATCO Emissions Management subsidiary for an undisclosed sum. This business helps producers of oil, gas and electricity reduce air and noise pollution. Small deals like this help simplify ATCO’s complex holding company structure, which should enhance its long-term value. The class I (X) non-voting shares are more liquid than the class II (Y) voting shares....
BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $53 (Toronto symbol BNS; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $63.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.9; Dividend yield: 5.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.scotiabank.com) is considering selling all or part of its 49% stake in Thailand’s Thanachart Bank, which has a book value of $2.4 billion. Like many Asian nations, Thailand prohibits foreign firms from controlling domestic banks. Economic weakness and political uncertainty have also hurt loan demand in the country. Bank of Nova Scotia would probably use the proceeds from any sale to expand in Latin America. In 2015, it acquired 51% of Chilean retailer Cencosud’s credit card and consumer loan operations, making Scotiabank that country’s third-largest credit card lender. It also acquired Citibank’s retail banking businesses in Peru, Panama and Costa Rica....
CANADIAN IMPERIAL BANK OF COMMERCE $87 (Toronto symbol CM; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 397.3 million; Market cap: $34.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.7; Dividend yield: 5.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.cibc.com) is Canada’s fifth-largest bank, with total assets of $463.3 billion. CIBC has built up its Canadian banking operations in the past few years, and this business now supplies 62% of its earnings. It gets a further 25% from its capital markets division, which provides brokerage and underwriting services in Canada, the U.S. and other countries. The remaining 13% comes from its wealth management division, which has $304.8 billion in assets under administration and management.