stock picks

Canadian National Railway Co. (Toronto symbol CNR) operates Canada’s largest freight rail network, and serves 16 U.S. states. CN is one of the Canadian stock picks we analyze in our Successful Investor newsletter. In 2010, CN earned $2.1 billion, or $4.48 a share. That’s up 13.5% from $1.8 billion, or $3.92 a share, in 2009. Excluding one-time items in both years, such as an after-tax gain of $131 million on the sale of a southern Ontario rail line, the company earned $1.9 billion, up 28.7% from $1.5 billion in 2009. Earnings per share rose 29.6%, to $4.20 from $3.24, on fewer shares outstanding. Revenue rose 12.6% to $8.3 billion from $7.4 billion in 2009. Sharply higher freight volumes were the main reason for the revenue increase. The company also raised its fuel surcharges and shipping rates....

Long-time readers know that we are constantly reevaluating our stock picks. Below are three stocks we think you should sell. Two of these companies face problems that will weigh on them for the foreseeable future. The third is a thin-trading stock that has moved up recently after moving sideways since 2008. Its growth prospects now appear limited. KINGSWAY FINANCIAL SERVICES $1.31 (Toronto symbol KFS; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (905-629-7888; www.kingsway-financial.com; Shares outstanding: 52.1 million; Market cap: $68.2 million; No dividends paid) mainly provides insurance for drivers in the U.S. that standard auto insurers have rejected. This could be because of their driving record, vehicle type, place of residence, age or credit rating....

On January 21, Stock Pickers Digest, our newsletter for aggressive investing, will unveil a stock that’s well positioned for big gains in 2011. In fact, we think this potentially high return investment’s prospects are so bright we’ve named it Stock Pickers Digest’s #1 stock pick for the coming year. This Canadian firm is in a great position profit as the North American economy and consumer confidence continue to improve. Plus, it has recently signed agreements with other international firms that let it tap into rich new markets with less risk.

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Members of our Inner Circle service often ask for our advice on stocks they are thinking of buying that we don’t cover in our newsletters. These companies range from the most speculative penny mines to large multinational growth stock picks. For example, an Inner Circle member recently asked for our advice on hotel and casino operator Las Vegas Sands Corp. The growth stock pick’s shares have risen sharply over the past year, and it is opening new resorts in Asia and the U.S. To give you a sense of how my Inner Circle service works, I’d like to share this question, and our answer, with you. I hope you enjoy and profit from it....

Our top stock picks seem to attract way more than an average number of takeover bids. We think this is because we zero in on a company’s earnings potential, rather than basing decisions on predictions for next year’s earnings. Corporate buyers and big investors usually see things the same way. Many investors tell us that until they began following our advice, they never had the pleasure of watching a stock they own jump 25% in a few days, due to takeover news. Though we’re used to takeovers, we’ve seen more of our top stock picks attract takeover bids in the past few weeks than at any other time in our history. Here’s a recap:...

Investors often ask how we have managed to recommend so many value stock picks that get taken over for big profits. In fact, some readers of our newsletters and investment services tell us that they never had a stock taken over at a profit until they began following our advice. More on the strategy that helps us routinely spot takeover candidates in a moment. But first, here are just a few recent takeover targets we’ve recommended. All have rewarded our readers with big gains:

• In the October 2010 issue of Wall Street Stock Forecaster, we recommended Del Monte Foods (symbol DLM on New York) at $13 a share. In November, the company accepted a $19.00-a-share takeover offer from a private equity group led by KKR & Co. (symbol KKR on New York). Del Monte is now trading at $18.80. That’s a 45% gain!
• In an October 8, 2010, Stock Pickers Digest Hotline, we issued a “buy” recommendation on DundeeWealth Inc. (symbol DW on Toronto), at $15.11. On November 22, Scotiabank (symbol BNS on Toronto), announced that it will buy the 82% of DundeeWealth that it doesn’t already own. The news caused DundeeWealth’s shares to shoot up to their current $21.22 — for a 40.4% gain!
• And these weren’t our only October recommendations that gained sharply on a takeover. We recommended Verigy Ltd. (symbol VRGY on Nasdaq) in the October issue of Stock Pickers Digest at $8.28. Just last week, Japan-based Advantest, another maker of computer-chip testing equipment, offered to buy Verigy for $12.15 a share. That sent the stock up to its current $13.43, for a gain of 62.2%.

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We display our TSINetwork ratings (Highest Quality, Above Average, Average, Extra Risk, Speculative and Start-up) next to every stock we recommend in our newsletters — including our flagship publication, The Successful Investor. We designed our TSINetwork ratings to help you quickly and easily identify great stock picks for long-term profits. These stocks have the asset size and investment quality to weather market downturns and changing industry conditions. Here are three factors we consider when we assign a rating to a stock....

Members of our Inner Circle service often ask for our advice on Canadian stock picks they are thinking of buying that we don’t cover in our newsletters. These companies range from the most speculative penny mines to large multinational corporations. For example, an Inner Circle member recently asked for our advice on athletic-clothing maker lululemon athletica. The Canadian stock pick’s revenue and earnings rose sharply in its latest quarter, but it operates in a very competitive market. To give you a sense of how the service works — and how you can profit from it — I’d like to share this question, and our answer, with you. I hope you enjoy and profit from it. Q: Pat: what do you think of lululemon as a stock? My wife loves their clothes....

The U.S. restaurant industry is highly competitive. Restaurant operators range from large chains, like McDonald’s and Burger King, to independent businesses and smaller chains, like Ruby Tuesday (symbol RT on New York). We cover Ruby Tuesday in Stock Pickers Digest, our newsletter for aggressive investing. (Ruby Tuesday has shot up 42% for us in the past year, and a continued economic rebound could help push this hot stock pick’s share price even higher. See below for more on the company’s future prospects.) Overall, the U.S. restaurant industry has faced tough challenges in the past two years. That’s because the economic downturn has prompted more consumers to eat at home, or to spend less when they dine out....

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 advice on the fundamentals of successful investing. Each Investor Toolkit update gives you a fundamental tip and shows you how you can put it into practice right away. Today’s tip: “Investment success depends more on the quality of your investments than on the price you paid for them.” When you start investing, you may think the secret to investment profit is “buy low, sell high.” But that’s hard to do. You’ll often buy just before prices fall, or sell just before they rise. If you stick to high-quality value stock picks, however, your short-term gains and losses can average out and you’ll still profit greatly in the long run. Here are nine factors to look for when judging a value stock pick’s investment quality....