This Junior Still Appealing After Big Rise

Article Excerpt

ARBOR MEMORIAL SERVICES INC. $24 (Toronto symbol ABO.A; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; SI Rating: Average) owns 41 cemeteries, 27 crematoria, 3 reception centres and 94 funeral homes in eight Canadian provinces. About half of its operations are in Ontario. Arbor sells most of its cemetery plots and services through advance sales plans. Arbor must hold this cash in trust until it performs a service. In the meantime, it earns interest income from this cash. Investment income now accounts for 7% of revenue. In its second fiscal quarter ended April 30, 2006, Arbor earned $0.61 a share (total $6.4 million), up 13.0% from $0.54 a share ($5.7 million) a year earlier. Revenue rose 8.8%, to $55.9 million from $51.4 million. Most of the increase came from the recent acquisition of seven funeral homes in the Ottawa area for $24 million. The stock has more than doubled for us in the past three years. But Arbor is a thin trader, which helps explain why…