High risk, high return

Article Excerpt

MART RESOURCES $1.50 (Toronto symbol MMT; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-270 -1841; www.martresources.com; Shares outstanding: 337.0 million; Market cap: $505.5 million; Dividend yield: 13.3%) is up over 40% since late June, when it declared a special dividend of $0.10 a share, payable on August 8. Mart will then pay quarterly dividends of $0.05 a share starting in September. The stock is now up 328.6% since we first recommended it in our May 2010 issue at $0.35. Mart produces oil at its 50%- held Umusadege field in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria. Even with its big jump, the stock trades at just 2.1 times the company’s annual cash flow, based on the latest quarter. The new dividend rate also gives the shares a very high 13.3% yield. Offsetting that attractive price-to-cash flow ratio and high yield is the fact that Mart’s exposure to Nigeria entails considerable political risk. The Nigerian army is very active in the Niger Delta, where it suppresses attacks on oilfields…