Sherritt cuts costs; Alamos boosts output

Article Excerpt

SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL $0.79 (Toronto symbol S; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800-704- 6698; www.sherritt.com; Shares outstanding: 293.9 million; Market cap: $226.3 million; No dividends paid) is now focused on nickel production, with operations in Cuba and Canada. As well, it has a 40% interest in the Ambatovy nickel mine on the island nation of Madagascar, off Africa’s east coast. Sherritt also produces oil and gas in Cuba, Spain and Pakistan and manages 506 megawatts of power generation capacity in Cuba. In the three months ended September 30, 2015, the company’s revenue fell 25.3%, to $76.9 million from $102.9 million a year earlier, mostly due to lower oil and gas prices. Cash flow per share fell sharply, to $0.05 from $0.16. Sherritt paid off $425 million of debt in October 2014 after selling its coal interests for $793 million in cash in April 2014. Even so, it ended the latest quarter with long-term debt of $2.1 billion, or a high 9.7 times its…