Topic: Growth Stocks

Stock Pickers Digest Hotline – Friday, July 19, 2013

Article Excerpt

AASTRA TECHNOLOGIES, $23.65, symbol AAH on Toronto, jumped this week after the company reported improved sales and earnings in the latest quarter—and announced a $7.20-a-share special dividend. The company develops and markets products and systems for accessing communication networks, including the Internet. Its technology is centred around business telephone systems and includes products that integrate land lines and mobile phones. In the three months ended June 30, 2013, Aastra’s sales rose 2.5%, to $150.8 million from $147.1 million a year earlier, as the company’s key markets in Germany and France showed significant improvement. Earnings per share jumped to $0.21 from $0.13. Aastra holds cash of $132.5 million, or a high $11.42 a share, and has no long-term debt. It spends a high 11% of its revenue on research. The company already pays a regular quarterly dividend of $0.20 a share. That gives it a 3.4% annualized yield, based on today’s share price. It will now pay a one-time special dividend of $7.20 a..