Topic: How To Invest

Thanks Pat: I’ve been enjoying your service thus far, as I just signed up. I’ve followed and admired your work for many years. I wondered if you could look briefly at the following stocks: Exchange Income Corp., Enterprise Products Partners L.P., ConocoPhillips and CenturyLink. Thanks!

Article Excerpt

Exchange Income Corp., $28.05, symbol EIF on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 20.6 million; Market cap: $579.6 million; www.exchangeincomecorp.ca), operates in two niche businesses: aviation and specialty manufacturing. The aviation segment consists of regional airlines Perimeter Aviation, Keewatin Air, Calm Air International, Bearskin Lake Services and Custom Helicopters. The specialty manufacturing business includes Jasper Tank Ltd., Overlanders Manufacturing, Water Blast Manufacturing, Stainless Fabrication, Inc. and WesTower Communications. The company reported cash flow of $13.4 million in the latest quarter. It paid out $8.6 million, so it should be able to maintain its dividend if its cash flow remains steady. The stock yields 6.0%. Exchange Income plans to keep growing by acquisition, in the airline industry or other businesses. It has just announced its biggest purchase to date: $80 million U.S. for Miami, Florida-based Regional One, Inc., a privately owned company that provides aircraft and engine parts to regional airlines around the world. The company’s growth-by-acquisition strategy adds a lot of risk, particularly because the…