Updates on TELUS, ENCANA CORP., and IMPERIAL OIL

Article Excerpt

TELUS $64.23 (Toronto symbol T.A; Shares outstanding: 324.9 million; Market cap: $20.9 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 3.8%; www.telus.com) has received shareholder approval for its plan to convert its 151 million non-voting class A shares into regular common shares (with one vote each) on a one-for-one basis. Following the conversion, Telus will have 326 million common shares outstanding. The B.C. Supreme Court must still approve the plan. A hearing is set for November 5, 2012. However, U.S.-based hedge fund Mason Capital, which now owns around 19% of Telus’s common shares and a small portion of the non-voting stock, will try to block the conversion. Mason feels that common shareholders should receive compensation in exchange for the dilution of their voting power. Even though they receive identical dividends and have similar liquidity, the non-voting shares are typically cheaper than the common shares. Telus is still a buy. ENCANA CORP $22.50 (Toronto symbol ECA; Shares outstanding: 736.3 million; Market cap: $16.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating:…