Recovering resources spur their gains

Article Excerpt

MAJOR DRILLING $6.95 (Toronto symbol MDI; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-866-264-3986; www.majordrilling.com; Shares outstanding: 80.3 million; Market cap: $566.9 million; No dividends paid) is a large contract driller that mainly serves the mining industry. Major believes that mining activity continues to deplete the world’s more easily accessible mineral reserves. That means attractive deposits will increasingly be in remote locations. Those areas are difficult to access or they’re where the mineral is deep in the ground. For this reason, the company’s strategy is to focus on providing highly specialized drilling services. Demand for that kind of assistance, especially from senior gold miners, is beginning to recover. In the three months ended April 30, 2018, Major’s revenue rose 17.1%, to $95.4 million from $81.5 million a year earlier. More specifically, its revenue in the Canada/U.S. region increased 4%. It jumped 43% in South and Central America (largely because of higher output at its Chilean copper projects), and 55% for Asia and Africa. The company continues to…