Thursday, June 30, 2016

Premium Brands Holdings Corp

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Relatively expensive. The stock has had a very good run up lately. It is expected that EPS will be growing strongly in the future. However, expectations do not always work out. I think it is a good company, but with the recent run up in price it may not be good time to buy at the moment. This looks like this stock is becoming a dividend growth stock. See my spreadsheet on Premium Brands Holdings Corp .

I do not own this stock of Premium Brands Holdings Corp (TSX-PBH, OTC-PRBZF). I was looking for another stock to follow and I found this is one of the top stocks in TD Bank's Canadian Equity Fund.

This company was an income trust between 2005 and 2009. Dividends were started in 2005 and as usual with income trusts, the yields were quite high. This historical high dividend is over 18%. The yield hit a peak in 2009 and have been travelling south since then.

Currently the dividends are moderate and increases are also moderate. The current dividend yield is 2.86%. The 5 and 10 year dividend growth is just 2.3% and 1.1% per year. However, dividends were cut in 2010 and they just started to growth then by 3 to 5% between 2013 and 2015. The last dividend increase was much higher and it was for 10% and it occurred in 2016.

Since 2009 they have been paying out more than their earnings. The 5 year running average to 2015 was 204%. However, even though there has been a big increase in dividends, analysts expect the Dividend Payout Ratio for 2016 to be around 74%. Analysts expect the EPS to jump significantly in 2016.The Dividend Payout Ratio for CFPS has always been better. The 5 year running average to 2015 was 58%. It is expected to be around 44% in 2016.

Total return to shareholders over the past 5 and 10 years is at 28.49% and 23.70% per year with 22.33% and 15.55% per year from capital gains and 6.15% and 8.15% per year from dividends. The stock price is up by 324% over the past 10 years. This has been a great run up in stock price.

The outstanding shares have been increasing and they have grown at 8.3% and 6.1% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Shares have grown due to Share Issues, Conversion of Debt and Stock Options. So, it is important to look at the per share growth values. However, growth in Revenue and Cash has been good. They had a bad year in 2015 for EPS and earnings are down by 12% per year over the past 5 years and are flat over the past 10 years.

Analysts expect EPS to jump from $0.48 to $2.01 between 2015 and 2016. That is growth of 319%. If you compare the 12 month period to the end of the first quarter to the 12 month period to the end of 2015 EPS is up by 38%. Or EPS in the first quarter is 112% higher in 2016 than in 2015.

Debt Ratios are fairly good. The Liquidity Ratio for 2015 is 2.01 and has a 5 year median of 1.36. Debt Ratio for 2015 was 2.07 and had a 5 year median of 1.87. I prefer both to be at 1.50 or higher. The Leverage and Debt/Equity Ratios are a little high at 2.68 and 1.30 in 2015. The 5 year median for these ratios is 3.01 and 1.97.

The Return on Equity has been quite low for the past 5 years with the ROE for 2015 at 3.7% and the 5 year median at 6.1%. The comprehensive income for 2015 was at 10.5% and its 5 year median is 8.3%. This would imply that the earnings might be better than shown.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 28.73, 33.58 and 38.52. The corresponding 10 year ratios are a lot lower at 17.10, 19.05 and 20.97. The historical ones are even lower at 11.07, 12.83 and 14.58. It would appear that the recent gain in stock prices are coming mostly from an increase in P/E Ratios. The P/E Ratios over the past 5 years seem quite high for consumer staple sector company.

The current P/E Ratio is 27.16 based on EPS estimates for 2016 of $2.01 and a stock price of $54.59. This P/E Ratio to be seems quite high for such a company also. If compared to the last 5 years it is low, however, the P/E Ratios for the last 10 years is more reasonable and on this basis, the stock price looks high. On the other hand, analysts expect sharp rises in the EPS over the next couple of year. If you look at 2017 and 2018 EPS estimates of $2.53 and $3.50 then P/E Ratios become more reasonable at 21.58 and 15.60 based on a stock price of $54.59.

I get a Graham Price of $23.30. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.06, 1.17 and 1.29. The current P/GP Ratio is 2.34 based on a stock price of $54.59. This testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 1.69. The current P/B Ratio is 4.55 based on a stock price of $54.59 and BVPS of $12.00. The current P/B Ratio is some 170% higher than the 10 year median. The stock price has been rising much faster than the Book Value per Share. The stock price is up by 22.3% per year over the past 10 years. The BVPS is up by 4.7% per year over the past 10 years. The 10 year P/B Ratio is a reasonable or low one. The current P/B Ratio is high. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

This used to be an income trust company. As such it had high dividend yields. Even the 5 year median dividend yield is quite high at 6.12%. It was expected that the dividend yields on old income trust would end up at 4 to 5%. This one is a lot lower at 2.78% based on dividends of $1.52 and a stock price of $54.59. This also suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

Even looking at P/S and P/CF Ratios, the current stock price does not get better than relatively expensive. The current P/S Ratio at 0.84 is some 105% higher than the 10 year median of 0.41. However, for P/S Ratios, one under 1.00 is considered to be a good ratio.

The current P/CF Ratio is 16.01 and its 10 year median is 8.88. So the current P/CF Ratio is some 80% higher than the 10 year median. A P/CF Ratio of 8.88 is rather an average one. This check also points to the current stock price as being relatively expensive.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Strong Buy, Buy and Hold recommendations. The consensus recommendation would be a Buy. The 12 month stock price consensus is $60.57. This implies a total return of 13.74% based on a stock price of $54.59. The portion of the total return attributable to capital gain is 10.95% and the portion of the total return attributable to dividends is 2.78%.

On Stock House is the press release for this company talking about the redemption of Debentures. Ryan Vanzo of Motley Fool talks about why he likes this company. . See what analysts say about this company at Stock Chase.

I will have only one entry for this stock as I must do on some stock because I cover too many stocks to do double entries on all that I follow.

The last stock I wrote about was about was Saputo Inc. (TSX-SAP, OTC-SAPIF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Suncor Energy Inc. (TSX-SU, NYSE-SU)... learn more on Monday, July 4, 2016 around 5 pm.

Premium Brands Holdings Corporation, through its subsidiaries, owns a range of specialty food manufacturing and premium food distribution and wholesale businesses with operations in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Nevada, Ohio and Washington State. Its web site is here Premium Brands Holdings Corp .

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Saputo Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price reasonable to expensive. This stock is getting expensive. Maybe buying should be done on any pull back in price. Low dividend and good dividend growth are stocks to own when building a portfolio. See my spreadsheet on Saputo Inc.

I own this stock of ). This was a stock on Mike Higgs' Canadian Dividend Growth Stock list and on the dividend lists that I followed. I bought this stock first in 2006 for my RRSP account. Because I am now taking money from my RRIF accounts, I have been selling this stock from these accounts because of the low dividend. I still like this stock so I have been buying it in my TFSA and Trading Accounts.

I have done really well with this stock. I have earned a total return of 18.43% per year with 2.07% from dividends and 16.36% from capital gains. For the shares I owned, dividends have paid some $11.51 per share and my average cost is $11.59. So dividends have paid almost 100% of the costs for this stock that I started buying in 2006 which is some 9.7 years ago.

The dividend yield has always quite low on this stock. The current dividend yield is 1.43% based on dividends of $0.54 and a stock price of $37.72. The dividend increases used to be good, but have turned moderate in recent years. A lot of retailers are having difficulties with the long drawn out recovery. The 5 and 10 year dividend growth is at 11.4% and 21.6% per year. I am earning a dividend yield of 5.83% on the stock bought in 2006 based on my original cost.

Outstanding shares have hardly changed over the years. Shares have increased due to Share Issues and Stock Options and have decreased due to Buy Backs. The company has good growth in Revenue and Cash Flow and moderate to good growth in Earnings. For example, the EPS has grown by 6.95% and 12.7% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Growth of 3% to 8% I consider moderate and growth of 8% and over I consider good.

Debt Ratios are good. The Return on Equity has been over 10% since1998 where my records start. The 5 year median ROE is 18.1%.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 17.99, 21.17 and 24.35. The corresponding 10 year values are lower at 15.76, 18.81 and 21.59. The historical values are similar to the 10 year values at 12.71, 18.01 and 21.12. This means that recent increase stock price has been partly due to rising P/E Ratios. The current P/E Ratio is 20.96 based on a stock price of $37.72 and 2016 EPS estimate of $1.80. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and around the median.

I get a Graham Price of $20.32. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.42, 1.70 and 1.96. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.86 based on a stock price of $37.72. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable but above the median.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 3.43. The current P/B Ratio is 3.70 a value some 7.7% higher. The current P/B Ratio is based on a stock price of $37.72 and BVPS of $10.20. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable but above the median.

I get a dividend yield of $1.43 based on a stock price of $37.72 and Dividends of 0.54. The historical median dividend yield is 1.74%. The current yield is some 17.7% below the historical yield. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable but above the median. By this measure the price is getting close to being expensive. If the current yield was 20% lower than the historical yield, it would show the stock as expensive.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Buy and Hold. Most of the recommendations are a Hold, and the consensus recommendation is a Hold. The 12 month stock price consensus is $41.00. This implies a total return of 10.13% with 1.43% from dividends and 8.70% from capital gains based on a stock price of $37.72.

Reuters Media via Ag Week talks about Saputo posting lower profits on weaker prices. According Trent Williams on Community Financial News this company has been assigned a Hold rating by nine research firms. The Catalyst Tree did a long and thorough analysis on this stock at Seeking Alpha.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see those reports here and here.

Yesterday on my other blog I wrote about Retirement Myth of 4%... learn more. Friday is a holiday, so I will do a stock rather than a blog entry on investing in general. I need to do 3 stocks a week to review all my stocks in 2016. The next stock I will write about will be Premium Brands Holdings Corp (TSX-PBH, OTC- PRBZF)... learn more on Thursday, June 30, 2016 around 5 pm. Premium Brands is a new addition to the stocks I review.

Saputo produces, markets, and distributes a wide array of products of the utmost quality, including cheese, fluid milk, yogurt, dairy ingredients and snack-cakes. Saputo is the twelfth largest dairy processor in the world, the largest in Canada; the third largest in Argentina and among the top three cheese producers in the United States. Their products are sold in more than 50 countries under well-known brand names. Its web site is here Saputo Inc.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Monday, June 27, 2016

Intact Financial Corp

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price is reasonable to expensive. This looks like a good dividend growth stock, but it is rather expensive at the present time. See my spreadsheet on Intact Financial Corp.

I do not own this stock of Intact Financial Corp (TSX-IFC, OTC- IFCZF). I am following this stock because in November 2011, the TD Bank put out a special report on the merits of dividend investing. At the end of the report they listed a number of Canadian stocks as Equity Yield ideas. This was one stock listed that I did not follow.

This is a dividend growth company that started to pay dividends in 2005 after they went public in 2004. They have raised their dividends every year since 2005. The company pays a moderate dividend with moderate dividend increases. The current dividend yield is 2.60% based on dividends of $2.32 and a stock price of $89.08. The dividends have grown at 9.3% and 12.6% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The last dividend increase was made in 2016 and it was for 9.4%.

The Dividend Payout Ratio for EPS for 2015 was 41% with a 5 year median value of 37%. The DPR for CFPS was 30% with a 5 year median value of 29%. These ratios are expected to be similar in 2016.

The change in outstanding shares is a mixed bag. Shares are up by 3.2% over the past 5 years and down by 1.6% over the past 10 years. Shares are increased by Shares Issues and decreased by Buy Backs. Because of increase in shares over the past 5 years, I think we need to look at per share values. They have "stock incentives" rather than stock options. They purchase required shares on the open Market. Cost comes out of shareholders' equity. So outstanding shares are not affect by their stock incentive plan.

They have also done better in the past 5 years and in the past 10 years. An example is in revenue. For revenue, it has grown at 11.5% and 6% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The revenue per share has grown at 8% and 6.2% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. This also shows the effect of changes in outstanding shares over the past 5 and 10 years.

Debt ratios are rather normal for a financial company. The Return on Equity was below 10% one in the past 5 years, but 3 times in the past 10 years.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 12.90, 13.95 and 15.00. The 10 year corresponding values are close at 12.41, 13.68 and 14.95. The current P/E Ratio is 15.39 based on a stock price of $89.08 and 2016 EPS estimate of $5.79. This stock price testing is suggesting that the stock price is relatively expensive, but just into expensive territory.

I get a Graham Price of $72.24. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.97, 1.07 and 1.17. The current P/BP Ratio is 1.23 based on a stock price of $89.08. This stock price testing is suggesting that the stock price is relatively expensive.

The 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio is 1.81. The current P/B Ratio is 2.22 a values some 23% higher. The current P/B Ratio is based on a stock price of $89.08 and BVPS of $40.06. This stock price testing is suggesting that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get a historical median dividend yield of 2.73%. The current dividend yield is 2.60% based on a stock price of $89.08 and dividends of $2.32. The current dividend yield is some 4.6% lower than the historical median dividend yield. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable, but above the median.

When I look at analysts' recommendations I find Strong Buy, Buy and Hold recommendations. Most of the recommendations are a Buy and the consensus recommendation is a Buy. The 12 month stock price consensus is $97.71. This implies a total return of this implies a total return of 12.29% with 2.60% from dividends and 9.69% from capital gains based on a current stock price of $89.08.

Nelson Smith of Motley Fool likes this company because it has slowly been acquiring smaller companies in its niche. John Shmuel in a recent Financial Post article said that the estimated losses from Alberta are more than manageable for this company. Dividend Earner at Seeking Alpha thinks that this is a good stock for dividend growth. See what analyst are saying about this company on Stock Chase

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see those reports here and here.

The last stock I wrote about was about was AGT Food and Ingredients Inc. (TSX-AGT, OTC-AGXXF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Saputo Inc. (TSX-SAP, OTC-SAPIF)... learn more on Wednesday, June 29, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Retirement Myth of 4%... learn more on Tuesday, June 28, 2016 around 5 pm.

Intact Financial Corporation is the largest provider of property and casualty insurance in Canada. Intact offers home, auto and business insurance through Intact Insurance, Novex Group Insurance, Belair Direct, GP Car and Home and BrokerLink. Its web site is here Intact Financial Corp.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Friday, June 24, 2016

AGT Food and Ingredients Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Relatively not cheap. You would think if the company thought that the EPS would be so good in 2016, they would increase the dividends. The company has kept them flat for several years. See my spreadsheet on AGT Food and Ingredients Inc..

I do not own this stock of AGT Food and Ingredients Inc. (TSX-AGT, OTC-AGXXF). I wanted to review all the income trust stocks touted in the 2009 Money Show. There was a lot of talk at this show about some of the Unit Trust being currently good buys with very good yield. This stock converted to a corporation in 2009. This is not a dividend growth stock, so I would not buy it. If it changes to a dividend growth stock, I would reconsider it. Also, the Return on Equity is quite low.

This company started to pay dividends in 2005. They have raised the dividends in the past, but nothing consistent and there has been no dividend raises since 2012. The 5 and 10 year dividend growth is 2.1% and 1.8% per year. This stock has a rather low dividend yield. The current dividend is 1.76% and the 5 year median is a little better at 2.6%. I would not consider this a good dividend growth stock if you want income.

In terms of total returns and earnings this company has not done well over the past 5 years. The total return is at 5.79% and 26.49% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The portion that is capital is at 3.82% and 20.93% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The portion that is dividends is at 1.97% and 5.56% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

The growth in earnings is not great with earnings decline of 6.7% decline per year over the past 5 years and growth of just 2.9% per year over the past 10 years. They also had earnings losses in 2011 and 2013. With low earnings you also get low Return on Equity which was 4.5% in 2015 with a 5 year median of just 2.5%. Net Income has grown quite a lot over the past 10 years, but because shares have increased 37% over the past 10 years, you get low EPS.

The company has grown Revenue and Cash Flow nicely and this is a positive. The Revenue is up by 21.6% and 70.5% over the past 5 and 10 years. Revenue per Share is up by 17.1% and 24.2% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Even through the shares outstanding increased a lot over the past 10 years growth in Revenue per Share is still good.

Cash Flow excluding Working Capital growth is also good. The Cash Flow is up by 30% and 55% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. CFPS is up by 24.8% and 13.3% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Even through the shares outstanding increased a lot over the past 10 years growth in CFPS is still good.

Debt Ratios are mediocre. The Liquidity Ratio for 2015 is 1.40 and its 5 year median is 1.40. The Debt Ratios for 2015 is 1.38 and its 5 year ratio is better at 1.53. I prefer both these ratios to be 1.50 or higher all the time. The Leverage and Debt/Equity Ratios are a bit high at 3.63 and 2.63.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 16.81, 23.75 and 30.69. The corresponding 10 year values are a lot lower at 5.81, 7.70 and 11.33. The current P/E Ratio is 12.51 based on a stock price of $33.79 and 2016 EPS estimate of $2.70. The EPS estimate for 2016 is some 297% higher than EPS for 2015. However, if you compare the 12 month period to the end of March 2016 to the 12 month period to the end of December 2015, EPS is up by 162%. I would guess that a P/E Ratio of 12.51 is reasonable. On an absolute basis, a P/E of 10 is considered a low one.

I get a Graham Price of $30.59. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.96, 1.38 and 1.76. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.10. This stock price test shows that stock price to be reasonable and below the median.

I get a 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 1.43. The current P/B Ratio is 2.19 a value some 53% higher. The current P/B Ratio is based on a stock price of $33.79 and BVPS of $5.40. This stock price testing shows that the stock price is relatively expensive. The problem is that the BVPS has declined has been basically flat for the past 5 years. This is not a good sign.

I cannot use the historical median dividend yield because this stock used to be an income trust and income trusts have much higher dividend yields. The 5 year median dividend yield is 2.63%. The current dividend yield is 1.78% based on dividends of $0.60 and stock price of $33.79. The current dividend yield is some 32% lower than the 5 year median. This stock price testing shows that the stock price is relatively expensive. A flat dividend is not a good sign.

The Analysts’ recommendations are Buy and Hold recommendations. Most of the recommendations are a Buy and the consensus recommendation is a Buy. The 12 month stock price consensus is $43.79. This implies a total return of 31.37% with 29.59% from capital gains and 1.78% from dividends.

Michael Decter on BNN find this company a compelling story. He thinks that Murad Al-Katib is a very interesting and talented man. Mark Robinson on LMKAT talks about recent analyst reports on this company. Joseph Solitro of Motley like this company and feel that the P/E Ratio at 17.3 is low.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see that report here.

Yesterday on my other blog I wrote about Dividend Growth... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Intact Financial Corp (TSX-IFC, OTC-IFCZF)... learn more on Monday, June 27, 2016 around 5 pm.

AGT Food and Ingredients is one of the largest suppliers of value-added pulses, staple foods and food ingredients in the world. They buy lentils, peas, beans and chickpeas from farmers around their 34 facilities located in the best pulse growing regions in Canada, the United States, Turkey, Australia, China and South Africa and ship their products to over 100 countries around the globe. Its web site is here AGT Food and Ingredients Inc.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Parkland Fuel Corp.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Not Cheap. I go for not cheap because both the dividend yield and P/B Ratios are showing the price around the relatively reasonable mark. These are the only tests that do not use estimate. With so many of the other testing showing that the stock price may be expensive, it is hard to judge the stock price differently. See my spreadsheet on Parkland Fuel Corp.

I do not own this stock of Parkland Fuel Corp. (TSX-PKI, OTC-PKIUF). I decided to do a spreadsheet on this stock as it was a stock recommended by Roger Conrad in Money Show 2013.

This was another income trust that changed to a corporation. Near that time they decrease the dividend by some 19%. The decrease occurred in 2011 and dividends were flat for a year. In 2013 they did a modest dividend increase of 2%. Since they restarted dividend increases, the dividends have grown at 1.76% per year. The last dividend increase was in 2016 and it was for 5%. They are still paying dividends monthly.

Last year was not a good year for this company in connection with earnings. The Dividend Payout Ratio for EPS was at 238%. It is expected to be better in 2016 at around 119%. If you look at dividends paid in cash, they paid out some 69% of earnings in 2015. This is because the company has a DRIP plan. But dividends paid in dividends are not free. Increases in shares numbers will lower the earnings per share.

An off set to this low EPS is the fact that in 2015, the comprehensive income is some 39% higher than the net income. It is up some 5.8% from 2014. In 2014, the net income and comprehensive income were close. When comprehensive income is a lot high than net income it tends to show that the company did better than what is showing up in earnings. On the other hand analysts expect EPS to increase by 108% in 2016. With the first quarterly report, the EPS for the 12 month period ending in the first quarter compared to the 12 month period ending in December 2015, EPS is only up by 4.4%.

For this company the shares have increased by 12% and 9.8% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Shares have increased due to DRIP, Stock Options and Share Issues. Shares have decreased due to Buy Backs. Because of the increase in share issues, per share values are the ones that will tell you if the company is growing. The company has to do a lot of growing to overcome these share increase.

Revenue has grown at 16.6% and 21.8% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Revenue per Share has grown at 4% and 10.9% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Over the past 2 years, both earnings and cash flow has declined. Analysts expect earnings to start to climb again this year. However, they do not see any increase in cash flow until 2017.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 12.55, 14.55 and 17.62. The corresponding 10 year ratios are 10.98, 13.70 and 16.82. The historical ratios are 11.21, 15.03 and 19.27. The current P/E Ratio is 24.21 based on a stock price of $22.76 and EPS for 2016 of $0.94. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is expensive.

I get a Graham Price of $13.56. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.03, 1.29 and 1.60. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.68 based on a stock price of $22.76. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is expensive.

I get a 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 2.94. The current P/B Ratio is 2.62 a value some 10.8% lower. The current P/B Ratio is based on a stock price of $22.76 and BVPS of $8.69. This stock price testing is suggesting that the stock price is reasonable and below the median.

The historical median dividend yield price is not a good test for this stock because it used to be an income trust company and as such had quite high yields. However, the 5 year median yield is 5.75%. The current dividend yield is 4.98% based on dividends of $1.13 and a stock price of $22.67. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable but above the median.

The P/S and P/CF Ratios does not help the current stock price look good. The 10 year median P/S Ratio is 0.24 and the current P/S Ratio is 0.30 based on a stock price of $22.76 and 2016 Revenue estimate of $7.182 and therefore Revenue per Share of $75.83. The P/S Ratios are low, because any P/S Ratio below 1.00 is low. Analysts expect the Revenue to increase by 14.6% this year but with the first quarter of 2016, revenue is down by 1.2%. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

The 10 year median Price/Cash Flow per Share Ratio is 8.41. The current P/CF Ratio is 13.23 a values some 57% higher. The current P/CF Ratio is some 57% higher than the 10 year median P/CF Ratio. The current P/CF Ratio is based on a stock price of $22.76 and 2016 CFPS estimate of $1.72. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Strong Buy, Buy and Hold recommendations. The consensus recommendation would be a Buy. The 12 month stock price consensus is $24.86. This implies a total return of $14.21% with 4.98% from dividends and 9.23% from capital gains.

Yadullah Hussain in an article in the Financial Post talks about Bob Espey, the CEO of this company, who thinks that the company's earnings can double in 5 years. Espey says he hopes to raise the non-fuel revenues by 50% with the roll out of the On The Run branch from Imperial Oil. Joseph Solitro of Motley Fool likes this stock. Peter Harrington of Seeking Alpha thinks that this company has acquired undervalued assets and has done well by shareholders.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see those reports here and here.

Yesterday on my other blog I wrote about Killing Others You do not Like... learn more . Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Dividend Growth... learn more on Thursday, June 23, 2016 around 5 pm. The next stock I will write about is AGT Food and Ingredients Inc. (TSX-AGT, OTC-AGXXF)... learn more on Friday, June 24, 2016 around 5 pm.

Parkland Fuel Corporation is a marketer and distributor of fuels, managing a nationwide network of sales channels for retail, commercial, wholesale and home heating fuel customers. Its web site is here Parkland Fuel Corp.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Monday, June 20, 2016

Computer Modelling Group Ltd

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price is probably reasonable. On some absolute basis, the stock price is high, but this is a tech company and ratios tend to be higher on tech companies. I still expect a good run from this stock and will hold onto the shares that I currently have. See my spreadsheet on Computer Modelling Group Ltd.

I own this stock of Computer Modelling Group Ltd. (TSX-CMG, OTC- CMDXF). Since selling SNC in July 2008, I was looking for something to buy. This company is a dividend paying growth stock that would also be considered to be a small cap with a capitalization of around $115 million (2007). Insiders were buying this stock. It has great growth and it is information technology a favourite sector of mine. When I sold some of my TD Bank stock in June 2009, I bought some more.

This company, has grown since I bought it and it now has a market cap of close to $800M. The market cap was over $1B last year. Insiders are no longer buying. In the last 3 years Net Insider Selling was at 0.57%, 0.16 and 0.78%. So there is relatively a lot of insider selling and selling is probably of stock options.

Over the last 2 years the company has been buying back shares. However, shareholders have not benefited from this because the company issued more shares for stock options than shares that had been brought back. I saw a recent note on this subject by Philip van Doorn on Market Watch in which he points out that shareholders only gain when the Fully Diluted Shares decrease.

For this company there were small changes in Diluted Shares. In 2015 the shares went up by 0.45% and in 2016 they went down by 0.45%. Also, the percentage decrease due to Buy Backs was only 1.03% and 0.75% in 2015 and 2016. It seems like the Buy Backs are to cover Stock Options.

This company is both a tech company and is in the oil and gas sector as it services the oil and gas sector. However, I have done well. My total return is at 28.81% per year with 21.81% from capital gains and 7% from dividends. I have had this company for 7.9 years and the dividends have covered 89% of the price of my stock.

This company used to have great dividend growth. Even through the dividends remained flat in 2015, the dividend growth over the past 5 and 10 years is at 15.8% and 32% per year. The last dividend rise really occurred at beginning 2014 and it was for 5.3%. This is because the financial year-end at the end of March each year for this company.

I would image that this company stopped raising the dividends because they could not cover them with earnings. For the financial year ending in March 2016, they paid out 125% of earnings in dividends. Analysts do not expect this company to be able to cover their dividends with earnings until the financial year ending in March 2018.

This company is, after all servicing the oil and gas industry and so it is not surprising that they are experiencing some difficulties. The high dividend yield, currently around 4% and with a 5 year median of 3.4%, it is not surprising that dividends cover stock's purchase price generally before 10 years are up.

They have had modest growth in shares over the past 5 and 10 years mostly due to stock options. Growth was at 1.6% and 2% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. They have also been doing some Buy Backs (as mentioned above) which partially cover stock options. Growth is mostly good, with some moderate growth. Because of the growth in shares, it is the per share growth that is important.

For example, the growth in Revenue is 9.3% and 16.7% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Growth in Revenue per Share is at 7.6% and 14.4% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Growth in Cash Flow excluding Working Cap is at 14.6% and 24.1% over the past 5 and 10 years. CFPS excluding WC is at 12.8% and 21.7% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

The Return on Equity has been very high. The ROE for 2016 is at 42.7% and it has a 5 year median of 48.3%. It has not been lower than 10% for some time.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 23.47, 29.41 and 37.95. The corresponding 10 years values are lower at 17.29, 22.52 and 27.39. The historical values are 8.95, 12.83 and 16.73. It is obvious that most of the run up in stock value is due to increasing P/E Ratios. This can be a problem if the P/E Ratios get too high.

The current P/E Ratio is 25.67 based on a stock price of $10.10 and 2017 ESP estimate of $0.39. This is reasonable and below the median if you use 5 year values and reasonable and above the median if you use 10 year values. The current ratio is probably not unreasonable considering this is a tech company which tends to have higher values.

I get a Graham Price of $2.57. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 2.27, 3.31 and 4.03. The current P/GP Ratio is 3.90 based on a stock price of 10.10. This stock price testing suggests that the stock is relatively reasonable and below the median. However, it must be noted that the P/GP Ratio of 3.90 is a rather high ratio.

The 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio is 10.98. The current P/B Ratio is 13.31 based on BVPS of $0.75 and a stock price of $10.10. The current P/B Ratio is some 21% higher than the 10 year ratio. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is expensive. Note that what is considered a good P/B Ratio is 1.50, so the ratios on this stock are high.

The current dividend yield is 4% based on a stock price of $10.10 and dividends of $0.40. The historical dividend yield is 3.47% a value some 15% lower. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and below the median.

The analysts' recommendations are all over the place. There are Buy, Hold, Underperform and Sell recommendations. Most of the recommendations are a Buy. The consensus recommendation is a Hold. The 12 month stock prices consensus is $9.76. This is below the current stock price. This implies a total return of $1.5% with 4% from dividends and a capital loss of 2.5%. It would seem that most analysts do not see much progress from this stock in the near term.

An article in The Post talks about recent analysts' reports on this company. Nick Waddell talks about this stock on Can Tech . Joseph Solitro of Motley Fool likes this stock. Kevin Wiens on Seeking Alpha likes this company.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see that report here and here.

The last stock I wrote about was about CI Financial Corp (TSX-CIX, OTC- CIFAF)... learn more . Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Killing Others You do not Like... learn more on Tuesday, June 21, 2016 around 5 pm. The next stock I will write about is Parkland Fuel Corp. (TSX-PKI, OTC-PKIUF)... learn more on Wednesday, June 22, 2016 around 5 pm.

Computer Modelling Group Ltd. is a computer software technology and consulting company serving the oil and gas industry. CMG is the leading supplier of advanced processes reservoir modelling software in the world with a blue chip client base of international oil companies and technology centers in approximately 50 countries. Its web site is here Computer Modelling Group Ltd.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Friday, June 17, 2016

CI Financial Corp

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price relative cheap to reasonable. This company seems to be currently doing a good job. I know that many people are against Mutual Fund companies, but I cannot see that they going out of business anytime soon. It is probably given Hold ratings as EPS is expected to be a bit lower in 2016 before picking up again. See my spreadsheet on CI Financial Corp.

I do not own this stock of CI Financial Corp (TSX-CIX, OTC- CIFAF). I started to follow this stock originally because it was a Mutual Fund company. People talked about it being easier to make money from buying a Mutual Fund company than buying Mutual Funds. When they became a Unit Trust in 2006, dividends were significantly increased, but these dividends proved to be unsustainable, so dividends where decreased in 2010. They changed back to a corporation in 2009.

Currently the dividend yield is good as is the dividend growth. The current dividend yield is 5.12% and the dividend growth is 11.5% and 16.1% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The growth figures hide some growth problems. This stock's dividend hit a high in 2009 ($2.76) that is still some 50% higher than the current dividends ($1.38).

Even though the 5 year growth is quite good at 11.5%, the most recent dividend increase was for just 4.5%. However, for some years in the past dividends were raised more than once in a year. If dividend increases continue at 4.5% in 5, 10 and 15 years for stock purchased today, a shareholder would be earning 6.4%, 8% and 9.9% on the original investment. If increases are at 11%, after 5, 10 and 15 years a shareholder could be earning 8.6%, 15.54 and 24.5% yield on today's purchase price of $26.95.

For a while they could not afford their dividends, but this does not appear to have been a problem since the dividend decrease in 2010. In 2015 the Dividend Payout Ratio for EPS is 65.4%. The DPR for CFPS for 2015 was at 52%. Dividends payments seem to be currently in good shape. It would appear that this is currently a dividend growth company.

One thing to point out is that the Liquidity Ratio is low. The Liquidity Ratio for 2015 is 0.98 and the 5 year median is 0.90. The problem with low Liquidity Ratios is that it makes a company vulnerable in bad times. If you add in cash flow after dividends, the Liquidity Ratio becomes a more acceptable 1.67 ratio. (I just do not like to have to muck around with a ratio to get it better.)

The growth figures on this stock are moderate to good. For example, the Assets under Management (AUM) grow by 8.8% and 8.5% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. These are good growth figures. The EPS grow by 11.9% and 7.4% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Growth at 8% or above is good. Moderate growth is from 3% to under 8%.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 15.57, 18.32 and 19.89. The corresponding 10 year values are 15.28, 17.18 and 19.90. The historical values are 15.94, 18.34 and 20.94. The current P/E Ratio is 13.48 based on a stock price of $26.95 and 2016 EPS estimate of $2.00. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

I get a Graham Price of $17.41. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.50, 1.74 and 1.98. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.55 based on a stock price of $26.95. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap. Note that the P/GP Ratios are rather high.

The 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio is 4.23. The current P/B Ratio is 4.00 a value some 5% lower. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median. Note that a good P/B Ratio is around 1.50, so these ratios are rather high.

The historical median dividend yield is 3.20%. The current dividend yield at 5.125 is some 60% higher. The current dividend yield is based on dividends of $1.38 and a stock price of $26.95. This stock price suggests that the stock price is below the median and probably cheap.

When I look at analysts' recommendations I find Buy and Hold recommendations. Most of the recommendations are a Hold and the consensus is a Hold. The 12 month stock price consensus is $30.30. This implies total return of 17.55% per year with 5.12% from dividends and 12.43% from capital gains. This is based on current stock price of $26.95.

Mark Robinson on LMKAT talks about recent analysts ratings on this stock. Robin Reyes on Sonoran Weekly Review talks about the recent announcement from CI Financial to Buy Back shares. Joseph Solitro of Motley Fool talks about 5 Dividend Growth Stocks, including this stock. See what analysts on Stock Chase say about this company.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see those reports here and here.

Yesterday on my other blog I wrote about Buy Backs... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Computer Modelling Group Ltd (TSX-CMG, OTC-CMDXF)... learn more on Monday, June 20, 2016 around 5 pm.

CI Financial Corp. is a diversified wealth management firm and one of Canada's largest investment fund companies. CI is an Independent and Canadian-owned company. This company promotes and manages mutual funds and other investment products through its wholly-owned subsidiaries of CI Investments Inc., and Assante Wealth Management. Its web site is here CI Financial Corp.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Certainly not cheap. My stock price testing is all over the place. Mostly it is above the median, so now may not be a good time to buy. See my spreadsheet on Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.

I do not own this stock of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp (TSX-AQN, OTC- AQUNF). This is a dividend paying utility stocks. I got it off a list of dividend paying utility stocks. Also, I own Emera Inc. and this company owns shares in Algonquin Power.

Although this company still reports in CDN$, in 2014 this company started to pay dividends in US$. The other thing to mention is that they just raised the dividend by 10% in US$. Canadians did not quite get the same raise in dividends because of the exchange rate.

By reporting in CDN$ and having dividends in US$ makes it difficult to judge just how much the company is paying out in regards to earnings and cash flow. I am looking at money paid by the company in dividends compared to Net Income and Cash Flow.

However, there is another problem. Dividends paid cover only dividends paid in cash. It does not cover DRIP dividends. However, you cannot pretend that DRIP dividends do not cost anything, because they do. DRIP dividends increase the number of shares outstanding and therefore decrease the EPS and CFPS.

The Dividend Payout Ratio using cash dividends paid compared to net income was at 73% for 2015. Comparing cash dividends paid compared to cash flow, it was 29% in 2015. I am not sure where this will be in 2016. However the company in the past has paid out more in dividends that its earnings, but not more than its cash flow.

I see a couple of problems. One is that the Liquidity Ratio is low and it has been low for quite some time. The Liquidity Ratio for 2015 is at 1.08. This is better than last year when it was just 0.87. When this is under 1.00, it means that current assets do not cover current liabilities. A preferred ratio is one that is 1.50 or higher. The problem with low Liquidity Ratios is that it makes a company vulnerable in bad times.

The other problem is the low Return on Equity. The ROE for 2015 is just 5.5%. The 5 year median is 4.5%. For a dividend paying company, the preferred ROE is at least 10%.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 23.75, 28.18 and 32.60. The corresponding 10 year values are similar at 23.23, 27.39 and 29.34. The historical values are 23.88, 27.63 and 31.88. The current P/E Ratio is 25.09 based on a stock price of $11.79 and 2016 EPS estimate of $0.47. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median. I think that the P/E Ratios are rather high for a utility stock.

I get a Graham Price of $8.14. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.19, 1.40 and 1.55. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.45 based on a stock price of $11.79. This stock price testing suggest that the stock price is relatively reasonable but above the median. The P/GP Ratios are also rather high for a utility stock.

This used to be an income fund so the historical median dividend yield is quite higher at 8.20%. The 5 year median Dividend Yield is at 4.55% and this is just below the current dividend yield of 4.58%. This is based on dividends of $0.54 using current exchange and a stock price of $11.67. It is interesting that in US$, the dividend yield is higher at 4.64% based on dividends of 0.42 and a stock price of $9.12. Usually, yields are very similar or exact using different currencies. This testing might be suggesting that the stock price is relatively reasonable and at the median.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 1.49. The current P/B Ratio is 1.88 based on current BVPS of $6.27 and a stock price of $11.67. The current P/B Ratio is some 26% above the 10 year median. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

If you look at Price/Cash Flow per Share Ratio the 10 year median ratio is 9.54. The current P/CF Ratio is 10.25 a value some 7% higher. This is based on CFPS estimate for 2016 of $1.15 and a stock price of $11.67. This suggests that the stock price is reasonable but above the median.

If you look at P/S Ratio, the 10 year ratio is 2.38 and the current ratio is 2.68 based on Revenue of $1,139M and Revenue per Share of $4.40 and a stock price of $11.79. The current ratio is some 47.7% higher. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Strong Buy and Buy. Most are a Buy and the consensus is a Buy. The 12 month stock price is $13.28. This implies a total return of 18.06% with 13.49% from capital gain and 4.58% from dividends.

This article by Ryan Vanzo on Motley Fool talks about Emera selling most of their stake in this company. Emera says that they need for the money for their TECO Energy investment and that was the only reason for the sale. In this article by Demetris Afxentiou of Motley Fool says why this company should be in your portfolio. He is impressed with the high dividend yield of around 4.5% and the recent dividend increases. Mercenary Investor on Seeking Alpha thinks that this company is a value generator. See what analysts are saying on Stock Chase.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see that report here.

Yesterday on my other blog I wrote about not dying broke... learn more . The next thing I will write about on my other blog is about Buy Backs... learn more on Thursday, June 15, 2016 around 5 pm.

APUC owns and operates a diversified portfolio of clean renewable electric generation and sustainable utility distribution businesses in North America. Liberty Water Co., APUC's water utility subsidiary, provides regulated water utility services. Through its wholly owned subsidiary Liberty Energy Utilities Co., APUC provides regulated electricity and natural gas distribution services. Algonquin Power Co., APUC's electric generation subsidiary, includes renewable energy facilities and thermal energy facilities. Its web site is here Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Monday, June 13, 2016

Canexus Corporation

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Takeover Target. Will this company be taken over by Superior Plus? If there is no take over, will the company be able to survive? The CEO seems to think so. See my spreadsheet on Canexus Corporation.

I do not own this stock of Canexus Corporation (TSX-CUS, OTC-CXUSF). I started to follow this stock in 2012 after reading that it was part of Sentry Small/Mid Cap Income Fund. See stocks in this fund on G&M. Sentry home site is here. This stock was also mentioned by Michael Decter in May of 2012. Michael Decter is president and CEO of LDIC Inc.

It would seem that this is another stock I should replace as it is being taken over by Superior Plus and this transaction is expected to complete in the first half of 2016. I do not see another stock from the above Sentry fund that I do not know about and is Canadian that I would like to follow. Dividends paying small cap Canadian stocks are not easy to find.

For the takeover or merger with Superior Plus, the companies still need Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approval. It is believed that Superior Plus will be able to devise a plan to alleviate concentration issues that the FTC is concerned with and that the transaction will ultimately close.

This stock has dropped from a high of $9.60 in of 2013 by some 84% to a current value of around $1.55. Superior Plus Corp. announced it has struck a friendly deal to swap .153 of a share for each share of Canexus Corp., valuing it at about $1.70 per share or $316 million.

The dividends have also been dropping. They have dropped some 93% since 2013. The company expects to only pay the first quarter dividend payment as it expects the takeover the Superior to be completed prior the payment of the second quarterly dividend. The company has not been able to cover the dividends by EPS since 2010.

The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 13.60, 16.58 and 19.56. The current P/E Ratio is 12.92 based on a stock price of $1.55 and 2016 EPS estimate of $0.12. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

The 10 year P/S Ratio is 0.65. The current P/S Ratio is 0.50 a value some 23% lower based on Revenue estimate for 2016 of $580 and Revenue per Share of $3.10 and a stock price of $1.55. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

The 10 year Price/Cash Flow per Share Ratio is 9.10. The current P/CF Ratio is 5.00 a value some 45% lower. The current P/CF Ratio is based on CFPS estimate for 2016 of $0.31 and a stock price of $1.55.

You cannot do testing on dividend yield dividends have recently been cut a lot. You cannot do testing on Price/Book Value per Share or Graham Price as the BVPS is negative.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Buy, Hold and Underperform recommendations. Most are a Hold and the consensus recommendation is a Hold. The 12 month stock price is $1.65. This implies a 9.03% return with 6.45% from capital gains and 2.58% from dividends.

It looks like this company will still be taken over by Superior Plus with the short gap credit arrangement notice via Market Wired press release. Barry Critchley in the Financial Post gives an "astute investor's" view of this takeover of Canexus Corp. In the conference call transcript for Q1 of 2016 on Seeking Alpha, Canexus says that they expect that the Superior takeover will happen. However, there are those on Stockhouse Bull Board that think the takeover will not happen.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see that report here.

The last stock I wrote about was about was Power Corp of Canada (TSX-POW, OTC-PWCDF)... learn more . Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about not dying broke... learn more on Tuesday, June 14, 2016 around 5 pm.

Canexus Corporation is based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and is a chemical manufacturing and handling company serving customers for more than half a century. Canexus produces sodium chlorate and chlor-alkali products largely for the pulp and paper and water treatment industries. Their operations are located in North and South America and organized into three business units. Its web site is here Canexus Corporation.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Friday, June 10, 2016

Power Corp of Canada

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Buy good company cheap. If you have a long term horizon and are putting together a dividend growth portfolio, this would be a good stock to have. There is little risk and the recovery may not be quick, but it will recover and provide future dividend growth and stock price growth. The right time to buy good companies is when they are cheap. See my spreadsheet on Power Corp of Canada.

I do not own this stock of Power Corp of Canada (TSX-POW, OTC-PWCDF). I started following this stock because it was on the Dividend Achievers, the Dividend Aristocrats lists and also on Mike Higgs' list. It is a stock that I notice has been recommended lately as good value (October 2008). I believe it is still a dividend growth stock. I would not buy it just because I have shares in Power Financial, which this company controls. It would not really be prudent to have both.

The negative that I see with Power Corp is that its set up is that it is complicated. They have a lot of companies and they most also trade on the TSX. The Desmarais family retains control by having special shares that have 10 votes each. A positive is that they allow shareholders to profit from investing in their companies.

From 1993 to 2008, the median dividend increase was just over 17% per year. At that time, the dividend yield was a lot lower, closer to 2% than the 4.5% of today. A lot of companies involved in insurance had difficulties since 2008 and this company is no different. There were no dividend increases from 2009 to 2014 inclusive. The dividend increases in 2015 and 2016 were for just over 7% with the one for 2016 being at 7.6%.

The company can afford their dividends. The Dividend Payout Ratio for 2015 for EPS was 32%. The DPR for CFPS was 9%. They have always fairly good coverage of their dividends. Today I would consider the dividend to be very good with moderate growth. The current dividend is at 4.6% based on a stock price of $29.30 and dividends of $1.34. The recent growth is of dividends is just over 7%.

If dividends growth say at around 7.4% and if you bought the stock today at around $29.30, you could be earnings dividends of at 6.5%, 9.3% and 13.3% in 5, 10 and 15 years on your original investment. Using dividend growth stock to build a portfolio is taking advantage of compounding.

Lately this company has had good growth in EPS, low to moderate growth in Revenue and low to non-existent growth in Cash Flow. Revenue per Share has grown at 2.9% and 3.4% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. EPS has grown at 15.25 and 5.5% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. This is because there has been recent great growth in EPS. CFPS has declined by 1.1% and grown by 1% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Analysts expect good growth in revenue, but a decline in EPS for 2016.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 10.26, 11.08 and 12.66. The corresponding 10 year ratios are a bit higher at 10.82, 13.00 and 14.37. The same can be said for the historical ratios at 10.96, 13.14 and 15.02. The current P/E Ratio is 9.80 based on a stock price of $29.30 and 2016 EPS estimate of $2.99. This stock price testing suggests that this stock is relatively cheap.

I get a Graham Price of $42.41. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.78, 0.93 and 1.08. The current P/GP Ratio is 0.69 based on a stock price of $29.30. This stock price testing suggests that this stock is relatively cheap.

The 10 year Price/Book Value per Share 1.45. The current P/B Ratio is 1.10 based on a stock price of $29.30 and BVPS of $26.74. This current P/B Ratio is some 24% lower than the 10 year P/B Ratio. This stock price testing suggests that this stock is relatively cheap.

The historical dividend yield is 2.28%. The current dividend yield is 4.57% a values some 100% higher. The current dividend yield is based on dividends of $1.34 and a stock price of $29.30. This stock price testing suggests that this stock is relatively cheap.

When I look at analysts' recommendations I find Buy and Hold recommendations. The consensus recommendations would be a Hold as there are more Hold recommendations. The 12 month stock price is $33.36. This implies a total return 18.435 with 13.86% from capital gains and 4.57% from dividends.

In a recent article by Nasdaq, it says that Power Corp. of Canada has been named as a Top 25 dividend stock, according the most recent Canada Stock Channel's Dividend Rank report. This article in the G&M by David Milstead talk about some directors having shareholders withhold their votes because of lack of attendance at Board Meetings. This article by John Reese in the G&M says that this company is one of three solid stocks that should hold up in bad times. Sam Kovacs of Seeking Alpha does a good job of breaking down this company's structure.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see that report here and here.

Yesterday on my other blog I wrote about Something to Buy for June 2016... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Canexus Corporation (TSX-CUS, OTC- CXUSF)... learn more on Monday, June 13, 2016 around 5 pm.

Power Corporation of Canada is a diversified international management and holding company with interests in companies in the financial services, communications and other business sectors in North America, Europe and Asia. Some of it subsidiary companies include Power Financial, the Pargesa group and Gesca and Square Victoria Digital Properties. Its web site is here Power Corp of Canada.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Liquor Stores N.A. Ltd.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price seems reasonable. I see this only as a buy in a turnaround scenario. But, I do not really think it is yet showing as a turnaround scenario. Personally, I would not buy this stock. For me to consider this stock, I would want to see improvement in Revenue per Shares, ROE and Book Value. See my spreadsheet on Liquor Stores N.A.

I do not own this stock of Liquor Stores N. A. Ltd. (TSX-LIQ, OTC-LQSIF). The idea of following this stock came from a reader of my blog.

One of the first things I noticed was growth in Revenue. Revenue growth is good, but Revenue per Share is not. Revenue growth over the past 5 and 10 years is at 5.2% and 16.8% per year. Revenue per Share is running at 1.2% and 0.7% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

Not only has revenue slowed down a lot, but because they have raised a lot of money in share issues, there is extremely little revenue growth per share. Shares have grown strongly especially in the early years. Growth in shares runs at 4% and 16.1% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. There is nothing wrong with share growth, or selling shares to raise money per se, however you should also expect a reasonable growth in revenue per shares also.

The problem with Earnings and EPS is that they reached a peak in 2011 and have been sliding ever since. The reason for the large loss in 2015 is the write off Goodwill and Intangible assets. In 2014 Goodwill and Intangibles Assets were 77% of market cap. Analysts expect that the company will again have profits in 2016 and 2017.

In 2014 Goodwill and Intangible were 77% of market cap in 2014. After Goodwill and Intangible Asset write offs in 2016 and even though these values came down by over $100M, Goodwill and Intangibles are some 88% of market cap in 2016. This is because the stock price dropped in 2016 and therefore market cap dropped. Why you worry about high ratio of Goodwill and Intangibles Assets to Market Cap is because it signals these assets are not valued by the investors by as much as show on a company's balance sheet.

Liquor Stores Income Fund (TSX - LIQ.UN) converted to a corporation on December 31, 2010. At that time it decreased its dividend by some 33%. It was still paying way more than it was earning. In 2016 the dividends were cut again by some 67%. Because of the recent cut, it is expected that the Dividend Payout Ratio will be around 57% in 2017 when a full year of the lower dividend is paid.

This company did do some dividend increases after it became public in 2004. However, it remains to be seen if it can become a dividend growth company. You have to have growth in Revenue per Share to get growth in EPS and therefore in dividends.

Cash Flow per Share has been travelling south since 2011. The last financial year in 2015 is the first time that Cash Flow has increased. Cash flow has declined by 4.9% per year and has increased by 8.4% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. CFPS is down by 8.5% and 6.6% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

One problem with this stock is that the Return on Equity has never even come close to 10%. The 5 year median is just 3.6%. The ROE is very low. It is expected to be one of the best ROE in 2016 at 7.7%. This is still not very good.

One of the positives is in the debt ratios. The debt ratios are good. The Liquidity Ratio for 2015 is 2.75. The Debt Ratio for 2015 is 2.28. The Leverage and Debt/Equity Ratios are also good at 1.78 and 0.78. Another positive is that insiders are buying. The Net Insiders Buying is at 0.30% of market cap and this is quite good.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 18.60, 21.62 and 24.63. The corresponding 10 year values are lower at 13.66, 16.22 and 20.71. The current P/E Ratio is 14.32 based on a stock price of $9.00 and 2016 EPS estimate of $0.62. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

I get a Graham Price of $10.76. The 10 year Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.81, 0.97 and 1.20. The current P/GP Ratio is 0.84. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable but below the median.

The 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio is 1.20. The current P/B Ratio is 1.08 based on BVPS of $8.30 and a stock price of $9.00. The current P/B Ratio is some 10% lower than the 10 year median ratios. This stock price testing suggests that stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median. One negative with BVPS is that it has declined by 7.8% per year and 1.7% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. This is not the direction you want it to go.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Strong Buy, Buy and Hold recommendations. Most of the recommendations are a Hold, but the mean consensus would be a Buy. The 12 month stock price is $9.67. This implies a total return of 11.44% with 4% from dividends and 7.44% in capital gains.

I will have only one entry for this stock as I must do on some stock because I cover too many stocks to do double entries on all that I follow.

The last stock I wrote about was about was Intertape Polymer Group Inc. (TSX-ITP, OTC-ITPOF)... learn more . Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about something to buy for June 2016... learn more on Thursday, June 9, 2016 around 5 pm.

Liquor Stores N.A. Ltd. is a Canada-based operator of retail liquor stores. The Company operates over stores in Alberta, British Columbia, New Jersey, Alaska and Kentucky. Its web site is here Liquor Stores N.A.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Monday, June 6, 2016

Intertape Polymer Group Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price seems reasonable. Even though you can do little comparison testing on this stock, ratios are not particularly high except for the P/BV Ratio. This could be an interesting investment. Still, the economic climate is uncertain at present. See my spreadsheet on Intertape Polymer Group Inc.

I do not own this stock of Intertape Polymer Group Inc. (TSX-ITP, OTC-ITPOF). I got this stock from a guy who I met in an Investment Club.

The stock has a rather checker past. It hit highs prior to the 2000 bear market. At that time the stock price fell some 44% and it has never recovered. The stock is still some 56% below the highs that occurred at the end of 1999 and beginning of 2000. Although Revenue and Cash Flow did not fall at that time, EPS fell some 75% for the 1999 financial year.

This is an industrial stock and EPS for industrial stocks tend to be rather uneven. Probably what kept the stock down for so long is that between 2006 and 2010 inclusive, the company had earning losses. It only started to make a profit again in 2011 and this is when the stock price started to increase again.

This stock seems to be doing well at present and in 2013, it started to pay dividends. Dividends were increased by 50% in 2014. The next increase in 2015 was for 8.3%. Perhaps this company will become a dividend growth company. The one problem for Canadian investors is that the company's dividends are payable in US$, so the dividend payments will fluctuate with the currency exchange. They do a lot of business in the US and report also in US$.

They can afford the current dividends. The Dividend Payout Ratio for 2015 was 54% for EPS and 29% for CFPS. It is always a good sign when a company starts to pay dividends.

Revenue growth is low where the Revenue is up over the past 5 years by 1.7% per year, but down over the past 10 years by 0.25% per year. Revenue per Share is up by 1.8% per year over the past 5 years, but down by 3.8% per year over the past 10 years. Analysts seem low growth in Revenue over the next couple of years. This is in US$ as the company reports in US$.

EPS is up by 58% per year over the past 4 years and by 3.3% per year over the past 10 years. The company had a string of earning losses between 2006 and 2010 inclusive, but they have been making a growing profit since. These values are in US$.

Cash Flow has been growing at 32% and 5.8% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. CFPS has been growing at 32% and 2% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. If you notice again, there is good growth lately. These values are in US$.

Debt Ratios are good. The Liquidity Ratio for 2015 is 2.45. The Debt Ratio is 1.80. The Leverage and Debt/Equity Ratios for 2015 are 2.25 and 1.25.

The Return on Equity has been over 10% during the last 4 years. Before that it was either negative or quite low. You can see that this is a turnaround for this company.

I get 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios of 8.61, 14.26 and 21.70. The 10 year corresponding ratios are very low at 2.92, 4.30 and 5.68. This is due to a number of years of negative EPS. The corresponding historical ratios are 7.79, 15.10 and 21.48. The current P/E Ratio is 13.49. This stock price testing would suggest that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median.

I get a Graham Price of $13.11. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.63, 1.04 and 1.40. These are reasonable ratios. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.50. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive. The current P/BP Ratio at 1.50 is rather high.

I get a 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 0.94. This is a very low ratio and is probably because the stock was doing poorly until recently. The current P/B Ratio is 3.73. This Ratio is rather high. Until 2011, the BVPS was going down year after year. You really can do no stock price testing on P/B Ratio.

You also cannot do relative P/S Ratio testing on this stock. The 10 year P/S Ratio is 0.31, a very low value. The current P/S Ratio is 1.09. Although the current one is 249% higher than the 10 year value, a P/S Ratio of 1.09 is not a high ratio. The current P/S Ratio is also higher than the 5 year median ratio of 0.93. Any P/S Ratio at or below 1.00 are a low ratio.

You have the same problem looking at Price/Cash Flow per Share Ratio. The 10 year value is 5.08 which is a rather low ratio. The 5 year P/CF Ratio is more realistic at 7.69. The current P/CF is above both, but only 9% higher than the 5 year P/CF Ratio. A P/CF Ratio of8.44 is a reasonable ratio.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Strong Buy and Buy recommendations. Most of the recommendations are a Buy and the consensus recommendation is a Buy. The 12 month stock price is $17.19 US$. This is implies a total return of 15.54% with 15.06% from capital gains and 3.48% from dividends based on current stock price of $14.94 US$.

You also cannot do any stock price testing on Dividend Yield as they have just begun to pay dividends.

Jonathan Abenaim on Seeking Alpha talks about why he likes this company. He also talks about how when Gregory Yull became CEO in 2010, the company has done very well. Gregory Yull has been with the company since 1991. Two companies that own shares in this company sent a letter to ITP asking it to unlock the company's value. This letter is showing on News Wire. Interestingly, one of the ways they suggest to unlock the stock's value is having more leverage. This is to get more debt. These companies are Hedge Funds. Are they just interested in the company for the short term? This can be the trouble with Hedge Funds. See what analysts on Stock Chase are saying about this company.

I will have only one entry for this stock as I must do on some stock because I cover too many stocks to do double entries on all that I follow.

The last stock I wrote about was about was IGM Financial Inc. (TSX-IGM, OTC-IGIFF)... learn more . Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about My Dividend Stocks... learn more on Tuesday, June 7, 2016 around 5 pm.

Intertape Polymer Group Inc. operates in the specialty packaging industry in North America. The Company develops, manufactures and sells a range of paper and film-based pressure sensitive and water activated tapes, polyethylene and specialized polyolefin packaging films, woven coated fabrics and complementary packaging systems for industrial and retail use. Its web site is here Intertape Polymer Group Inc.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.

Friday, June 3, 2016

IGM Financial Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Dividend stock cheap. Since I had both Power Financial and this stock, I decided to go with Power Financial. So basically I am still invested in IGM. I think that Power Corp's companies are good companies. It all depends on what you want to have in your portfolio if you invest in Power Corp or its companies. Certainly it is a good time to invest in a company is when it is relatively cheap. See my spreadsheet on IGM Financial Inc.

I do not own this stock of IGM Financial Inc. (TSX-IGM, OTC-IGIFF), but I used to. I originally bought this stock to replace AGF Management (TSX-AGF.B). IGM was known as a dividend growth stock and it was on a lot of lists of good stocks, including Mike Higgs' and Dividend Aristocrats. I sold this 2011 because I had Power Financial, of which this company is partially owned by and I wanted to rationalize my portfolio. So I sold this stock and bought more of Power Financial. I purposely sold at a low point to reduce taxes and do a buy at a low also.

This is still a dividend growth company. It does have a long history of rising dividends. But a lot of financial companies were hit badly in the last recession. However, currently they are reviving and this company is no different. They have been doing better lately and they did raise their dividend in 2015.

The most recent increase was for 4.65%. This is the second dividend increase since 2008. They did a dividend increase in 2011 which was for 4.88%. The 5 and 10 year dividend growth is at 1.9% and 5.4% per year. These increases are a lot less than occurred prior to 2008 when the 5 and 10 year dividend growth to that year was 15.1% and 18.1% per year. Of course the Dividend Payout Ratios for EPS prior to 2008 was 54% or less. Since 2008 the DPR for EPS is running around 72%. No wonder dividend increases are low and far between. On the other hand, Dividend Yields have been higher than they have ever been recently reaching almost 7%.

For Assets under Management, Revenues and Cash Flow, the old highs made in and around 2007 have been breached. For example for AUM the high for 2007 was $123.0B. In 2012 AUM was $120.7B and in 2013 was $131.8B. For EPS this is not true. In 2007 EPS was $3.32 and for 2015 is $3.11.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 12.40, 14.23 and 16.06. The 10 year corresponding values are similar at 12.85, 15.30 and 17.20. The corresponding Historical values are a little higher at 13.70, 17.80 and 24.13. The current P/E Ratio is 12.53 based on a stock price based on a stock price of $37.73 and 2016 EPS estimate of $3.01. This stock price testing probably suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

I get a Graham Price of $36.05. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.14, 1.27 and 1.57. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.05 based on a stock price of $37.73. This stock price testing is suggesting that the stock price is relatively cheap.

I get a 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 2.57. The current P/B Ratio is 1.97 based on a stock price of $37.73 and BVPS of $19.19. The current ratio is some 24% lower than the 10 year ratio. This stock price testing is suggesting that the stock price is relatively cheap.

The current Dividend Yield is 5.96% based on dividends of $2.25 and a stock price of $37.73. The historical median dividend yield is 3.33% a values some 79% lower. This stock price testing probably suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Buy, Hold and Underperform. There is only 1 Buy recommendation and 1 Underperform recommendation; all the others are a Hold. The consensus is a Hold. The 12 month stock price is $38.43. This implies a total return of 7.82% with 1.86% from capital gains and 5.96% from dividends. I think if you are building a portfolio and/or have a long term horizon, then buy good companies when they are cheap. Recovery maybe a while, but it will be worth it in the long term. All my stock price testing is hitting cheap.

In this Market Wire Release IFM talks about investing in a leading US Digital Wealth Advisor called Personal Capital. Sylvia Delisle of Risers and Fallers talk about recent analysts' recommendations for IGM. See what some analysts are saying on Stock Chase.

I will have only one entry for this stock this year. However, I did a more complete report on this company in 2015 and you can see that report here and here.

Yesterday on my other blog I wrote about Keeping an Eye on Things... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Intertape Polymer Group Inc. (TSX-ITP, OTC-ITPOF)... learn more on Monday, June 6, 2016 around 5 pm.

The company serves its customers through two industry-leading service platforms: FirstService Residential, North America's largest manager of residential communities; and FirstService Brands, one of North America's largest providers of essential property services delivered through individually branded franchise systems and company-owned operations. Its web site is here IGM Financial Inc.

This blog is meant for educational purposes only, and is not to provide investment advice. Before making any investment decision, you should always do your own research or consult an investment professional. I do research for my own edification and I am willing to share. I write what I think and I may or may not be correct.

See my website for stocks followed and investment notes. I have three blogs. The first talks only about specific stocks and is called Investment Talk . The second one contains information on mostly investing and is called Investing Economics Mostly. My last blog is for my book reviews and it is called Non-Fiction Mostly. Follow me on Twitter or StockTwits.