Friday, December 30, 2016

Magna International Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price cheap to reasonable. Buy for capital gains and increasing dividends. See my spreadsheet on Magna International Inc.

I do not own this stock of Magna International Inc. (TSX-MG, NYSE-MGA) but I used to. I held this company between September 2002 and September 2006 and earned 5% return per year including dividends. When I bought this stock in 2002, I felt I was paying a good price for it. There were some rumors that it might be bought out in 2006, so I sold.

You would buy this stock for diversification reasons. There may be volatility in this stock, especially concerning Earnings and Cash Flow. You should buy it for both rising dividends and capital gain appreciation. You should expect low to moderate dividend yield and low to moderate dividend growth. Dividends could also be decreased as well is increased.

The current dividend yield is moderate, but the historical median dividend yield is low. The current dividend yield is 2.29%. The historical median dividend yield is 1.75%. Even the 5 and 10 year dividend yield median are low at 1.86 and 1.82 respectively. The 5 year dividend growth looks good, but that is only because dividends had been cut a little more than 5 years ago, but they were increased back to and past the old dividend number in a couple of years. The 5 and 10 year dividend growth rate is at 33.2% and 8.8% per year.

They can afford their dividends. The Dividend Payout Ratio for 2015 is 18.03% and the 5 year coverage is 18% with 5 y3ar coverage at 18.8%. This is a good coverage rate. The DPR for 2015 for CFPS is at 13.2% with 5 year coverage at 11.7%. This is in US$ terms.

Since outstanding shares have been declining it is best to look not at per share growth but growth in Revenue, Earnings and Cash Flow. Shares are down by 3.7% and 0.8% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. For example Revenue is up by 5.9% and 3.5% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Revenue per Share is up by 10% and 4.4% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Declining shares of course makes more of a difference over the past 5 years rather than 10 year periods.

Because of possible volatility in this company's business good debt ratios are essential and these are adequate with Liquidity Ratio at 1.53 but with a 5 year median of just 1.37. When you add in cash flow after dividends this raises to 1.81 with a 5 year median value of 1.65. Leverage and Debt/Equity Ratios for 2015 are 2.20 and 1.18, respectively.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 7.65, 9.79 and 12.48. The corresponding 10 year values are 7.89, 10.14 and 12.55. The corresponding historical year values are 8.94, 12.58 and 14.04. The current P/E Ratio is 8.36 based on a stock price of $59.09 and 2016 EPS Ratio of and $7.07 CDN$ ($5.22 US$). The P/E Ratio for 2017 is 7.69 based on a stock price of $59.09 and 2017 EPS Ratio of and $7.69 CDN$ ($5.68 US$). This is in CDN$, but you get similar results in US$. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and below the median.

I get a Graham Price of $74.06 CDN$. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.78, 0.90 and 1.04. The current Price/Graham Price Ratio is 0.80 based on a stock price of $59.09. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and below the median.

The historical Dividend Yield is 1.74%. The current Dividend Yield is 2.29% based on dividends of $1.35 and a stock price of $59.09 CDN$ or $1.00 and a stock price of $43.58 US$. The current yield is some 31.6% above the historical median yield. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is cheap.

When I look at analysts' recommendations I find Strong Buy, Buy, Hold and Underperform Recommendations. Most of the recommendations are Buy and Hold and the consensus recommendation is a Buy. The 12 month stock price consensus is $53.25 US$ or $72.07 CDN$. This is implies a total return of 24.48% with 22.19% from capital gains and 2.29% from dividends. This is based on a stock price of $59.09 CDN$ or $43.58 US$.

This site shows some measures made on this company at Highland Digest. This stock's Value Composite score of 5 shows that the stock may be undervalued. Andrew Walz on Wall Street Confidential talks about additions or reductions of this company by funds. He says that Miller Howard Investments Inc. purchased a new position in Magna International Inc. See what analysts are saying about this stock 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.

Also, on my book blog I have put a review of the book Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan learn more...

The last stock I wrote about was about was Methanex Corp. (TSX-MX, NASDAQ-MEOH)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Metro Inc. (TSX-MRU, OTC-MTRAF)... learn more on Tuesday, January 03, 2017around 5 pm.

Magna International is the most diversified global automotive supplier. They design, develop and manufacture technologically advanced automotive systems, assemblies, modules and components, and engineer and assemble complete vehicles, primarily for sale to original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs") of cars and light trucks. Their capabilities include the design, engineering, testing and manufacture of automotive interior systems; seating systems; closure systems; body and chassis systems; vision systems; electronic systems; exterior systems; powertrain systems; roof systems; hybrid and electric vehicles/systems; as well as complete vehicle engineering and assembly. Its web site is here Magna International 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, December 28, 2016

Methanex Corp

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price a bit high. Canadians seem to be doing better than Americans with this stock and this mostly likely is due to the falling CDN$. This is a dividend growth stock and could be a good for diversification and a long term hold if priced a bit lower. See my spreadsheet on Methanex Corp.

I do not own this stock of Methanex Corp. (TSX-MX, NASDAQ-MEOH). I started a spreadsheet in November 2010 as I had read some good reports on the stock at that time. It is also got a solid "C" grade in a 2009 Money Sense review of stocks. Money Sense rated the top 100 Canadian Dividend Paying stocks. Money Sense was looking for stocks that provided generous income at reasonable prices.

You would buy this stock for diversification reasons and because it operates internationally. There may be volatility in this stock, especially concerning Earnings and Cash Flow. I would expect moderate dividend yield and moderate dividend growth over the longer term, but there might also be volatility in dividends. Because dividends are paid in US$, there will be built in volatility in dividends.

The dividend yield is moderate and the dividend growth is moderate. The current dividend yield is 2.49% based on dividends of $1.10 US$ and a stock price of $44.20 US$ or dividends of $1.49 CDN$ and a stock price of 59.78 CDN$. Because of currency exchange rates, dividends will grow at dividend rates in different currencies. The dividends are paid in US$ and dividends grow by 11.6% and 10.1% per year in US$ over the past 5 and 10 years. Dividends grew by 19.3% and 12% CDN$ over the past 5 and 10 years.

They can afford their dividends. In 2015 the Dividend Payout Ratio was 53.5% for EPS in US$. Over the past 5 years the DPR was 37.2% for EPS in US$. Even with the expected loss in EPS for this year, the 5 year DPR for EPS would be 51.8% in US$. For 2015 the DPR for CPFS is just 10.6% in US$. For this stock you have to look at US$ values for dividends. Dividends are paid in US$ and the company reports in US$.

Because the outstanding shares have been decreasing at 0.5% and 2.34% per year over the past 5 and 10 years, I would look at things like Revenue rather than Revenue per Share to get real growth for this company. For a look at the difference I have Revenue growth over the past 5 and 10 years at 2.5% and 3% per year in US$. The Revenue per Share growth over the past 5 and 10 years is 3.2% and 5.5% per year in US$.

Because this is a material sector stock and you would expect volatility in Earnings and Cash Flow, having a good Liquidity Ratio is important. This stock Liquidity Ratio for 2015 was 1.77 and its 5 year median is 2.06. If you add in cash flow after dividends, the ratio is 2.98 for 2015 and its 5 year median is 2.93. (These ratios are the same in US$ and CDN$.)

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 9.55, 12.81 and 15.35. The corresponding 10 year values are 9.12, 12.59 and 15.27. The historical corresponding values are 7.41, 10.79 and 14.94. The P/E Ratio for 2017 is 51.36 based on a stock price of $59.78 ($44.20 US$) and EPS of $1.16 CDN$ (or 0.86 US$). If we use EPS for 2018 of $3.11 CDN$ ($2.30 US$) then we have a P/E Ratio of 19.20. All this suggests that the stock price is relatively high. However, stock's earnings tend to be volatile and so the P/E Ratio may not be the best one to use to figure out where the stock price stands.

I get a Graham Price of $45.89 based on a formula using the last 3 EPS. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.05, 1.35 and 1.63. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.30 based on a stock price of $59.78 CDN$. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and below the median.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 2.03 CDN$. The current P/B Ratio is 2.49 CDN$. This value is some 22.5% higher than the 10 year value. The current P/B Ratio is based on BVPS of $24.02 CDN$ and a stock price of $59.78 CDN$. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get an historical median dividend yield of 2.26%. The current dividend yield is 2.49% a value some 10.2% higher. The current dividend yield is based on dividends of $1.10 US$ and a stock price of $44.20 US$ or dividends of $1.49 CDN$ and a stock price of 59.78 CDN$. Because of currency exchange rates, dividends will grow at dividend rates in different currencies. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and but above the median.

When I look at analysts' recommendations I find Strong Buy, Buy and Hold recommendations. Most are Buy recommendations and the consensus is a Buy recommendation. The 12 month stock consensus is $53.11 US$ or $71.88 CDN$. This implies a total return of 22.74% with 20.25% from capital gains and 2.49% from dividends based on a stock price of $59.78.

James Conley on Baseball News Source talks about analysts at Cowen raising the target price from $48.00 to $51.00. The site Wall Street Confidential show some technical data. They said they Williams Percent Range currently sit at -53.86. A reading between 0 and -20 would point to an overbought situation. A reading from -80 to -100 would signal an oversold situation. So this stock is neither overbought nor oversold (that is neither too high nor very low). Joseph Solitro at Motley Fool likes this dividend stock. See what analysts are saying about this stock at 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 hereand here.

The last stock I wrote about was about was Stantec Inc. (TSX-STN, NYSE-STN)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Magna International Inc. (TSX-MG, NYSE-MGA)... learn more on Friday, December 30, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Budget Items... learn more on Tuesday, December 29, 2016 around 5 pm.

Methanex is the world's largest supplier of methanol to major international markets in North America, Asia Pacific, Europe and Latin America. Methanol is an important ingredient in many of the essential industrial and consumer products. Head Office is in Vancouver, B. C. Canada. Its web site is here Methanex 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.

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Stantec Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price could be reasonable. You would buy this stock for rising Dividends and Capital Gains. See my spreadsheet on Stantec Inc.

I do not own this stock of Stantec Inc. (TSX-STN, NYSE-STN), but I used to. I bought and sold this stock between 2008 and 2011 and did not make any money. It was a non-core holding. With their new policy of dividends, this stock has become more interesting.

You would buy this stock for diversification reasons. There may be volatility in this stock, especially concerning Earnings and Cash Flow. You should buy it for both rising dividends and capital gain appreciation. You should expect low dividend yield and moderate dividend growth. Over the longer term this sort of stock should have total returns of around 10% per year with 1 to 2% from dividends and the rest from capital gains.

Dividends are low and dividend increases are moderate. The current dividend yield is 1.31% based on a stock price of $34.38 and dividends of $0.45. The dividends have grown by some 10.8% per year over the past 3 years to 2015. The most recent increase was in 2016 and it was for 7.1%. So far they have raised dividends each year since they started them.

They can afford their dividends and they Dividend Payout Ratios are rather low. The DPR for EPS for 2015 was 24.7% and the CFPS was 2.1%.

Growth in Revenues, Earnings and Cash Flow are all above 10% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. So this company has had good growth. For example, the EPS has grown at 10.1% and 12.8% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 12.38, 17.66 and 22.88. The 10 year corresponding values are 15.01, 18.97 and 22.92. The corresponding historical values are 8.19, 14.77 and 23.88. The current P/E Ratio is 25.28 based on a stock price of $34.38 and 2016 EPS estimate of $1.36. The P/E Ratio for 2017 is 18.38 based on a stock price of $34.38 and 2017 EPS Estimate of $1.87. This stock price testing suggests that the current stock price is relatively high, but it could still be in the reasonable price range, but above the median.

I get a Graham price of $20.71 for 2016. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.11, 1.42 and 1.74. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.66. I get a 2017 Graham Price of $24.28. The P/GP for 2017 would be 1.42. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price maybe in the reasonable range, but above the median.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 2.37. The current P/B Ratio is 2.03 a value some 14.3% lower. The current P/B Ratio is based on a stock price of $34.38 and PVPS of $16.93. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and below the median.

The current dividend yield is 1.31%. The 3 year median dividend yield is 1.24%. This makes the current dividend yield some 5.9% above the 3 year median. This suggests that the stock price is reasonable and below the median. However, dividends have not been paid for long, so you wonder how valid this test is.

The 10 year median P/S Ratio is 1.21. The current P/S Ratio is 1.25 based on 2016 Revenue estimate of $3.124M ($27.42 per share). The P/S Ratio for 2017 is 1.05 based on 2017 Revenue estimate of $3738M ($32.81 per Share). This all suggests that the stock price is probably reasonable.

When I look at analysts’ recommendations, I find Buy and Hold recommendations with most being Holds. The 12 month stock price consensus is $36.23. This implies a total return of 6.69% with 1.31% from dividends and 5.38% from capital gains.

This Wall Street Transcript talks about this company and Local Motors going into a strategic alliance to accelerate the worldwide implementation of connected automated vehicles. Ruchi Gupta says in this Money Making Article says that analysts give this stock 1 Buy, 0 sells and 7 Holds. See what analysts are saying about this company on Stock Chase. Most like this company, but a few feel it is overpriced.

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 hereand here.

The last stock I wrote about was about was Colliers International Group Inc. (TSX-CIG, NASDAQ-CIGI)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Methanex Corp. (TSX-MX, NASDAQ-MEOH)... learn more on Wednesday, December 28, 2016 around 5 pm.

Stantec, founded in 1954, provides professional consulting services in planning, engineering, architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, surveying, environmental sciences, project management, and project economics for infrastructure and facilities projects. We support public and private sector clients in a diverse range of markets, at every stage, from initial concept and financial feasibility to project completion and beyond. Their services are provided on projects around the world operating out of more than 170 locations in North America and 4 locations internationally. Its web site is here Stantec 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, December 23, 2016

Colliers International Group Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Reasonable and below median. I must admit I do have concerns because the P/GP Ratio and P/B Ratios are so high and the Liquidity Ratio is so low. It is also not clear where dividends are going yet. See my spreadsheet on Colliers International Group Inc.

I do not own this stock of Colliers International Group Inc. (TSX-CIGI, NASDAQ-CIGI) but I sort of used to as this is a spin off from FirstService Corp. (In actual fact they made FirstService Corp into Colliers International and then spun off FirstService Corp.) Also note that the TSX symbol has recently changed from CIG and some sites still list it under the old symbol.

I would not be much interested in this stock because of the low dividend yields. Since the split with FirstService Corp, they cut their dividend by around 80%. They not only lowered the dividend payments, they also decreased dividend payments from quarterly to semi-annual. They did start to raise the dividends again in 2016 by some 25%.

Their current dividend yield is just 0.27%. I would not invest in stocks with dividends below 1%. Even with high growth rates, it takes a long time with this low of dividend to start to get a really good dividend yield on your original purchase price of a stock. I do not think of stocks with yields below 1% as dividend paying stock. However, on this stock it is currently hard to know exactly where dividends are going to go.

The Dividend Payout Ratios for this stock was 32% in 2015 for EPS and was 5.1% in 2015 for CFPS. These are good rates. It is hard to say where the dividends will go in the future. Analysts seem unsure also as some think dividends will rise next year and others that they will stay level for a while.

Outstanding Shares have increased by 4.9% and 2.5% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. I would think that real growth will be shown in per share values. EPS is up by 63% in the last 5 years. For Collier it is up by 5.6% in 2015. Analysts expect 270% increase in EPS for 2016. This is possible as change in EPS between the first three quarters of 2015 and 2016 is 279%.

With growth for Colliers (and also FirstService) going forward it is hard to judge because each company took different part of the old company. But analysts expect growth in Revenue and Earnings and a drop in cash flow. The third quarterly results seem to support this.

The one thing that stands out is the low Liquidity Ratio. For 2015 it is just 1.04. The Liquidity Ratio for the third quarter is a bit better at 1.12. I prefer this ratio to be at 1.50 or higher for safety's sake. A low Liquidity Ratio gives companies vulnerability in bad times.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 12.03, 15.38 and 18.72. The corresponding 10 year values are 16.46, 19.29 and 22.13. The corresponding historical ratios are 12.03, 18.21 and 22.14. The current P/E Ratio is 16.40 based on a stock price of $50.30 and 2016 EPS estimate of $3.07 CDN$ ($2.30 US$). The P/E Ratio is 14.67 if based on a stock price of $50.30 and 2017 EPS estimate of $3.43 CDN$ ($2.57 US$). This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median.

I get a Graham Price of $20.54 CDN$. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.98, 2.60 and 3.11. First I have to say that the P/GP Ratios are very high. On an absolute basis a good stock price is when this ratio is at 1.00 or below. The current P/GP Ratio is 2.45 based on a stock price of $50.30 CDN$. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median.

The 10 year Price/Book Value per Share is 8.50. This is also a very high ratio. On an absolute basis, a B/P Ratio of 1.50 or less is considered a good ratio. The current P/B Ratio is 8.23 based on BVPS of $6.11 and a stock price of $50.30 CDN$. This is some 3.2% lower than the 10 year median ratio. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median.

I cannot do any stock price testing using dividend yield. They only just started to pay dividends and the dividends have been going south until very recently.

I can do some testing with Revenue and P/S Ratio. The 10 year median P/S Ratio is 0.47. This is a rather low value. The current P/S Ratio is 0.76 based on Revenue of $2570M CDN$ ($1927M US$). The current P/S Ratio is 0.75 a value some 54.8% higher. 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 months stock price consensus is $41.41 US$ or $55.23 CDN$. This implies a total return of 10.07% with capital gains at 9.81% and dividends at 0.27%.

Looking at technical indicators on Wall Street Confidential I see they give this stock a 14 day ADX of 20.92 indicating a weak trend. Marie Curie on Daily Quint says that the Royal Bank of Canada cut the target price on this stock from $70.00 CDN$ to $67.00 CDN$. Analysts Michael Smedley likes this stock as shown 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.

The last stock I wrote about was about was FirstService Corp (TSX-FSV, NASDAQ-FSV)... report learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Stantec Inc. (TSX-STN, NYSE-STN)... learn more on Tuesday, December 27, 2016 around 5 pm.

Colliers International Group Inc. is a global leader in commercial real estate services. Colliers professionals provide a full range of services to real estate occupiers, owners and investors worldwide. Services include brokerage, global corporate solutions, investment sales and capital markets, project management and workplace solutions, property and asset management, consulting, valuation and appraisal services, and customized research and thought leadership. Its web site is here Colliers International 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.

Wednesday, December 21, 2016

FirstService Corp

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Relatively Expensive. See my spreadsheet on FirstService Corp.

I do not own this stock of FirstService Corp (TSX-FSV, NASDAQ-FSV), but I used to. I bought FirstService Corp in 2002 as it a good solid company that knows how to make money. At that time I was still buying companies to earn capital gains. I bought more of this company in 2007 from my profit from RIM. FSV was a non-dividend paying stock, but it had issued preferred shares to shareholders. I sold my shares in 2010 when cleaning up by portfolio. I sold this company because it was such a small amount of my portfolio.

This company started to pay a dividend in 2013. It is really too soon to tell how the dividends will go. Dividends were flat for the first 3 years and then they raised the dividend by 10% in 2016. The Dividend Payout Ratios for EPS for 2015 is a bit high at 67.8% (I would prefer it to be 60% or lower). The Dividend Payout Ratios for CFPS for 2015 is fine at 26.2%.

The dividend yield is low. The current dividend is 0.95% based on a stock price of $61.91 and dividends of $0.59. The median dividend is 1.51%.

Outstanding shares have increased by 3.5% and 1.8% over the past 5 and 10 years. When looking at growth, especially over the past 5 years, I would look at per share growth. Revenue does not seem to be going anywhere. The Revenue growth over the past 5 and 10 years is at 4.7% and 8.9% per year. The Revenue per Share growth is 1.2% and 6.9% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

Revenue was down in 2015 by over 8%. However, analysts expect better in 2016 with growth of over 15%. If you compare the 12 months to the end of the third quarter and to the end of 2015, it is up by 12.2%. So perhaps the analysts are right that 2016 will be a better year for Revenue.

Earnings are a rather mixed bag. The 5 year growth is great at 60.3%. However, over the past 5 year there were two years of earnings losses and EPS is still not above where it was 6 years ago.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 12.03, 15.38 and 18.72. The corresponding 10 year values are 16.46, 19.29 and 22.13. The historical values are 12.03, 18.21 and 22.14. The current P/E Ratio is 29.75, based on a stock price of $61.91 and 2016 EPS estimate of $2.08 ($1.56 US$). The P/E Ratio for 2017 is 25.79 based on a stock price of $61.91 and EPS estimate for 2017 of $2.40 ($1.80US$). This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get a Graham Price of $17.35 CDN$. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.98, 2.60 and 3.11. The current P/GP Ratio is 3.57 based on a stock price of $61.91 CDN$. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get a 10 years Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 7.71. The current P/B Ratio is 9.63 based on a stock price of $61.91 CDN$ and BVPS of $6.43 CDN$. The current P/B Ratio is some 25% higher than the 10 year value. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

The current dividend yield is 0.95% based on dividends of $0.59 CDN$ and a stock price of $61.91 CDN$. The median dividend yield is 1.51% and this is some 37% higher than the current dividend yield. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Buy and Hold Recommendations. There is the same number of both and the consensus would be a Buy. The 12 month stock price is $64.96 CDN$. This implies a total return of $5.87% with 4.93% from capital gains and 0.95% from dividends based on a current price of $61.91.

Harold C. McSweeney on Daily Quint says that Raymond James Financial Inc. upgraded shares of FirstService Corp from a market perform rating to an outperform rating. In a report on Wall Street Confidential the staff says that the 14-day RSI is presently at 72.28. The RSI is considered to be oversold when it falls below 30 and overbought when it heads above 70. James Telfser on Stock Chase says that they recently split and it now also does property management. He thinks that they are in a great business.

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 The Keg Royalties Income Fund (TSX-KEG.UN, OTC-KRIUF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Colliers International Group Inc. (TSX-CIGI, NASDAQ-CIGI)... learn more on Friday, December 23, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Portfolio Size... learn more on Thursday, December 22, 2016 around 5 pm.

FirstService Corporation is a North American leader in the property services sector, serving 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 FirstService 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, December 19, 2016

The Keg Royalties Income Fund

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Could be expensive. I would not buy. It is not the simple the fund gets 4% of revenue of the Keg Restaurants deal that people say. This fund is more complex. See my spreadsheet on The Keg Royalties Income Fund.

I do not own this stock of The Keg Royalties Income Fund (TSX-KEG.UN, OTC-KRIUF). This was a stock suggested by one of my readers. I like dinning at The Keg. I find the food very good. At stock forums I viewed, investors liked this company as it is guaranteed 4% of the sales at Keg restaurants as income to the fund. So I decided to take a look at it.

I will still complain about what I have since 2012. This fund is almost entirely dependent on Keg Restaurants Ltd (KRL). Some 98.9% of the assets of the company are KRL assets and they stopped publishing the financial reports on KRL in 2010 after 3 years of earning losses.

The Fund directly earns interest income on the $57 million Keg Loan, with interest income accruing at 7.5% per annum, payable monthly. This was 15.6% of the fund's income in 2015. It used to be a lot more but it has been declining over the years.

Then there are Exchangeable Partnership units owned by KRL which have similar distribution and voting rights as the Fund units and are exchangeable into Fund units on a one-for-one basis. These Partnership units are shown as a liability to the fund. It would seem that KRL owns some 30% of the Fund through these units.

In other words this is not strictly as simply as it sounds that this fund just earns 4% of gross sales from Keg Restaurant Ltd. Even if this was true, I would still like to see how sound KRL is by being able to analyze KRL financials.

The Exchangeable Partnership units are presented in the Fund's financial statements as a financial liability and measured at fair value. Changes in fair value are recognized in profit or loss in the period they occur. Because of changes in the fair value of the exchangeable Partnership units is why this fund had a loss so far in 2016.

I have analyzed the Fund financial statement. However, I do not know what exactly I have learned. Without KRL financial statements it is hard to tell how solid the fund is. Being the restaurant business can be a very risky business considering how many restaurants go belly up. What I can look at is price and how good it is relatively.

I cannot check the current stock price via Price/Earnings per Share Ratio. The only EPS estimate for 2016 I can find for this stock is for $1.07. Since the EPS to the end of the third quarter is a loss of $0.02, I do not see this is viable.

The best estimate I can get for the Graham Price is $10.30. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.73, 0.82 and 0.91. The current P/GP Ratio is 2.01 based on a stock price of $20.70. This would suggest that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 1.34. The current P/B Ratio is 3.07 a value some 129% higher. The P/B Ratio is based on BVPS of $6.74 and a stock price of $20.70. The problem is that BVPS hit a peak in 2010 and has been travelling south ever since. This would suggest that the stock price is relatively expensive.

Because this used to be an Income Trust, you cannot really use the historical median dividend yield as a basis for looking at the stock price. This is because the dividend yields were a lot higher on Income Trust companies and corporations. The 5 year median dividend yield is 6.29%. The current dividend yield of 5.32% is some 15.4% higher. This would suggest that the stock price is relatively reasonable but above the median.

This stock has a P/S Ratio of 7.36. The current P/S Ratio is 8.46. The current P/S Ratio is based on Revenue estimate for 2016 of $27.8M and Revenue per Share of $2.45 and a stock price of $20.70. This would suggest that the stock price is relatively reasonable but above the median.

As far as I can see, there is only one analyst following this stock and his recommendation is a Buy. The 12 month target price is $23.00. This implies a total return 16.43% with 5.32% from dividends and 11.11% from capital gains. This is based on a current price of $20.70.

There is some analysis of this stock on Stock Newsweek. Its Value Composite score is 61 and the closer this score is to 100, the more overvalued a stock is. Joseph Solitro of Motley Fool thinks you should buy this stock for the high yield.

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 Stella-Jones Inc. (TSX-SJ, OTC- STLJF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be FirstService Corp (TSX-FSV, NASDAQ-FSV)... report learn more on Wednesday, December 21, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Borrowing to Invest... learn more on Tuesday, December 20, 2016 around 5 pm.

The Fund is a limited purpose, open-ended trust established under the laws of the Province of Ontario that, through The Keg Rights Limited Partnership (the "Partnership"), a subsidiary of the Fund, owns certain trademarks and other related intellectual property used by Keg Restaurants Ltd. ("KRL"). In exchange for use of those trademarks, KRL pays the Fund a royalty of 4% of gross sales of Keg restaurants included in the royalty pool. Its web site is here The Keg Royalties Income Fund.

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, December 16, 2016

Stella-Jones Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Expensive, no momentum. This stock has been going almost since the beginning of the year. All my stock testing does points to the stock being expensive. This is a great stock, but it may not be the time to buy. See my spreadsheet on Stella-Jones Inc.

I do not own this stock of Stella-Jones Inc. (TSX-SJ, OTC-STLJF). I started a spreadsheet on this stock in mid-2009 because of a favorable report I read on this stock. It was considered to be a dividend growth stock and I am always on the lookout for dividend growth stocks.

Dividend yield is low, Dividend Payout Ratio is low and dividend growth is good. The current dividend yield is 0.94% based on dividends of $0.40 and a stock price of $42.59. The Dividend Payout Ratio for EPS for 2015 is 15.7% and over the past 5 years payout is 23%. The DPR for CFPS is 8.8% and the 5 year value is 13.3%. (Note I used Cash Flow less Working Capital for my Cash Flow. See my blog for further information on Cash Flow.)

The dividend growth is at 27.5% and 29% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. If you bought this stock 5, 10 or 15 years ago at a median price, you would be earning 4.3%, 8.6% and 73.6% dividend yield on your original stock purchase price. If you bought the stock today and dividend growth is 15% per year, then in 5, 10 and 15 years’ time you could be earning 2.33%, 7.13% and 21.75% on current stock price of $52.28.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 13.62, 17.62 and 21.63. The corresponding 10 year values are 10.12, 13.14 and 17.56. The historical values are 7.96, 10.58 and 13.23. It would seem that some of the run up in this stock’s shares is due to increases in P/E Ratios. The current P/E Ratio is 17.60 based on a stock price of $42.59 and 2016 EPS estimate of $2.42. The P/E for 2017 is 16.57 based on a stock price of $42.59 and 2017 EPS estimate of $2.57. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable to expensive.

I get a Graham Price of $27.89. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.81, 1.11 and 1.53. The current P/GP Ratio is $1.53 based on a stock price of $42.59. I get a Graham Price of $28.74 for 2017 and a P/GP Ratio of 1.48 based on a stock price of $42.59. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get a 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of $2.19. The current P/B Ratio is 2.98 based on a stock price of $42.59 and BVPS of $14.28. The current P/B Ratio is some 35.9% higher than the 10 year median value. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

The current dividend yield is 0.94%. This is based on dividends of $0.40 and a stock price of $42.59. The historical median dividend yield is 1.26%. The current dividend yield is some 25.5% lower. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

When I look at analysts’ recommendations, I find 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 $52.94. This implies a total return of 25.24% with 0.94% from dividends and 24.30% from capital gains.

The site of Highland Digest shows some interesting values for this company. Stella-Jones Inc. has a Gross Margin score of 9. The Gross Margin metric uses a scale from 1 to 100 where a 1 would be seen as positive and a 100 would be viewed as negative. Kay Ng of Motley Fool asks the question “Can Sideways Stella-Jones Inc. Soar Again?” He seems to think so. A number of analysts on Stock Chase like 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 was First Capital Realty (TSX-FCR, OTC-FCRGF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be The Keg Royalties Income Fund (TSX-KEG.UN, OTC-KRIUF)... learn more on Monday, December 19, 2016 around 5 pm.

Stella-Jones Inc. is a leading North American producer and marketer of industrial pressure treated wood products, specializing in the production of railway ties and timbers as well as wood poles supplied to electrical utilities and telecommunications companies. The Company also provides treated consumer lumber products and customized services to lumber retailers and wholesalers for outdoor applications. Other products include marine and foundation pilings, construction timbers, highway guardrail posts and treated wood for bridges. It has sales in Canada and US. Its web site is here Stella-Jones 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.

Thursday, December 15, 2016

Canadian National Railway

This time of the year is a very busy time. I got to review this stock for my investment club and in the nature of never letting any work go to waste, I am publishing this review today in place of a blog item on my Investment, Economics Mostly blog which I usually do every Thursday.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Price is reasonable to expensive. I worry a bit about the P/B Ratio being so high at 4.77. The problem is that the stock price is rising faster than the Book Value. See my spreadsheet on Canadian National Railway.

I own this stock of Canadian National Railway (TSX-CNR, NYSE-CNI). In 2005 I was look for good companies to buy at a reasonable price. This stock met by criteria. This is a dividend growth company with a good record of dividend increases. I brought some more in 2009.

I am doing a second review of this stock because of my investment club. My review is of an industrial stock, which this stock is classified as. My last report was in February 2016 and you can see that report here.

I have done well with this stock. My total return is 17.14% per year with 15.25% from capital gains and 1.89% from dividends. Dividends received to date have covered some 40% of my stock purchase. For the share I bought in 2005 I am earning a yield of 8.32% on my original purchase price. My shares are up 408%. I have had these shares for 11 years.

Dividends are low on this stock with the current dividend yield at 1.64% and the historical median at 1.47% and the 5 year median at 1.61%. The current dividend yield is based on dividends of $1.50 and a stock price of $91.64. The dividend growth is good at 18% and 17% growth per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

The Dividend Payout Ratio for EPS is good as it is below the 50% to 60% range which is the range below which you want for the payout for a non-utility stock. The DPR for 2015 was 28% and for the last 5 year is at 36%. The DPR for CPFS is 18% for 2015 and 24% for the last 5 years. The DPR for 2016 for EPS is expected to be around 33% and for CFPS is expected to be around 21.5%.

Some of the estimates for 2016, 2017 and 2018 have changed. Revenue and Earnings have gone down, but CFPS has gone up. Changes are not large. For example Revenue estimate for 2016 has declined by 6.5% (old estimate was $13,069M and new estimate is $12,218M). So instead of a Revenue increase of 3.6%, what we have is a revenue decline of 3.1%. The third quarter of 2016 shows Revenue declining from 2015 by 5%.

EPS estimate for 2016 has declined by 2.2% (old estimate $4.61 and new estimate $4.51). The EPS for the third quarter is up 3.2%.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 14.67, 17.28 and 19.90. The corresponding 10 year ratios are 12.00, 13.55 and 14.91. The corresponding historical ratios are 11.80, 13.62 and 14.99. So it would appear that the stock price has been going up partly due to a rise in P/E Ratio. When I look at this stock in February the current price was $76.24. Today the price is $91.64 which is an increase of 20.2%.

The current P/E Ratio is 20.32 based on a stock price of $91.64 and 2016 EPS estimate of $4.51. If you compare today's price with the EPS estimate for 2017 of $4.94, the P/E Ratio is 18.55. If your comparison is with the last 5 years, then the current P/E is a relatively high and the stock is relatively expensive.

I get a Graham Price of $44.14. The 10 year low, median and high Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.15, 1.29 and 1.43. The current P/GP Ratio is 2.08 based on a stock price of $91.64. I get a Graham Price of $46.20 for 2017 and that P/GP Ratio is 1.98. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 2.82. The current P/B Ratio is 4.77 a value some 69% higher. This P/B Ratio is based on BVPS of $19.20 and a stock price of $91.64. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

The current dividend yield is 1.64% based on a stock price of $91.64 and dividends of $1.50. Dividends have gone up a lot lately with the dividend increase for 2015 being at 25% and the increase for 2016 at 20%. The historical dividend yield is 1.47% and this is some 11% lower than the current dividend yield. This suggests that the stock price is reasonable and below the median.

The last stock I wrote about was about was First Capital Realty (TSX-FCR, OTC-FCRGF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Stella-Jones Inc. (TSX-SJ, OTC- STLJF)... learn more on Friday, December 16, 2016 around 5 pm.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Strong Buy, Buy, Hold and Sell. Almost all are a Hold and the consensus recommendation would be a Hold. The 12 month stock price $84.85. This implies a total loss of 5.77% based on a stock price of $91.64 with a capital loss of 7.41% and dividends of 1.64%.

In a recent note Joey Frenette of Motley says how much he likes this stock and believes that it will do even better under a Trump presidency. Brent Sawyer on Sports Perspectives talks about recent purchases of this stock by funds. See what analysts are saying about this company on Stock Chase. Analysts mostly like this company.

Canadian National Railway Company and its operating railway subsidiaries, spans Canada and mid-America, from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to the Gulf of Mexico, serving the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the key metropolitan areas of Toronto, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., Green Bay, Wis., Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, St. Louis, and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America. Its web site is here Canadian National Railway.

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, December 14, 2016

First Capital Realty

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Possibly expensive. This stock is only showing as expensive with the dividend yield test. I like this test the best as it is using current data and no estimates. The other test that uses no estimate is the P/BV test and this is show the stock as relatively reasonable and below the median. See my spreadsheet on First Capital Realty.

I do not own this stock of First Capital Realty (TSX-FCR, OTC-FCRGF). My Own Advisor asked me to look into this stock. In 2011 a reader asked me to review this real estate stock. Also, the site Canadian Dividend Stock site mentions this company as a top Canadian REIT.

This stock has a good dividend and low growth in dividends. The current dividend yield of 4.25% and has a 5 year median dividend yield of 5.61%. The current dividend is based on dividends of $0.86 and stock price of $20.24.

The dividend growth is at 1.46% and 1.24% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The 5 year growth is hitting the rate of inflation, but the 10 year growth is not. According to the Bank of Canada, total inflation over the past 5 year is 1.44% per year and over the past 10 years is at 1.67% per year. Ideally, you want Real Estate stock to have, at minimum a rate of growth equal to inflation.

This is a dividend growth stock, but it does not increase its dividend each year. The last dividend increase occurred in 2014 and it was for 2.4%. There were no dividend increases in 2015 and also none so far this year.

The Dividend Payout Ratio in regards to EPS is rather high. The DPR for EPS for 2015 was 94.5% but over the past 5 years, the DPR is at 55% which is fine. Since this is Real Estate, I looked at the DPR in regards to FFO and find it is 86.9% for 2015 and over the past 5 years at 86.7%. This is reasonable. In regards to CFPS, the DPR for 2015 is 43.4% and the over the past 5 years is at 43.6%.

Outstanding shares have increase by 6.7% and 7.2% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Therefore if I was looking at growth, I would be looking at per share growth. It can make a difference. For example Revenue growth is at 6% and 9.4% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. However, Revenue per Share growth has fallen by 0.6% and grown at 2.1% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Revenue growth is therefore non-existent to very low.

The Liquidity Ratios are a problem. The reason you look at Liquidity is because if it is low, this can cause problems especially in bad times. This company has a Liquidity Ratio of 0.38. If you add in cash flow after dividends it is just 0.50. If you add back in current portion of long term debt we get to 0.94. We cannot make even a ratio of 1.00. If the ratio is below 1.00 it means that current assets cannot cover current liabilities.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 16.38, 18.04 and 19.71. The corresponding 10 year values are 21.18, 30.27 and 33.53. The historical values are 18.73, 20.21 and 22.63. The current P/E Ratio is 18.23 based on EPS estimate for 2016 of $1.11 and a stock price of $20.24. If we use the use the EPS estimate for 2017 of $1.16 we get a P/E Ratio of 17.45. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is reasonable and just below the median.

The 5 year low, median and high median P/FFO Ratios are 17.26, 18.49 and 19.58. The corresponding 10 year values are 15.30, 16.73 and 18.16. The current P/FFO Ratio is 18.07 based on a stock price of $20.24 and 2016 FFO estimate of 1.12. If we use the 2017 FFO estimates the P/FFO becomes 17.30. This testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable.

The 5 year low, median and high median P/AFFO Ratios are 17.02, 18.13 and 19.66. The corresponding 10 year values are 16.75, 18.12 and 19.44. The current P/FFO Ratio is 20.24 based on a stock price of $20.24 and 2016 AFFO estimate of 1.00. If we use the 2017 AFFO estimate of $1.06 the P/AFFO becomes 19.09. This testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable but above the median.

I get a Graham Price of $20.79. The current P/Graham Price Ratio is 0.97 based on a stock price of $20.24. The 10 year low, median and high median P/GP Ratios are 0.91, 0.98 and 1.07. The stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and around the median.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio 1.38. The current P/B Ratio is 1.18 a value some 14.8% lower. The current P/B Ratio is based on BVPS of $17.16 and a stock price of $20.24. The stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median.

I get a current dividend yield of 4.25%. The current dividend yield is based on a stock price of $20.24 and dividends of $0.86. The historical median dividend yield at 5.61% is some 24.3% higher. 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. Most of the recommendations are a Buy and the consensus recommendation is a Buy. The 12 month target stock price is $23.81. This implies a total return of 21.89% with4.25% from dividends and 17.64% from capital gains based on a stock price of $20.24.

Richard Conner on Money Making Articles says that there is 5 Buy and 1 Hold recommendations on this stock. TD Securities rate it a Buy and has a target of $25.00. An article on Highland Digest say that First Capital Realty Inc. has a Gross Margin score of 25where a 1 would be regarded as good, and a 100 would be seen as bad. Joseph Solitro of Motley Fool liked this stock in August 2016. See what analysts are saying on Stock Chase. A couple of analysts think it is a high quality REIT.

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 DHX Media Ltd. (TSX-DHX.B, OTC- DHXMF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Stella-Jones Inc. (TSX-SJ, OTC- STLJF)... learn more on Friday, December 16, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow I will write about Canadian National Railway (TSX-CNR, NYSE-CNI)... learn more on Thursday, December 15, 2016 around 5 pm. I did a second review on this stock for my Investment Club.

First Capital Realty is Canada's leading owner, developer and operator of supermarket and drugstore anchored neighbourhood and community shopping centers located predominantly in growing metropolitan areas. Its web site is here First Capital Realty.

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, December 12, 2016

DHX Media Ltd

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: On some measures cheap. In the past investors seemed to be paying a high price for this stock. However, it has lost its momentum since 2014. This may not pick up again until the stock is actually cheap. I would wait for the next upward momentum to start before buying. See my spreadsheet on DHX Media Ltd.

I do not own this stock of DHX Media Ltd (TSX-DHX.B, OTC-DHXMF). I started to follow this stock after reading about it in CanTech Letter. Investors should accumulate DHX Media "aggressively", says Byron Capital was the title of the piece. I was interested as this stock was paying a dividend. Please note that the US DHXMF symbol is the CDN equivalent of DHX.A not DHX.B.

The dividends on this stock are very low. They occasionally rise to at least 1%. I would not buy a stock paying a dividend of less than 1% as it would take too long to get a decent yield on my original purchase of the stock. The current dividend is 1.08% based on a stock price of $6.67 and dividends of $0.072. The 4 year median dividend is 0.89%. Dividends were just started in 2013. Dividend growth so has been good at 15.7% per year.

This company was listed in 2006 at the TSX. This company was formed in 2006 by the merger of Decode Entertainment and Halifax Film Company. Outstanding shares have increased by 16.8% and 15.2% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. If you want to see what growth this company has it is best to look at per share growth. This can make a difference.

For example, Revenue has grown by 41% and 34.3% per year over the past 5 and 10 years, but Revenue per Share has grown by 20.8% and 16.6% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. Because they had a number of earning loss years, I cannot get a growth for EPS for the past 10 years. However, EPS has grown at 48.96% per year over the past 5 years.

The stock price hit a high in 2014. For the past two years the stock price has declined. It declined by 12.8% in 2015 and by 21.3% so far in 2016. Still the total return to date over the past 5 and 10 years is at 102.76% and 25.02% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The portion of this total return attributable to dividends is at 2.27% and 0.29% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The portion of this total return attributable to capital gains is at 100.50% and 24.74% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 37.71, 52.28 and 62.56. The corresponding 10 year values are 33.04, 35.27 and 53.61. These are very high ratios. The current P/E Ratio is 18.53 based on a stock price of $6.67 and a 2017 EPS estimate of 0.36. (Note that the financial year for this stock ends June 30 each year.) This stock price testing suggests that the stock is relatively cheap. On an absolute basis a P/E Ratio of 18.36 is not cheap, but might be considered to be reasonable.

I get a Graham Price of $4.53. The Price/Graham Price Ratios are 1.28, 2.08 and 2.74. These are quite high ratios. The current P/GP Ratio is 1.47 based on a stock price of $6.67. This testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median.

I get a 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 1.19. This is a rather low value. The current P/B Ratio is 2.63 a value some 121% higher. The current P/B Ratio is based on BVPS of $2.53 and a stock price of $6.67. However, this ratio has been higher lately and the 5 year median value is higher at 2.53. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively expensive.

There is too little data to do a good stock price test using dividend yield. However, the 4 year median dividend yield is just 0.89% and this is some 21% lower than the current dividend yield of 1.08%. The current dividend yield is based on dividends of $0.072 and a stock price of $6.76. Note that the dividend yield high on this stock is 2.06% a value some 48% higher. If you look at the median dividend yield, stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

When I look at analysts' recommendations, I find Strong Buy, Buy, Hold and Underperform recommendations. Most of the recommendations are a Hold, but the consensus recommendation is a Buy. The 12 month stock price is $10.21. This implies a total return of 54.15% with 53.07% from capital gains and 1.08% from dividends.

According to Highland Digest this company has a Value Composite Score of 68. This would suggest that the stock is not cheap. According to Daily Quint TD recently reissued their buy recommendation on this stock with a stock price of $9.00. 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.

The last stock I wrote about was about was Northland Power Inc. (TSX-NPI, OTC-NPIFF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be First Capital Realty (TSX-FCR, OTC-FCRGF)... learn more on Wednesday, December 14, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Walking and Winning Tours... ... learn more on Tuesday, December 13, 2016 around 5 pm.

DHX Media is a leader in the creation, production and marketing of family entertainment. DHX Media owns, markets and distributes over 10,000 episodes of entertainment programming worldwide and licenses its owned properties through its dedicated consumer products business. Its web site is here DHX Media 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, December 9, 2016

Northland Power Inc.

Bye the way, I just bought some stock for this year and it was Calian Group Ltd. (TSX-CGY, OTC-CLNFF). My son just bought some Canadian Utilities Ltd (TSX-CU, OTC-CDUAF).

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Relatively expensive. It could be expensive because of possible takeover. However, everyone seems to be ignoring the company's high debt. It seems that the bid price for this stock is already built into the current price, so most people will not make money on it hoping that someone does buy the company. See my spreadsheet on Northland Power Inc.

I do not own this stock of Northland Power Inc. (TSX-NPI, OTC-NPIFF). This company is into generating electric power. I have a lot invested in pipelines and I would like to have more invested in electric power as my utilities investment. I read a report on this stock that said it was a good defensive stock to buy. That is, it is a good stock to hold in a stock market correction. I can certainly see the logic of using utility stocks as defensive stocks.

I do not care what anyone says. Debt does count. This stock's Long Term Debt/Market Cap Ratio is 1.60. It is a huge warning sign when this ratio approaches 1.00. This stock is long past that. They also cannot make a profit. EPS has been negative for the last two years and still negative for the third quarter. Analysts expect a profit for 2016, but for the 12 months ending at the third quarter there is an earning loss of $0.28. I do not see where a profit will come from this year. This is another big warning sign. Comprehensive Income is also negative for the 12 months to the end of the third quarter.

There are some bright spots. They have good and growing cash flow. The other thing is the market seems hopeful. The total return is up by 10.03% and 8.91% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The downside of this is that it is mostly in dividends. The portion of this above total return attributable to dividends is 6.64% and 6.46% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. The portion of this above total return attributable to capital gain is 3.57% and 2.27% per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

Operational Profit Margin (CF/Revenue) Ratio is good at 54% in 2015. This is a growing ratio also and this is good. However, they do not seem to be able to translate cash flow and OPM into profit.

This company used to be an income trust. A lot of these companies are having a hard time transitioning to a corporation. Part of this is the high dividends paid by income trusts. This company paid good dividends and only marginally reduced the dividends when changing to an income trust.

They were at one time looking like a dividend growth company, but not currently. Dividends have been flat since 2009. Dividend growth is at 0 and 0.3% over the past 5 and 10 years. They also cannot afford their dividends. Over the past 5 years they have an average earnings loss per year of $0.13 yet they are still paying dividends. (Total loss over the past 5 years is $0.65.) The company would have been better off if they had cut or suspended the dividends and get their debt under control.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are negative as it's the corresponding 10 year ratios. The historical ratios are 12.94, 15.31 and 17.86. The current P/E Ratio is 56.51 based on a stock price of $23.17 and 2016 EPS estimate of 0.41. The P/E Ratio for 2017 is 37.98 based on a stock price of $23.17 and 2017 EPS estimate of $0.61. This testing suggests that the stock is relatively expensive.

I get a Graham Price of $5.55. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 3.01, 3.46 and 3.91. These ratios are extremely high for a utility stock. The current P/GP Ratio is 4.18 based on a stock price of $23.17. This testing suggests that the stock is relatively expensive.

I get a Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 2.58. The current P/B Ratio is 6.94 based on BVPS of $3.34 and a stock price of $23.17. The current P/B Ratio is some 168% above the 10 year ratio. This testing suggests that the stock is relatively expensive.

I cannot do Dividend Yield testing on this stock as it used to be an Income Trust company and these sorts of companies had very high yields. It was expected that old income trusts would end up with dividend yields between 4 and 5% when they became corporations. This would be accomplished by decline in dividends and/or increases in stock price. This is where this stock ended up due to stock price increases.

Another price check would be for Revenue using P/S Ratio. The 10 year P/S Ratio is 4.24. The current P/S Ratio is 3.96 a value some 6.8% lower. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median. However, a P/S Ratio of 4.24 and 3.96 are both rather high for a Utility Stock.

When I look at analysts' recommendations I see Strong Buy, Buy, Hold and Underperform recommendations. Most are Buy recommendations and the consensus is a Buy recommendation. The 12 month consensus stock price is $24.94. This implies a total return of 12.30% with 7.64% from capital gains and 4.66% from dividends based on a current stock price of $23.17.

There is some technical analysts at Wall Street Confidential. The Williams Percent Range shows that the stock is neither overbought nor oversold. It looks like companies are bidding to buy this company. See what analysts 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 that report here.

The last stock I wrote about was about was Chesswood Group Ltd. (TSX-CHW, OTC-CHWWF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be DHX Media Ltd. (TSX-DHX.B, OTC- DHXMF)... learn more on Monday, December 12 around 5 pm.

Northland Power Inc. indirectly owns interests in power projects. Northland's assets comprise facilities that produce electricity from "clean" natural gas and "green" renewable sources such as wind and biomass. Electricity generation is sold under long-term PPAs with creditworthy customers, and any fuel for natural-gas-fired projects, where required, is purchased under long-term contracts to assure stability of operating margins. This company operates in Canada, US and Germany. Its web site is here Northland Power 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, December 7, 2016

Chesswood Group Ltd

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Maybe cheap, but is risky. It has a very high dividend yield. I would think the dividend is current safe. It is a different kind of financial service firm so there could be money to be made here. However, it also could be quite risky. See my spreadsheet on Chesswood Group Ltd.

I do not own this stock of Chesswood Group Ltd. (TSX-CHW, OTC-CHWWF). A reader wrote me in 2012 that he was researching and found a company that he hoped I could give him a brief outlook on. He said that the company is Chesswood Group and they are basically a financial leasing company. From 2009 to 2012 they increased their dividends from 2.5 cents to 5.5 cents per month. This is a 120% increase.

Sometimes people miss what may really be happening. For example, this company decreased the dividends by 70% between 2008 and 2009. Since 2010 dividends have increased each year except for 2015. They increased the dividends for the very end of 2016. Dividend growth is at 11.6% per year for the past 5 years, but dividends have declined by 0.8% per year over the past 9 years. So dividend history is rather mixed.

The Dividend Yield is good (very good) currently at 7.27% based on dividends of $0.84 and a stock price of $11.55. This stock has an historical high dividend yield of over 54% and a historical median dividend yield of 8.5%. The current dividend yield is 7.27%. This suggests that the market thinks the stock is risky or will cut it dividends.

It would seem to me that the company can afford its dividends even though the payout ratios are currently a bit high. The Payout Ratio is high with the Dividend Payout Ratio for EPS at 5 year median of 82%. The DPR for 2015 is low at 67%. It is expected that the DPR for 2016 will be over 100%, but then reducing to 62% in 2017. The DPR for CFPS is lower with the rate for 2015 at 28%. Over the past 5 years the DPR for CFPS is a bit high at 47%.

They have been able to grow their revenue, but this depends on you look at Revenue. As a Financial Services firm which it is now considered they are growing their Revenue at some 250% over the past 9 years. They are also currently growing earnings and cash flow.

Their shares have grown at 12% and 131% per year over the past 5 and 9 years. If you want to look at growth you have to look at per share growth. If you take a look at Revenue, Revenue per Share has grown at 51.8% over the past 9 years compared to Revenue growth of 250% over the same time period.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 10.06, 12.76 and 11.96. The corresponding 10 year ratios are 7.74, 9.70 and 11.96. Do not forget this company used to be considered a Consumer Discretionary stock. The current P/E Ratio is 9.79 based on 2016 EPS estimate of $1.18 and a stock price of $11.55. This testing probably suggests that the stock price is relatively cheap.

I get a Graham Price of $15.30. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.59, 0.77 and 0.92. The current P/GP Ratio is 0.76 based on a stock price of $11.55. This testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable and below the median. For P/GP Ratio, a stock is considered cheap if the ratio is at or below 1.00.

I get a 10 year median Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 1.16. The current P/B Ratio is 1.31 a value some 13% higher. The current P/B Ratio is based on BVPS of $13.19 and a stock price of $11.55. These P/B Ratios are rather low as a good ratio is considered to be around 1.50. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable but above the median.

The company has very high dividend yields. You have to wonder if doing dividend yield testing on a stock with an historical high of over 54% is valid. However, the historical median is 8.55%. The current dividend yield is some 15% below this. This stock price testing suggests that the stock price is relatively reasonable but above the median.

When I look at analyst's recommendations, I find Strong Buy, Buy and Hold recommendations of 4 analysts. The consensus recommendation is a Buy recommendation. The 12 month stock price consensus is $14.25. This implies a total return of 30.65% with 23.38% from capital gains and 7.27% from dividends. This total return assumes a current stock price of $11.55.

There is some analysis of this stock on Highland Digest. There is more interesting analysis of this stock on Stock Newsweek. There are some analysts' comments at 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.

The last stock I wrote about was about was WiLan Inc. (TSX-WIN, OTC-WILN)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Northland Power Inc. (TSX-NPI, OTC-NPIFF)... learn more on December 9, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Something to Buy December 2016... learn more on Tuesday, December 8, 2016 around 5 pm.

Chesswood Group Limited is a financial services company operating primarily in the specialty finance industry. Chesswood's approach is to acquire financial services businesses. Its web site is here Chesswood 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.

Monday, December 5, 2016

WiLan Inc.

Sound bite for Twitter and StockTwits is: Cheap with problems. Even though they have had revenue and cash flow, EPS has not been there. Comprehensive Income is just as bad. They have just cut their dividends by some 76% because they have not been able to afford dividends compared to earnings for some time. It is also a patent troll. See my spreadsheet on WiLan Inc.

I do not own this stock of WiLan Inc. (TSX-WIN, OTC-WILN), but I used to. I bought this stock in 2000 and sold in 2006. I lost 99.4% of my investment. Good job I did not invest much in this stock, but I still lost over $12,000. I sold at a low of $0.60 a share plus paid $50.00 in commission. I do not know why I paid so much in commission as generally my commission was around $26 a trade at that time. The stock is currently around $1.82 per share.

The reason I bought this company in 2000 was because it was an up and coming company in communications. I sold it in 2006 after losing most of my investment. This stock has never recovered from the bubble that occurred in 2000. I lost all hope of ever making any money on this stock. The other thing is that they completely refocused their company, or completely changed it to earn money on their patents. That is they became patent trolls.

The just decreased their dividend by some 76%. They have had a number of earnings losses years and could not really afford their dividend. Over the past 5 year they paid out over 400% of what they made. If you look at dividend growth over the past 5 years, it is down by 10.6% per year. They are still expected to payout more this year than they earn but analysts expect better in 2017. However earnings for the first three quarters are lower than last year!

They have increased the outstanding share by 2% and 11.1% per year over the past 5 and 10 years. This means, especially for the longer term, we should be looking at per share values. The company is currently reporting in US$. The Revenue has grown by 15.1% and 17.0% per year over the past 5 and 10 years in US$. The Revenue per Share has grown at 12.9% and 5.3% US$ per year over the past 5 and 10 years.

Because of the years of earning losses, I cannot calculate growth per year for EPS. However, I can say that total EPS has grown at 138% and 115% over the past 5 and 10 years. Cash Flow per Share is growing. It has grown at the rate of 109% US$ per year over the past 5 years. Over the past 10 years CFPS has grown in total by 253%. There are negative cash flow years so I cannot calculate per year growth.

The 5 year low, median and high median Price/Earnings per Share Ratios are 11.74, 23.74 and 35.75. I cannot calculate P/E Ratios for the past 10 years or historically as there are too many year of earning losses. The current P/E Ratio is 3.42 based on a stock price of $1.82 CDN$ and 2016 EPS estimate of $0.53 CDN$ ($0.40 US$). The 5 year P/E Ratios are rather spread out, but a P/E Ratio of 3.42 is low. This stock price testing suggests that the stock is relatively cheap.

I get a Graham Price of $5.81 CDN$. The 10 year low, median and high median Price/Graham Price Ratios are 0.62, 1.12 and 1.56. The current P/GP Ratio is 0.31 based on a stock price of $1.82 CDN$. This stock price testing suggests that the stock is relatively cheap.

I get a 10 year Price/Book Value per Share Ratio of 1.88 CDN$. The current P/B Ratio is 0.64 based on a stock price of $1.82 CDN$ and BVPS of $2.82 CDN$. The current ratio is some 66% lower than the 10 year ratio. This stock price testing suggests that the stock is relatively cheap.

I cannot do any dividend yield testing as the dividend has been cut. The P/S Ratio is 7.37 CDN$. The current P/S Ratio is 1.99 CDN$ based on Revenues of $108.11 CDN$ ($81.30 US$), Revenue per Share of $0.91 CDN$ and a stock price of $1.82 CDN$. The current P/S Ratio is some 73% lower than the 10 year median ratio. This stock price testing suggests that the stock is relatively cheap.

When I look at analysts' recommendations I find 3 analysts following this stock with 2 Strong Buy and 1 Buy recommendation. The consensus recommendations would be a Strong Buy. The 12 months stock price consensus is $3.18. This implies a total return of 77.47% with 74.73% from capital gains and 2.75% from dividends based on a current price of $1.82.

There is some technical analysis on this stock at Wall Street Confidential. Williams Percent Range shows stock is close to being overbought. In other words stock price is high. This article in CSZ News talk about analysts being positive about this stock. Note price is quoted in US$ not CDN$. See what analysts are saying about this stock on Stock Chase . This article on Street Insider talks about one of this company's license Agreement.

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 Finning International Inc. (TSX-FTT, OTC-FINGF)... learn more . The next stock I will write about will be Chesswood Group Ltd. (TSX-CHW, OTC-CHWWF)... learn more on Wednesday, December 7, 2016 around 5 pm. Tomorrow on my other blog I will write about Dividend Stocks December 2016... learn more on Tuesday, December 6, 2016 around 5 pm.

Wi-LAN Inc. is an intellectual property licensing company. The Company develops, acquires, licenses and enforces a range of patented technologies which are utilized in products in the communications and consumer electronics markets. Its web site is here WiLan 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.