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Potash Corporation(POT-TSX/POT-NYSE)

Record First Quarter Profits - written by Ian Nakamoto, CFA

April 29th, 2011
The company reported record first quarter profits of US$732 million or US$0.84 a share versus last year’s earnings of US$444 million or US$0.49 a share. The rise in earnings has been driven by both volume growth and higher prices for their fertilizer products. To put this into perspective, at the bottom of the economic cycle, the company reported earnings in 2009 of US$288 million or US$0.35 a share.  The company raised its earnings guidance for the year to a range of US$3.00 to US$3.40 from US$2.80 to US$3.20.

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FirstService Corporation(FSV-TSX/FSRV-NASDAQ)

All Major Service Divisions Positioned for Sustainable Growth - written by William J. Chisholm, CFA

April 28th, 2011

Q1 2011: FirstService started 2011 with a reasonable performance in its seasonally small Q1. Consolidated sales and adjusted EBITDA rose 19% and 13%, respectively. Higher amortization and interest costs associated with acquisitions made in 2010 offset the EBITDA growth so that adjusted EPS declined to $0.14 from $0.15. This was below expectations.

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Johnson & Johnson(JNJ-NYSE)

Though a Few Bumps Remain, JNJ Seems to have Finally Turned the Corner - written by Troy Crandall

April 21st, 2011
JNJ reported solid Q1 2011 results with revenue and EPS beating Street estimates. Revenue of $16.2 billion grew 3.5% Y/Y versus forecasts for $15.9 billion thanks to recent Pharma division product launches and a weaker U.S. dollar. Adjusted EPS of $1.35 (+4.7% Y/Y) were also strongly ahead of Street views by $0.09.

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Metro Inc.(MRU.S-TSX)

Non-Merchandising Factors Source of Earnings Growth in Fiscal 2011 - written by William J. Chisholm, CFA

April 21st, 2011
Q2 2011: Metro maintained acceptable earnings growth in the quarter ended March 12, 2011 with net earnings up 3.7% and diluted EPS ahead by 8.1% to $0.80 from $0.74. First half EPS rose 7.7% to $1.68 from $1.56. However, as in Q1 2011, the growth was all achieved through non-merchandising items as operating earnings (EBIT) were unchanged at $118.1 million. A higher equity earnings contribution from Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B-TSX), combined with slightly lower interest charges and 4% fewer shares produced the EPS growth for the quarter and first half.

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Apple Inc.(AAPL-NASDAQ)

Is There Anyone that Didn’t Buy an Apple Product this Quarter? - written by Troy Crandall

April 21st, 2011
Once again, Apple announced another very strong quarter with Q2 f2011 revenue, EPS and gross margin all beating Street estimates. Revenue of $24.7 billion grew 82.8% Y/Y, while EPS of $6.40 rose 92.2% Y/Y.  Gross margin of 41.4% also handily beat both Street estimates and management’s guidance, helped by strong sales of higher-margin iPhones and lower than anticipated sales of iPads in the quarter. iPads generally carry significantly lower margins than iPhones or iPods.

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Armtec Infrastructure Inc.(ARF-TSX)

Equity Financing Strengthens Financial Position as Operations Enter Recovery Phase - written by William J. Chisholm, CFA

April 20th, 2011
Management Meeting: We met with senior management on Monday. We remain confident that the company’s operating results will begin to improve in the second half of this year and that the improving trend will persist in 2012. We view the current dividend of $1.60 as secure for this year and if operating results develop, as we forecast, even more so in 2012.

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Painted Pony Petroleum(PPY.A-TSX)

Upgrading our Valuation and Target Price after Management Meeting - written by Rob Mark, CFA

April 13th, 2011
PPY reported excellent results for the 2010 fiscal year. Production almost doubled from 1,552 boe/d (60% light oil), to 2,848 boe/d (61%). CFPS increased 76% from $0.42 to $0.76 on higher production and commodity prices.

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Dollarama Inc.(DOL-TSX)

Multi-Level Pricing and Store Expansion Continue to Generate Strong Growth - written by William J. Chisholm, CFA

April 8th, 2011
Fiscal 2011: Dollarama maintained its strong growth throughout fiscal 2011. Sales and normalized EPS in Q4 rose 12.3% and 24.4%, respectively. Normalized earnings for the year of $1.64 per share were slightly ahead of expectations. The company added 49 net new stores, thereby increasing selling space by 8.5%. This, plus growth in same-store sales, produced a 13.3% gain in sales in fiscal 2011.

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Reitmans (Canada) Limited(RET.A-TSX)

Strong Market Position and Financial Strength Equip Company for Increasing Competition - written by William J. Chisholm, CFA

April 1st, 2011
Q4 Results: Reitmans endured a challenging Q4 2011 with sales up only 0.5% and net earnings down 19%. Diluted EPS fell to $0.17 from $0.21. Aggressive price competition, led by clearing activity by a competing national chain in financial difficulty, resulted in a lower gross margin. Nevertheless, the full year was highly satisfactory with diluted EPS rising 29% to $1.29 from $0.98.

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Bombardier Inc.(BBD.B-TSX)

Blowout Fourth Quarter - written by P. Christopher Sears

April 1st, 2011
BBD reported very strong Q4 results with EPS of $0.18 versus $0.10 on flat revenues of $5.4 billion. The Street was looking for EPS of $0.11 on revenues of just over $5.2 billion. For the year, EPS came in at $0.42 versus $0.39 on revenues of $17.7 billion, a decline from the $19.4 billion posted the year earlier. Bottom line strength came from both the Aerospace and Transportation divisions. The earnings also benefited from a lower than forecast tax rate (11.2% versus 21.5%) which accounted for about $0.02 in EPS. The tax rate will normalize (25%-30%) in the current year. Even taking into account the lower tax rate, the quarter was a blowout and portends good things to come for the company in general.

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