My recent Investing in Ontario post took a look at the Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY), Manulife Financial Corp. (NYSE: MFC), and Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE: TD); three public companies examined by the Motley Fool this past summer.
However, Ontario is more than just Canada's financial center. Its abundance of resources and location on Great Lakes have made Ontario a manufacturing powerhouse, including steel production and automobile manufacturing in southern Ontario, and mining and forestry in the north. Toronto is Canada's film and media center, as well as an important tourism destination. Niagara Falls is one of world's most popular tourist destinations. Other Ontario companies the Motley Fool liked include Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM), Nortel Networks Corp. (NYSE: NT), and IMAX Corp. (NASDAQ: IMAX).
Research in Motion (RIM), Canada's largest public company, is well know for its BlackBerry smart phones, but it also provides software development tools and produces radio-based modems used in portable devices. The consensus recommendation of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial is to buy RIM, and has been since April. RIM met analysts' earnings per share estimate when it reported second quarter FY2008 earnings in early October, and Wall Street expects EPS of 62 cents in the third quarter, double the 31 cents actual from a year ago. RIM has a five-year EPS growth rate of 73.5%, easily beating the S&P 500 and the technology sector average. RIM's share price has been climbing since a share split in August, to reach a 52-week high of $128.36 on Tuesday; it opened today at $124.75. Also this week, RIM announced plans to sell the BlackBerry in China, and introduced Facebook for the BlackBerry as well. For more on Microsoft Corp.'s (NASDAQ: MSFT) challenge to RIM and other RIM-related news, see Bloggingstocks' RIM coverage.
Toronto-based Nortel Networks is a global leader in the manufacture of telecommunications equipment, including networking, wireless, wireline, and optical systems. Nortel came into the black when it reported second quarter 2007 results in early October, but missed Wall Street estimates by a nickel, or more than 40%. Analysts are looking for an extra dime, or 17 cents, EPS in the third quarter, and a jump to 53 cents in the fourth. The share price has slid this past quarter, reaching a 52-week low of $15.32 in late September; it opened today at $16.01. Nortel has reached what it calls the "final resolution" in its fraud-related lawsuits with the SEC and the Ontario Securities Commission. The entire senior management has been replaced since the incidents that spurred these charges, and more recently, Nortel has named a new CFO. For more on Nortel and its rivals, see BloggingStocks' Nortel coverage.
Mississauga-based IMAX, makes and leases projection and sound systems for more than 250 large-screen theaters in 40 countries, as well as producing special-format films for those screens. The consensus of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial shifted to a borderline buy in September after being a hold since the beginning of the year. IMAX hasn't seen a profit since the second quarter of 2006, and when in August it reported the second quarter of 2007, the loss of 11 cents per share was worse than Wall Street's expectations. Still, its one-year EPS growth rate was 29.7%, while consumer services sector average was in the red. But analysts expect another loss of 12 cents per share in the third quarter. The share price is down from the 52-week high of $5.68 in May, opening today at $4.66. IMAX will begin rolling out a new digital projection system in 2008 that will allow more movies to be show on IMAX screens. IMAX also just announced a deal to build an IMAX theater in Casablanca.
I do not own shares in these stocks. As always, be sure to do your homework before investing.
See also: Investing in Ontario, Investing in Oregon, and Investing in Oklahoma.
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