For 25 years, Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, has surveyed the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is one of 100+ ideas in the Best Stocks for 2008 report.

"My favorite aggressive speculation for 2008 is Enerplus Resources (NYSE: ERF)," says Roger Conrad, editor of Canadian Edge.

"Over the past 18 months, Canadian oil and gas producer trust has endured a trial by fire. First natural gas prices started tumbling.

"Then the Conservative party government announced it would begin taxing trusts as corporations starting in 2011, and restricted the number of shares trust can issue. Finally, this fall investors have bailed out of everything remotely economically sensitive.

"Through it all, however, the Enerplus has remained rock-solid as a business. For starters, the yield of nearly 13% -- paid monthly -- is backed by a modest 70% payout ratio. And that ratio was achieved by selling oil in the third quarter at less than $70 a barrel.

Continue reading Best Stocks for 2008: Enerplus Resources (ERF) offers 'trusted' income

Best Stocks for 2008: Enerplus Resources (ERF) offers 'trusted' income originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 31 Dec 2007 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Canadian Income Trusts meltdown has been all over the news lately, but it has received only a few mentions thus far on Blogging Stocks. Perhaps investment news north of the border simply don't make Blogging Stocks' top ten business stories of the week? But if you appreciate patriotism, allow me to demonstrate some as I add in my two cents. Sometimes, these market turmoils may prove profitable for opportunistic investors.

I've been a very disloyal Canadian investor. For the last two years, I've only batted eyes at U.S. companies while the Canadian indexes kept creeping higher. However, I've recently taken interest in beaten-down Canadian companies such as Loblaw, and Canadian oil and natural gas income trusts. My interest started with these income trusts due to their pricing issues in July and August, as well as the Amanranth hedge fund debacle. Such negative news always peaks the interest for the contrarian in me. I can't believe my new interest in income trusts has come at such a time of opportunity!

Continue reading Canadian Income Trusts: Good investment now?

Canadian Income Trusts: Good investment now? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 06 Nov 2006 12:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.