I coouldn't find any specific info on that, but I did find this interesting little ditti. Its about a year old, but it gives a good synopsis of the company.
I don't know anything about this John Bart fellow, but he hit the nail right on the head, IMHO.
Is it the end of the world?
Canadian Shareowner
Windsor
Nov/Dec 1998
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Author: John T Bart
What the Heck Happened?
(Everything was going along so nicely)
During the last year or so, the world has become a more uncertain, risky
place for investors. In particular, the reduced ability to buy goods and
services in troubled economies everywhere makes the future level of corporate
revenues, earnings, dividends and resulting share prices more questionable.
Investors have responded to this increased risk in the classic way. Some
have supplied today's market with more shares than being demanded. Share
prices have fallen and real rates of return have increased.
The only question of importance to investors now is whether or not future
national and international events are going to: (1) introduce more uncertainty
into the marketplace-and drive prices lower; or, (2) reduce the uncertainty
already there-and inspire higher prices going forward?
I don't have the answer to this question. However, I do take some comfort
in the fact that not even the smartest person on earth, with all the information
and analysis available, knows the answer either. We are all more or less
in the dark about tomorrow's prices.
The only thing that I know right now is that the world has never been better
equipped to deal with a need for concerted action to contain and reduce
the risk of another planet-wide depression. There is unprecedented consultation
and cooperation among political leaders. There are world financial organizations
available now to serve as instruments for concerted economic action. There
is a popular proposal for international supervision of national banking
systems to nip future contagions in the bud. Corporations have never been
more efficient in producing products and delivering services. Further efficiencies
are coming via lower-priced imports of commodities and services (good deflation).
There is no wage deflation (bad deflation) in the major consumer-goods
economies of the world. The list goes on.
I just don't think that all the smart people running the world, with all
the resources at their disposal, are going to let it come to an end. Somehow,
they're going to find a way to keep most people in spending money and bankers
and other lenders from making any more really bad loans.
WHAT TO DO NOW?
If you've been investing in only the highest quality stocks, your portfolio
is probably in pretty good shape-relative to the averages. Many of your
stocks are on sale today so buying more of them now could give you very
nice rates of return. At least that's what I'm doing.
In June, The Toronto Star invited me-along with three other "experts"-to
submit a portfolio of stocks that would be featured on Mondays during the
following 12 months.
The portfolio I put together has 10 stocks, all of them selected using
the Stock Selection Guide (Cinram, Hummingbird, JDS Fitel, JetForm, MDS,
Unican, Paychex, Total System Service, Veterinary Centers of America and
Worldcom). Eight of these have been featured in this magazine as Stocks
to Study.
So far, my Star portfolio is down about 10%, much less than the TSE 300,
the Dow, or the S&P 500 (and the other three Star portfolios).
What this relative performance clearly shows is that a portfolio of high
quality stocks insulates you from the extremes of market corrections. Quality
stocks are the last to get hit during bouts of fear and pessimism. They
go down the least when terror becomes rampant throughout the herd. And,
from the dark of night, their prices come back the fastest when the sun
begins to shine again.
All 10 stocks have the distinctive revenue and EPS profiles of great stocks.
The revenue profiles are steep and straight which reflects strong demand
for their products. All the EPS profiles reflect a management team that
has consistently exploited demand and produced strong earnings growth.
Is there any reason to buy any other kind of stock?
Now I can't tell you precisely when the market is going to make an enduring
move up again, but it always does over the longer term. And I'm a long
term investor-in quality stocks that is! |
