STOCKCHASE

Hap (Robert) Sneddon FCSI

(A Top Pick Oct 26/10. Down 3.78%.)

2012-04-23

DON'T BUY

13.150

This chart looks like the whole energy sector. Had a nice run-up from December to the end of May. Recently broke down but he expects support at about $12.60. The next level would be $11.75. This is supposed to be the strong seasonality in the market right now for energy.

2012-04-16

Comment

13.800

A marketer of natural gas and electricity contracts. There have been issues in the US because of foreclosures of houses. He owns some of their convertible debentures.

2012-04-12

DON'T BUY

13.790

Colin Stewart

Going up because of greater investor demand in Canada for yield. He has been skeptical of their business. Door to door salespeople want you to look into a contract. He doesn’t like the business.

2012-03-27

WEAK BUY

13.030

Don Lato

Has sort of plateaued in its growth the last several years. Dividend is relatively secure. Fairly high debt load that has been creeping up so you would have to be cautious. Don't expect a lot of growth but with a 9.6% yield is probably worth holding but keep your eye on the debt.

2012-03-02

PAST TOP PICK

12.660

Hank Cunningham

(A Top Pick Nov 28/11. Up 6%.) 6% convertible you June 30/17.

2012-02-27

DON'T BUY

12.370

Andy Nasr

Is fine. He has concerns about longer-term growth. Gas prices are low and people may not want to lock in.

2012-02-16

DON'T BUY

11.580

Fixed price contracts on residential energy. Very good growth in cash flows and dividend has been strong. Is cautious after the 20% rise in share price off $10. We had warm weather and should impact JE’s results. Also payout ratio is quite high. Thinks they can meet the dividend but it will limit their ability to make acquisitions. Also 25% of contracts will roll off in next few years to lower gas prices and this will impact margins.

2012-01-11

Comment

10.720

Just announced a buyback of 10% of outstanding shares. This is a good sign that the company feels their shares are good value. Pricing and margin environment for natural gas and electricity contracts have been very difficult because the prices have not been volatile. Have been moving more of their business towards commercial contracts, which are lower margins. Dividends are sustainable.

2011-12-20

DON'T BUY

10.700

Have been looking for areas with more growth prospects and searching for new products and distribution channels. Their customer and the turnover has been of some concern to investors. Carrying an extremely high yield and there is some question whether the dividend is sustainable.

2011-12-19

DON'T BUY

9.850

Barry Schwartz

Sells contracts for electricity and energy. Not so sure the business plan is sustainable in the future. Yield is very high at 12.5% but the balance sheet is not as good as it used to be.

2011-12-12

TOP PICK

9.960

Hank Cunningham

6% convertible you June 30/17. Judges the 12.5% dividend on the common to be relatively safe.

2011-11-28

Comment

9.960

Only hesitation he has is that their dividend yield is quite high and they are paying out pretty much what they're earning. Has been investing and broadening out its products and services and distribution channels. Just acquired a retail electric provider. Expect they will do a little bit better going forward.

2011-11-25

BUY

10.660

Andy Nasr

Sells gas and electricity to both residential and commercial users. Lately have been focused on acquiring and growing in the commercial segments where volumes are much higher margins are lower. More volatile gas prices would cause less churn. Dividend is attractive at 11.6% and should be sustainable. Will be volatile.

2011-11-11

HOLD

10.660

Yield of 11.6%. Market feels that anything with a high yield is suspect. Thinks the market got it wrong on this one. Good management. Latest quarter shows 8% year-over-year growth. Management has said they are fully able and intend to pay the current level of dividend for the balance of this year and next.

2011-11-10

Comment

10.800

Douglas Kee

High yield at 11.5% and are basically paying out everything they can. Doesn't see a lot of upside for the stock. Have a fair amount of debt.

2011-11-07

Comment

10.820

Joey Mack

Bond maturing September 2018? This is a convertible bond giving you the option of converting to common shares. Doesn't think there is a lot of option value in this bond so there is not a lot of equity upside to it. Likes this company but talk to your advisor about it.

2011-11-04

BUY

10.650

Very good business and very strong cash flow generator. Investors are probably concerned about attrition rates in US in housing. Just came out with the convertible bond, which might have put pressure on the stock. Company announced that the distribution of $1.74 is safe.

2011-10-07

BUY

10.960

Norman Levine

Not the same as the oil or gas stocks. They are a marketer door to door of energy contracts. Not everybody thinks this is a good business to be in. People focus on their US work. If you sign a contract and your house is foreclosed then they loose. But they are growing the business more than repossessions.

2011-09-23

SELL ON STRENGTH

12.660

Ron Meisels

If you connect lows, it is broken below the trend line and is now in a downtrend. Look for a bit of a rally and get out. It will take a lot more base building.

2011-09-06

BUY

13.310

Good company with sound management. Predictable cash flows and a stable dividend. Feels the business is maturing here and encountering a number of challenges as it expands its operations into the US. Moving from high-margin residential contracts to high volume, low margin commercial contracts. Very solid dividend. Not a lot of capital appreciation.

2011-08-16

PAST TOP PICK

13.600

(A Top Pick July 19/10. Up 17.5%.) Still likes.

2011-08-02

PAST TOP PICK

14.150

(A Top Pick June 11/10. Up 15.59%.) Still likes.

2011-06-27

BUY

14.330

John Stephenson

Likes it for the yield. Door-to-Door energy. Yield is sustainable.

2011-06-06

Comment

14.550

Energy marketing. Great management. Solid company and good steady cash flow. Business is now maturing a little and running into a few challenges as it expands into the US. Payout ratio is very manageable. Don’t expect a lot of capital appreciation. 8.5% yield is stable.

2011-06-03

BUY

14.600

Energy marketing in both Canada and US. Good solid business. Generates a tremendous amount of cash. Dividend of $1.60 looks very sustainable. Low payout ratio. Growth may be limited. Had quite a sell off after reporting results last week.

2011-02-16

PAST TOP PICK

14.470

(A Top Pick Jan 20/10. Up 9.64%.) Still likes.

2010-12-09

HOLD

14.510

John Stephenson

Retailer focused on giving natural gas/electricity prices in Canada and US. Been a good yielding company but getting harder to penetrate US households where the growth is.

2010-11-26

TOP PICK

15.420

(A Top Pick Aug 27/09. Up 35.38%.) Paying $1.24 distribution right now and will maintain that when they convert to a corporation Jan 1st. Have had 27 consecutive distribution increases and expects this to continue in 2012. Cash flow should grow 5%-10% annually. Low debt.

2010-10-26

HOLD

14.100

Will be converting and will have to make some adjustment to the distributions. Paying out $1.42 and the cash flow for this is $1.50. Well run company. Recently did a convertible debenture.

2010-09-22

BUY

13.570

Sell fixed-price contracts for natural gas. Terrific prospects. Have done a US acquisition, which should take them into some exciting new growth markets. 9% yield.

2010-08-26

BUY

13.100

Extremely well run. Acquired Hudson Energy recently and their market share has been increasing. Recently did a successful convertible debenture issue. Will have to tax adjust the payout of 9.5% on conversion.

2010-07-28

TOP PICK

12.600

Acquired Hudson Energy. This puts them into some new markets in the US, including small business, not just the residential market. Excellent management. Also doing very well on the green energy and getting a premium for selling it.

2010-07-19

Comment

12.740

Quite successful selling natural gas and electrical contracts to homeowners. Key driver for them will be the US where they have been for a couple of years. Had some problems in the US because of legislation on how contracts are sold as well as people losing their homes.

2010-07-07

HOLD

12.810

Don Lato

If you're looking for income, this is a Hold. 10% distribution that will become a 10% dividend. Wouldn't Buy for growth.

2010-06-23

TOP PICK

13.130

9.5% yield. Brilliantly run. Doing well with green power. Bough Hudson in US to open up new markets. Will recover from slowing US economy to a 10% growth rate over next year or two. It came off in a soft quarter. History of increasing distribution.

2010-06-11

BUY

13.050

Had a weak quarter, but moving forward he expects to see earnings and revenues move back into a positive direction again. Their US competition has been very badly beaten up and he expects growth will be better than most analysts expect.

2010-05-12

HOLD

13.550

Dividend will be adjusted when they convert to a corp and this should be built into the price now. Geographically diversified with fairly consistent cash flows. Good long-term investment.

2010-04-27

BUY

13.860

Sellers of Natural Gas and Electricity contracts. Started in Ontario, now rest of Canada and in US. Business model is scalable. Will convert to a corporation and keep the distribution where it is (9%).

2010-02-23

BUY

14.300

The company is doing the right thing to convert to the common share format before the December 31 deadline. Their competitors, especially in the US have fallen on hard times and as such you should see much better growth, especially out of their US division. Distribution is sustainable, but he thinks a cut would be appropriate, but not a negative.

2010-02-12

PAST TOP PICK

13.940

(A Top Pick Jan 28/09. Up 64.73%.) Has added to his holdings. Outstanding management and a great company.

2010-01-25

TOP PICK

14.050

Expanded into the US, which he thinks will be successful. Expects distributions will be maintained and once they convert to a corp, US investors will start looking more closely at it.

2010-01-20

BUY

14.300

Likes it. Valuation wise it is a little ahead of itself. Reliable cash flows, done well compared to competitors. Well run company. Keep in mind a cut in distribution upon conversion to corporation but that should be discounted at present.

2009-12-22

WATCH

13.650

Glenn MacNeill, P.Eng.

Continued to do acquisitions and expanding into the US with their gas and electrical distribution sides. 9.1% distribution is reasonably safe. A lot of renewals coming up on their subscription agreements in Canada so he would like to see what their renewal rate is.

2009-11-06

TOP PICK

12.780

Sells and distributes gas on a fixed price basis. Expanding into the US. Very good scope for growth in the US. Can see cash flow growth of 10%-15% a year. Expecting their debt will be gone in the next couple of years. 9.7% yield.

2009-08-27

Comment

11.400

Recent merger with Universal Energy (UEG-T) gives them a powerful sales force in Ontario, New York, Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. Also got an ethanol plant in Saskatchewan. Will be quite strong but the issues are low natural gas prices and lack of a catalyst. Consumers don't like locking in lower gas prices. Have been issues with foreclosures in the US.

2009-07-06

TOP PICK

11.630

Jean-Francois Tardif

His 3 Picks are resistance to recession/depression. A marketer of natural gas and everyone needs gas for heating. Growing and have increased distribution many, many times and believes they will do it in 2009. Believes the yield of almost 11% is safe.

2009-04-07

TOP PICK

10.890

Jean-Francois Tardif

Market gas to homeowners with 5-year contracts. Recession proof. New management team has different strategies. Last 2 quarters have hit records with new customers. Expect them to grow 5%-10%. 15% yield.

2009-02-26

Comment

9.820

In the trust sector, their balance sheet is not that heavily debt laden. Real concern is they haven't had the number of customers signing up that had been expected. This is one that he would look at. Well-managed. 12.5% yield.

2009-02-02

TOP PICK

9.480

Extremely well managed. With low natural gas prices, it's a terrific time to sign up and lock in their price. Has been beaten up despite good growth performance. 13% yield.

2009-01-28

Comment

6.700

Has been suffering a little because of flat sales over the last couple of quarters. Will probably do better in 2009 because of reduced labour costs, less competition and a lower Cdn$. They may be able to make some accretive acquisitions over the next 12 months.

2008-12-08

TOP PICK

7.500

Don Lato

Had 29 distribution increases since they first went public. Will be doing a bid for 10% of the company. Have never had debt. Abundant cash flow so they can still pay distribution.

2008-11-19

BUY

12.660

(Market Call Minute.) Now getting into the electricity business. Looks cheap at these levels.

2008-08-07

Comment

12.530

Has been a lot of turmoil with the CEO leaving. There has been a slowdown in signing up customers, which has affected the stock price. Market is expecting their cash flow per unit to go from $1.20 last year to about $1.40. This is a very high payout with their current distribution. There are some risks but always liked their business model.

2008-03-05

BUY

16.850

Norman Levine

They are in the business of selling natural gas contracts, a high margin business. Owns a little of this for some of his income oriented accounts. The payout is quite stable.

2007-11-09

TOP PICK

14.940

Good track record with increasing its cash flow every year at 15% plus. Has no debt. When it converts to a corporation in 2010, it should be a very attractive equity. Expects it to double over the next 4-5 years.

2007-08-29

Comment

12.770

Glenn MacNeill, P.Eng.

Has lots of potential in front of it. Buys natural gas and hydro wholesale and sells retail. Have had some difficulty moving into the US market, which is much more competitive.

2007-02-16

Comment

13.010

This company does not like warm weather and it is hard to sell 4-5 year gas/hydro contracts door-to-door when the weather is temperate. It could be an opportunity for a longer-term investor. Good business model and energy prices are not going to stay low forever.

2007-01-05

BUY

12.530

Has performed very well, increasing its distributions many times. Continues to have a good solid business. Natural gas marketing and now electricity marketing both here and the US should continue to be very profitable.

2006-12-01

SELL

13.780

Ross Healy

Does not like the company. Balance sheets are slowly sliding away which means they are overpaying in terms of the payout. The price to book ratio is egregiously high.

2006-11-01

PAST TOP PICK

17.300

Garth Jestley

(A Top Pick Dec 2/05. Down 7.5%.) Still likes. Good entry point.

2006-08-11

TOP PICK

17.580

Ravi Sood

Has returned only about 10% to investors over the last year or so, under performing the broader market. With their quarter that came out last week, things are picking up with their US strategy.

2006-05-26

BUY

17.200

A long-term play. You can play these things on a seasonal basis but he is not a fan of predicting what the seasonal things will do. Well managed trust. Would prefer it at $15/16.

2006-05-23

BUY

17.350

Over the long run, this company is going to prove itself that it can deliver the lofty goals that it has set itself. A lot of the weakness over the past several months has been interest rate fears and some management defections.

2006-04-21

BUY

16.980

Robert Lauzon

One of the blue chip trusts that has a conservative payout ratio, low debt. Have lost some key management personnel which would be a concern, but in this case, their areas have been built. Has dropped in price.

2006-04-07

PAST TOP PICK

18.000

Gavin Graham

(A Top Pick Oct 31/05. Up 5.3%.) This is a wonderful play on the high resource prices. It's an opportunity for the consumer to lock in the costs.

2006-01-31

PAST TOP PICK

18.600

Gavin Graham

(A Top Pick Oct 31/05. Up 11.5%.) Still likes

2005-12-29

PAST TOP PICK

20.150

Ravi Sood

(A Top Pick Oct 14/05. Up 10.5%.) No longer a top pick, but he still holds it.

2005-12-09

TOP PICK

19.500

Garth Jestley

Since its inception, it has announced 20 increased distributions. Trades at a low yield but think there’s a good growth story. Expanding into the Ontario residential market as well as other areas.

2005-12-02

BUY

16.430

Michele Robitaille

Basically involved in the direct marketing of natural gas and moving into electricity, primarily in Ontario. A very high quality name. The last quarter was in line. On track to meet 10% top line growth and slightly higher for bottom line growth.

2005-11-18

PAST TOP PICK

17.000

(A Top Pick Aug 19/05. Down 18%.) Continues to be very bullish on their underlying earnings particularily with natural gas prices being high.

2005-11-04

TOP PICK

16.850

Gavin Graham

This is the way to play energy of you don't want the volatility. It's off about 15% in the last month or two making it a good buying opportunity. 5.5% dividend yield.

2005-10-31

HOLD

16.800

Glenn MacNeill, P.Eng.

Has had a fabulous growth record. Not an oil/gas trust, so out of his sphere. There is concern that it is not going to grow as fast as it has grown.

2005-10-20

TOP PICK

17.800

Ravi Sood

One of the most widely held income trusts. Are almost at saturation in their core market in Ontario and are going to move into the US. Odds are stacked against them, but believes they have a very focused strategy.

2005-10-14

BUY

19.140

One of the leaders in the business trust part of the market. Growth prospects continue to be good. Taking this model into Alberta and the US. Strong fundamentals

2005-09-30

TOP PICK

20.740

(A Top Pick Jun 10/05. Up 15%.) Have an amazing track record for growth. Doesn't have a lot of capX requirements and not a lot of fixed assets but has delivered tremendous organic growth. Making this a Top Pick because he is really excited about the electricity market in Ontario where the prices are continuing to go up.

2005-08-19

BUY

17.440

Longer term, likes this trust. A good business, particularily with energy prices where they are. Outlook is continued strong pricing in the sector. Starting to look at it.

2005-06-24

TOP PICK

18.000

A unique trust. Has really delivered on growth. Distributable cash has gone up by 55% on an annualized basis. Has dominant market share and pricing power. High margin business.

2005-06-10

TOP PICK

17.060

Matt Baillie

Feels they are going to be back on a growth trajectory of 15%. Have gotten into B.C., Alberta, Quebec, Manitoba and Illinois. They are now going into New York.

2005-06-01

BUY

15.900

Kevin Hall BComm, CFA

Has taken a bit of a breather in the last few months. Very high octane, high growth story. Feels there is still good growth potential coming down the pipeline. Have entered the US market now in terms of natural gas. Signing up natural gas customers in Illinois. About to re-enter the electricity market in Ontario.

2005-05-06

BUY

16.450

The growth through the years has been as good, if not the best, in the income trust space. They have developed a very strong position in the natural gas marketing business. Dominant in Ontario and are looking to expand that in the US. Will generate higher levels of cash flow and distributions.

2005-04-01

BUY

18.000

Blair Wilson

Entering the Alberta natural gas and electricity markets. In line with what they have done in the past. A steady growing type of income trust with a great business profile. Yield is not as attractive as others, but growth is expected to continue.

2004-11-26

PAST TOP PICK

17.480

Neil Wickham

(A Top Pick May 25/04. Up 15.5%.) A growth story.

2004-11-23

BUY

15.970

Charles Dillingham

A very well managed group. The potential for adding growth will develop as Ontario expands its power policies. Expanding into the US.

2004-10-08

STRONG BUY

15.700

Matt Baillie

Fundamentals are still strong. May have slipped because it got ahead of itself.

2004-09-09

BUY

14.100

Bill Shaw

Favourable short term. Good managment of growth. Would buy at current price. Target of $17.50

2004-06-11

BUY

14.680