Think you've missed out on Oil & Gas stocks?. It may not be too late. Check out Olympia Energy (TSE: OLY.A). This junior oil & gas stock appears poised to move up this Fall...think of it as playing 'catch-up' to its big brothers, the big-cap oil stocks that have already moved up nicely. Now it may be Olympia's turn!
OLY.A is an interesting play on a number of fronts. With prices for both oil and gas at record numbers the company has been ramping up production for the last two quarters. Add to this some very nice recent strikes at their Wildcat Hills property, and this stock may soon have a fire lit under it. Both the company and an analyst think the best is yet to come for 2000, with both 3rd and 4th quarter production expected to jump dramatically! The company is also receiving more attention in the press of late, with another article appearing on Stockhouse on September 11th, and further rumours that it may soon receive very favourable mention in a major investment publication around month's end. Technical analysis also seems to suggest the stock is set to move up in the short-term.
Frederick Kozak at Yorkton Securities has recently reiterated his target price of $3.20 on the stock. It is currently trading at $2.28.
There are a number of good pieces on Olympia at the Stockhouse website with which to get started doing your DD. You can read past news releases and SHfn stories here. You can also view the company's 30-Day price history at GlobeInvestor. Olympia also has a website.
As always, do your own research or consult a professional investment advisor before putting your own money into this or any other stock. We at Stockgurl may have a position in this stock. Good luck!
SEPT 05 - STOCK PROFILE
ENVOY COMMUNICATIONS - A new breed?
A new breed company, Envoy Communications (TSE: ECG) is an "integrated e-Marketer, digitally driven and committed to building global brands both off and on-line". In addition to The Watt Group, Envoy owns leading advertising and e-Marketing agencies, Communique, Devlin Applied Design, FUSIONcreative and Hampel/Stefanides of New York. Envoy's roster of clients include: adidas- Salomon Canada, Aer Lingus, Alliance Atlantis, BASF, Benjamin Moore, Bermuda Telephone, Bridgestone/Firestone, Canada Life, Castrol, CDNOW, FedEx, Fisherman's Friend, Honda, Hummingbird, IMAX, Juno Online Services, LCBO, MAC Cosmetics, National Discount Brokers, Oxford Properties, PhoneFree, Procurenet.com, Safeway, Sprint Canada, Steelcase, Taylor Made, Toshiba Canada and Toshiba America.
This company is the Rodney Dangerfield of the TSE and NASDAQ (Q-ECGI), 'It just can't get no respect'. Long term investors have thus far been very frustrated by the lack of appreciation in the stock, but we believe their patience will be rewarded if the tech markets hold their own through the Fall. Last Tuesday Envoy released its June quarterly results. If any institutions, particularly in the U.S., really knew about this stock it would be $20 Canadian ($12 US). The stock closed at $8.40 (CDN) today.
Envoy made $2.7 million EBITDA in the June quarter. EBITDA is an acronym for Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization. Most analysts view the EBITDA number as the true measure of a company's performance. On this basis the company earned $.15 per share in the June quarter. More importantly, while sales were up 20% true profits were up 55%, which means that their profit margin is improving. If any serious players on Wall Street were following this company the stock would be $20 to $25 (CDN) today based on the company's financial performance. The company has achieved these outstanding results without a Wall Street Investment Banking relationship. No major American brokerage firm has a stake in the company's future which explains the lack of institutional participation in the stock south of the border.
According to sources in the U.S., discussions with Envoy management last week seemed to suggest that September could bring some exciting corporate developments which might finally put this stock on the Wall Street radar screens. Given continuing favourable markets we believe that the stock has a real chance to see $10 to $12 by the end of September. As usual, that is just our opinion. But looking at the numbers the stock seems undervalued in relation to other tech plays.
There are a ton of good links to news releases, (Canadian) brokerage reports, and SHfn write-ups on ECG at Stockhouse, and you can view the company's 30-Day price history at GlobeInvestor. You can visit ECG's website at www.envoy.to. (Note: Their site utilizes 'flash' technology.) Since this company has listings on both the TSE and NASDAQ, if you're thinking about investing in it, we would recommend that you follow the price movements in both markets, as they obviously move in pretty close harmony when you adjust for the exchange rate in the dollar.
Caution: Like all stocks, ECG is a speculative pick, do your own research or consult a professional investment advisor before putting your own money into this or any other stock play. Like most tech stocks, ECG is vulnerable to market corrections. We at Stockgurl do not currently hold any ECG shares.
SEPT 05 - STOCK PROFILE
TRAVELBYUS.COM - Bargain-basement Price
Looking for a cheap internet stock with good revenue potential? Check out Travelbyus.com (TSE: TBU). Travelbyus.com is an internet-based travel company involved in a number of areas in the fast-growing travel industry, including discounted airfares, hotel bookings, car rentals, and cruises.
Roche Securities has estimated that the Internet travel industry will grow at an annual rate of 41% from 1999 to 2002, with travel bookings increasing from $276M (US) in 1996 to $8.9B (US) in 2002. Travelbyus is positioning itself to take advantage of this explosive growth. Unlike some of their strictly internet-based competitors, Travelbyus is equipped to take bookings in person, over the phone, or over the net. They operate a 24-hour seven-days-a-week call centre, own or have relationships with a large number of conventional walk-in travel agencies, and of course operate a comprehensive website. This should make them less vulnerable than their internet-only e-commerce peers.
Although their share price was beat down during the 'correction', (52 week high was $5.55), Travelbyus has been busy. In the last 6 months they have filed to merge with Aviation Group Inc., acquired 7 new companies, forged 9 strategic partnerships, formed a transatlantic partnership, and have raised $30M in new equity financing. If their merger is approved by the U.S. Securities Commission, and rumour has it that will happen shortly, Travelbyus will become a NASDAQ-listed company. TBU is also finalizing a new advertising and public relations campaign designed to raise awareness of the company. Actor James Caan has been signed to front this campaign.
The stock has been trading in the $1.50 range for some time but has started to edge up in the last week, closing September 1st at $1.70. There seems to be quite a bit of speculation that TBU is close to getting their NASDAQ approval, and there have also been unconfirmed reports that they may soon sign a deal with a major airline. Provided we do not suffer another tech correction in the near term, Travelbyus seems oversold at these prices and may be poised to move back up if their NASDAQ listing receives final approval.
You can read past news releases on TBU at Stockhouse and view the company's 30-Day price history at GlobeInvestor. You can visit TBU's website at www.travelbyus.com.
Caution: Like all stocks, TBU is a speculative pick, do your own research or consult a professional investment advisor before putting your own money into this or any other stock play. We at Stockgurl do not currently hold any TBU shares.
SEPT 04 - STOCK UPDATE
MIRAMAR MINING CORP - Heating up the Far North
Investors wishing to hedge against the possibility of a tech correction in the coming months may wish to take a look at Miramar Mining Corporation (TSE: MAE). Miramar is a junior mining company focused primarily on gold exploration and mining. It has two producing gold mines (Con, and Giant) in the NWT. On the exploration side Miramar controls approximately 90% of the Yellowknife greenstone belt and has a 50% interest in the exciting Hope Bay Gold project in northern Nunavut. Miramar also holds a 62% equity stake in Northern Orion Explorations, and owns and operates the Bluefish hydroelectric plant in Yellowknife.
Miramar's key project in the near term is its 50% holding in the Hope Bay project. Miramar and Hope Bay Gold (TSE: HGC) control a significant stretch of Archean greenstone belt with established gold deposits. Given the size of the tract and the presence of 50 gold occurrences (only 20% have been test drilled thus far), there may be more significant discoveries ahead. At this early stage the Hope Bay project appears to have very good prospects, and may prove to be one of the most significant gold exploration plays in Canada in some time.
Miramar's share price has edged up from around the .90 cent range where we first profiled it at the end of June, to the $1.30 range at present, primarily as a result of growing speculation as to the drill program at Hope Bay. Canaccord Capital is covering the stock and has recently put a 12 month target price of $2.50 on the stock, (see report by B. Christie & J. Aler). We would consider buying on any weakness in the stock. Miramar appears a speculative buy at these levels but their diversification should limit the downside risk.
You can read past news releases at Stockhouse and view the company's 30-Day price history at GlobeInvestor. Miramar has a website.
As always, if you're looking at this stock, do your own research or consult a professional investment advisor before putting your own money into this or any other stock. We at Stockgurl do not currently hold any Miramar shares.
AUG 30 - STOCK UPDATE
INFOWAVE SOFTWARE - Looking Back at a big Winner!
Infowave Software (TSE: IW) - This stock was by far our best profile to date. We originally profiled the stock on our old site in October 1999 at $4.00 after seeing a mention of the company on one of the big American Boards. Five months later the stock traded as high as $69, for a 1530% return in six months, (unfortunately we sold way too soon...). Infowave is introducing products for high speed wireless internet connectivity, and the company has deals with many major household name companies. The stock has been severely pounded since the April tech crash, and now trades in the $10 to $13 range. Barring another tech correction, we feel this is probably a good price to own the stock. It occasionally drops even lower. Institutional investors put big money into the company at the $31 level and it may see these prices again down the road. We don't profile the stock these days as it obviously no longer fits our rough guideline of choosing sub-three-dollar stocks. However, at these levels the stock is poised to move back up in a receptive market, and could also possibly represent a good candidate for an astute swing trader.
You can read past news releases at Stockhouse and view the company's 30-Day price history at GlobeInvestor. Infowave has a website.
As always, if you're looking at this stock, do your own research or consult a professional investment advisor before putting your own money into this or any other stock. We at Stockgurl do not currently hold any Infowave shares.
