We display our TSINetwork ratings (Highest Quality, Above Average, Average, Extra Risk, Speculative and Start-up) next to every stock we recommend in our newsletters — including our flagship publication, The Successful Investor.

We designed our TSINetwork ratings to help you quickly and easily identify great stock picks for long-term profits. These stocks have the asset size and investment quality to weather market downturns and changing industry conditions.

Here are three factors we consider when we assign a rating to a stock.

1. The ability to profit from secular trends: Great stock picks in this category are companies that can take advantage of trends that go far beyond mere business cycles and reflect ongoing changes in society. Examples include rising environmental awareness, economic liberalization, the aging of the baby boomers, and the productivity gains available from continually evolving computer and communications technology.
   
   A company that would score highly here is CGI Group Inc. (symbol GIB.A on Toronto), one of the stocks we analyze in The Successful Investor. CGI is Canada’s largest provider of computer-outsourcing services. The company’s leading-edge services, including cloud computing*, help its customers automate certain routine functions, such as accounting and buying supplies. That makes its clients more efficient, and lets them focus on their main businesses.
2. The ability to serve all shareholders: Great stock picks in this category are free of heavy-handed government regulation, free of too much dependence on a single supplier and free from abuse by insiders.

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3. Industry prominence — or even better, industry dominance: Companies that are prominent, or dominant, in their industries are especially well positioned to weather economic downturns and fend off new competitors. An example is BCE Inc. (symbol BCE on Toronto), Canada’s largest telephone service provider (and one of the stocks we analyze in The Successful Investor).
   
   The company recently expanded into television and radio by purchasing the 85% of CTVglobemedia that it does not already own. This private company owns the 27-station CTV Television Network. CTVglobemedia also owns 30 specialty channels, 34 radio stations and The Globe and Mail newspaper. BCE paid $1.3 billion for full control of CTVglobemedia.
   
   BCE is facing rising competition from new wireless firms, including WIND Mobile, Public Mobile and Mobilicity. However, the company’s diverse operations are helping it deal with these new competitors. That’s because it offers satellite TV, land lines, high-speed Internet and wireless services in a single bargain-priced bundle. These bundles make it hard for its customers to switch to a competitor — if they switch any of their services to another provider, they lose the discount.

You can get our latest analysis, including our clear buy/sell/hold advice, on BCE, CGI, and dozens of other Canadian stocks in The Successful Investor. What’s more, you can get one month free when you subscribe today. Click here to learn how.

*Cloud computing involves storing data and software on one or more centralized computer networks. Users access these programs or files over the Internet, or through some other computer network.