Pat McKeough recently replied to a member of his Inner Circle looking for an opinion on LKQ Corp. Revenue and earnings continue to jump for the auto parts distributor, says Pat, but there’s risk associated with that growth.
Q: Hi Pat and friends: I’m rebalancing my portfolio and would like to add another auto related stock (I already hold your recommendation Linamar). What is your opinion of LKQ Corp. listed on Nasdaq. Always appreciate your advice in the newsletters. Thanks.
A: LKQ CORP. (symbol LKQ on Nasdaq; www.lkqcorp.com) sells replacement parts for cars and light trucks in North America and Europe.
The company does not manufacture these parts. Instead, it buys wrecked vehicles at auctions and distributes reusable parts to collision repair shops. It also sells refurbished parts to consumers through over 100 company-owned retail outlets in the U.S.
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LKQ stands for “Like, Kind & Quality.” That’s a term for recycled or refurbished replacement parts that are acceptable to insurers in auto claims.
The company’s sales jumped 120.0%, from $3.3 billion in 2011 to $7.2 billion in 2015. Earnings gained 99.2%, from $219.2 million to $436.7 million; due to more shares outstanding, earnings per share rose 91.9%, from $0.74 to $1.42.
LKQ fuels its growth with acquisitions. In 2015, it spent $160.5 million buying 18 businesses.
Since the start of 2016, the company has completed two big acquisitions. It paid $602.0 million for Rhiag-Inter Auto Parts Italia S.p.A. This firm distributes aftermarket car parts in Italy and nine other European countries. LKQ also acquired Pittsburgh Glass Works, a leading maker of car windshields and windows, for $660.3 million.
Thanks to these purchases, LKQ’s sales in the three months ended March 31, 2016 rose 8.3%, to $1.9 billion from $1.8 billion a year earlier. Excluding the contribution of acquisitions, sales rose 4.1%.
If you exclude costs to integrate these businesses and other unusual items, earnings rose 10.2%, to $128.7 million, or $0.42 a share. A year earlier, it earned $116.8 million, or $0.38.
LKQ had to borrow the cash it needed to buy these new businesses. As a result, its long-term debt rose from $1.5 billion at the end of 2015 to $2.7 billion as of March 31, 2016. That’s still a manageable 27% of its market cap. It also held cash of $229.2 million, or $0.75 a share.
The company now expects its sales for all of 2016 will rise between 6.0% and 8.0%. Excluding unusual items, it should earn $1.76 to $1.86 a share for the year. The stock trades at 17.7 times the midpoint of that range.
Growth by acquisition adds risk. The company’s goodwill and intangible assets now total $3.5 billion, or a high 35% of the company’s market cap. That increases the risk of a big writedown if these new businesses fail to live up to expectations.
However, LKQ should continue to benefit as insurance providers encourage collision repair shops to use cheaper, recycled parts instead of new products. Refurbished parts now make up just 35% of this market, so there’s lots of room to grow. As well, low gas prices have prompted people to drive more. That should push up demand for replacement car parts.
Inner Circle recommendation: HOLD for aggressive investors only
Shawcor Ltd. has $2.6 billion out in contract bids, something that could expand its 2017 earnings per share by 15 times this year’s forecast. Some of that profit should come from its latest acquisition.
SHAWCOR LTD. (Toronto symbol SCL; www.shawcor.com) makes sealants and coatings that keep oil and gas pipelines from rusting. This business supplies 87% of its revenue. The remaining 13% comes from making industrial products such as electrical wire and protective sheaths.
In the three months ended March 31, 2016, ShawCor’s revenue fell 22.5%, to $365.6 million from $471.9 million a year earlier.
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That’s mainly because weaker oil and gas prices have prompted exploration firms to drill fewer new wells. In turn, that has reduced demand for new pipelines and maintenance services.
Due to the lower revenue and higher interest costs, earnings in the quarter fell 80.2%, to $7.5 million, or $0.12 a share, from $37.8 million, or $0.58.
The company’s order backlog at March 31, 2016, was $358 million. Its strong reputation should help it win more contracts; it is currently waiting on decisions involving over $2.6 billion worth of bids.
Energy Stocks: Trades at 27.3 times 2017 forecast earnings
ShawCor is also expanding into new areas. It recently paid $37.9 million for Lake Superior Consulting. From its facilities in Minnesota, Texas, Nebraska, Kansas and North Dakota, this firm provides design, construction and related services to pipeline operators.
This purchase enhances the company’s pipeline inspection expertise. The outlook for these services is bright, particularly due to the high cost of cleaning up oil spills.
As of March 31, 2016, ShawCor’s long-term debt was $467.8 million, or 22% of its market cap. It also held cash of $281.0 million.
The company is taking steps to improve its financial flexibility. In April 2016, ShawCor used some of its cash to retire $87 million U.S. worth of its debt. It also struck a new deal with its lenders to relax some of the conditions on its remaining loans.
ShawCor will probably earn just $0.08 a share in 2016. However, its earnings in 2017 could improve to $1.21 a share. The stock trades at 27.3 times that forecast. That’s still a reasonable multiple in light of the company’s leading 25% share of the global pipeline coating market. The $0.60 dividend yields 1.8%.
A big U.S. order pushed up revenue and lowered losses for industrial pump-maker Divergent Energy Services Corp. But the company continues to face a fiercely competitive market along with other key challenges.<
DIVERGENT ENERGY SERVICES CORP. (symbol DVG on Toronto; www.divergentenergyservices.com) makes pumps for oil and natural gas exploration companies.
Divergent changed its name from Canadian Oilfield Solutions Corp. in June 2014.
The company’s pumps use a licensed technology that applies alternating electric current to magnets in order to drive a piston. As a result, Divergent’s products have fewer moving parts than conventional pumps. The company believes that this makes them cheaper to operate and maintain. It pays a Chinese company, Han’s Motor, for the right to use the technology. While the pumps are in use by oil firms in China, Divergent is the first to market them in North America.
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In the three months ended March 31, 2016, the company’s revenue jumped 55.0%, to $2.1 million from $1.4 million a year earlier. That was due to a big order in the U.S. Divergent’s losses dropped to $0.02 a share (or a total of $2.2 million) from $0.03 a share (or $2.4 million).
The company spent $178,000 (or 8.4% of its revenue) on research in the quarter, down 12.7% from $204,000 (14.9%) a year earlier.
Divergent will likely need to keep selling new shares at current low prices to fund its operations and service its long-term debt. As of March 31, 2016, that stood at $4.2 million—equal to 20% of the company’s market cap. It also held cash of $80,000.
The company needs a sustained rebound in oil prices to spur its sales and earnings. Its technology is unique, but that may make it harder to win contracts in an extremely competitive market. In addition, the stock is an inactive trader, which can increase its volatility, especially when the overall market is unsettled.
Retailer North West Co. saw sales and earnings jump in the latest quarter despite oil industry layoffs in its Canadian and Alaska markets.
NORTH WEST CO. (Toronto symbol NWC; www.northwest.ca) sells food and everyday products and services through 225 stores, mainly in northern communities across Canada and Alaska. It also operates stores in remote regions of Hawaii, the South Pacific and the Caribbean.
North West signed a 30-year deal in 2002 with Ottawa- based Giant Tiger for the exclusive right to open and operate Giant Tiger general merchandise stores in Western Canada. Giant Tiger operates 200 stores elsewhere in Canada.
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In Canada’s northern regions, North West operates most of its stores under the Northern banner (121), followed by Giant Tiger (34), Quickstop (14) and NorthMart (6).
The company gets about 60% of its revenue from Canada. The remaining 40% of sales comes from 33 stores in Alaska and its 13 Cost-U-Less warehouse stores. Those mid-sized outlets are in remote island communities across the South Pacific and the Caribbean.
In its fiscal 2016 third quarter, which ended April 30, 2016, North West’s sales rose 6.0%, to $439.0 million from $414.0 million a year earlier. Earnings per share rose 15.6%, to $0.37 from $0.32, on fewer shares outstanding. If you exclude the positive impact of the high U.S. dollar, earnings rose 8.9%.
The company will probably earn $1.84 a share in 2016, and the stock trades at 15.6 times that forecast. Oil and mining firms have laid off workers and are spending less on new projects in northern Canada and Alaska. That will hold back North West’s results, but the strong U.S. dollar should continue to offset that by boosting the contribution of its stores in the South Pacific, the Caribbean and, of course, the U.S.
Elon Musk is driving speculation about a possible shortfall in high-quality lithium. That’s lifted the share price for Nemaska Lithium, but the producer still needs $549 million to get going.
NEMASKA LITHIUM (symbol NMX on the Toronto Venture exchange; www.nemaskalithium.com) aims to start up its Whabouchi lithium project, in Quebec.
Lithium is used in household batteries, glass and ceramics, lubricants, refrigeration, pharmaceuticals, polymers and aluminum production. But the metal mostly goes into lithium-ion and lithium-metal batteries for electric and hybrid-electric cars.
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The Whabouchi mine site holds a deposit of spodumene, which is a hard rock that was once the most important lithium source. But most of today’s lithium comes from brine solutions drawn from salt lakes, such as the Chabyer in Tibet and the Salar de Atacama in Chile. This is cheaper than producing lithium from spodumene, and the recovered metal is suitable for most uses.
However, when manufacturers need the purest lithium, they prefer spodumene because the final product has fewer contaminants.
Nemaska plans to ship ore from the mine to a processing facility it aims to build in Shawinigan, Quebec. This plant will transform spodumene concentrate into high-purity lithium compounds using a method the company has licensed. That approach makes use of membrane electrolysis—a filtering process requiring a strong electrical current. The facility’s location would allow Nemaska to take advantage of Quebec’s lower-cost electricity. It also eliminates the need for the expensive soda ash that is traditionally used to extract lithium.
The company completed a positive feasibility study on the Whabouchi project in 2014. The plan calls for a $549 million mine with a 26-year lifespan. The study was updated in early April 2016.
Mining Stocks: Plant needed to test spodumene processing
Nemaska lithium must first build a pilot plant to test the effectiveness of its new method of processing spodumene concentrate. Whether the technology will work is uncertain, and that adds a lot of risk.
The company’s shares have jumped from around $0.40, in February 2016, on speculation that a lithium shortage is coming. The concern is based on plans by Elon Musk, the CEO of electric carmaker Tesla Motors, to increase the number of vehicles made at his facilities. Telsa recently started up phase 1 of its electric battery “gigafactory” in Nevada. Musk now plans to speed up the expansion of the factory at a cost of $5 billion. The goal is to eventually build 500,000 Tesla cars per year, up from the current production of 50,000. In March 2016, Musk said that in order to meet his target, “we would basically need to absorb the entire world’s lithium-ion production.”
Still, it’s unclear whether Tesla can achieve that level of production. Lithium could also suffer from the oversupply issues that have plagued other commodities when producers rushed to meet rising demand. Lithium deposits that previously were deemed uneconomic to mine could be put into production and that would bring prices back down.
As well, to build a mine, Nemaska will need to raise $549 million. But arranging that funding could be difficult. The company might be forced to make share issues that dilute the interest of current investors. It may also be forced to sell a big stake in the Whabouchi project. Moreover, as mentioned, Nemaska’s plan to use a new process to extract lithium adds further risk.
Pat McKeough recently replied to a member of his Inner Circle asking for an opinion on Slate Office REIT. This trust just doubled its cash flow and revenue with a key acquisition, says Pat.
Q: Can I have your opinion of Slate Office REIT? Thanks.
A: SLATE OFFICE REIT (symbol SOT.UN on Toronto; www.slateofficereit.com) owns 34 office properties. In all, these buildings contain 44 million square feet. Atlantic Canada represents 49% of that leasable area, followed by Ontario (37%) and Western Canada (14%).
The REIT first sold units to the public at $10.00 each on August 27, 2012. Slate changed its name from FAM REIT in March 2015.
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Due to acquisitions of new properties, Slate’s revenue rose 207.4%, from $28.5 million in 2013 to $87.5 million in 2015. Cash flow soared 200.2%, from $7.6 million to $22.9 million. Slate sold new units to help pay for its acquisitions. As a result, cash flow per unit fell 35.4%, from $0.79 in 2013 to $0.51 in 2014. Cash flow then rebounded to $0.82 a unit in 2015.
The biggest of Slate’s recent acquisitions was its October 2015 purchase of Fortis Properties Corp.—the commercial real estate business of Fortis Inc. Its properties—located in Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia—include 10 office buildings, one mixed-use office complex and three shopping centres. In all, they comprise 2.8 million square feet of space. Slate paid $304.0 million for the portfolio, which includes Cabot Place and TD Place in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
To help fund the Fortis purchase, the REIT formed a partnership with a Canadian institutional real estate fund. Under the deal, that partner acquired a 90% stake in three of the properties, while Slate took a 10% interest.
On December 31, 2015, the REIT increased its stake in the three properties to 30%. It paid $28.8 million for the additional interest.
As part of Slate’s new focus on office buildings, it sold most of its industrial and retail properties in 2015 for $40.6 million.
In the three months ended March 31, 2016, the purchase of the Fortis properties increased the REIT’s revenue by 95.8%, to $27.6 million from $14.1 million a year earlier. Overall, cash flow jumped 119.8%, to $7.3 million from $3.3 million; cash flow per unit rose 23.5%, to $0.21 from $0.17, on more units outstanding.
The REIT pays monthly distributions of $0.0625 a unit; the annual rate of $0.75 yields a high 9.3%. In the latest quarter, distributions accounted for 90.3% of its cash flow. If you adjust for units issued under its distribution reinvestment plan (DRIP), the payout ratio falls to 85.7%.
CAE Inc.—and its earnings—continues to benefit from air industry trends even as it diversifies beyond flight simulator sales.
The growing need for new airline pilots, particularly in Asia, will spur strong demand for CAE’s flight simulators and pilot-training services. Rising revenue from its military clients also helps cut its reliance on simulator sales to cyclical airlines. In addition, CAE is now applying its simulator expertise to the fast-growing field of medical-training devices.
The stock has gained 9% since the start of 2016. We expect it to move much higher in the next few years.
CAE INC. (Toronto symbol CAE; www.cae.com) began operating in 1947 as Canadian Aviation Electronics Ltd. It originally made ground-communication equipment and antennas for the Royal Canadian Air Force.
In 1952, the company began making flight simulators for air force pilots. It’s now the world’s leading maker of flight simulators for commercial and military aircraft. CAE currently controls 70% of the global flight simulator market.
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To cut its reliance on sales of those units, which rise and fall with the overall economy, CAE began instructing airline and military pilots in 2001. It now operates around 65 pilot-training centres in 30 countries.
Selling simulators and training services to commercial airlines accounts for about 55% of the company’s total revenue. Another 40% comes from providing simulators and instruction for military clients, mainly in the U.S. and Europe.
The remaining 5% of CAE’s revenue comes from its health care division, which makes simulators and mannequins for teaching paramedics, nurses and medical students. These devices help reduce medical errors and lower insurance costs.
The company’s revenue rose 38.0%, from $1.8 billion in 2012 to $2.5 billion in 2016 (fiscal years end March 31). That’s partly due to its $279.3 million purchase of Oxford Aviation Academy in 2012. It operates flight schools in the U.K., the U.S., Europe and Asia.
CAE’s earnings rose from $0.70 a share (or a total of $182.0 million) in 2012 to $0.74 a share (or $194.3 million) in 2013. Earnings dipped to $0.73 a share (or $191.1 million) in 2014, but rebounded to $0.76 a share (or $204.1 million) in 2015, and to $0.86 a share (or $230.5 million) in 2016.
Part of CAE’s gain in earnings comes from a restructuring plan. This includes cutting 4% of its workforce. It’s also making better use of its existing facilities: in the latest fiscal year, the utilization rate of its civilian training operations (training hours sold divided by total hours available) improved to 71% from 68% in 2015.
The company expects to complete its restructuring by September 2016. In all, these moves should save it $15 million to $20 million a year.
CAE also continues to benefit as airlines replace their aging aircraft with new models. That has spurred demand for new simulators: it sold a record 53 simulators in fiscal 2016, up from 41 in 2015.
As a result, revenue at CAE’s civilian division rose 10.4% in 2016. This business ended the year with an order backlog of $3.1 billion, up 6.0% from 2015.
Revenue at the military division gained 13.1% in 2016. That’s partly because the company paid $19.8 million in September 2015 for Bombardier’s military training business. The operation trains combat pilots for the Royal Canadian Air Force, as well as the fighter pilots of other NATO countries.
The outlook for CAE’s military operations is improving as governments are now starting to spend more on defense due to the rise of ISIS and other terrorist threats. As well, simulator training costs much less than training pilots in real aircraft.
The order backlog for CAE’s military division jumped 34.2% in fiscal 2016, to $3.3 billion.
Revenue for the company’s healthcare business rose 20.3% in 2016, to $113.4 million. This unit benefited from new partnerships with U.S. medical schools and the launch of several products.
The company spent $87.6 million (or 3.5% of revenue) on research in fiscal 2016. That’s up 36.7% from $64.1 million (or 2.9% of revenue) in 2015. These figures factor out the tax credits it receives from the Canadian and Quebec governments.
The company’s strong balance sheet lets it invest in its businesses and make acquisitions.
As of March 31, 2016, CAE’s long-term debt was $1.15 billion, or a manageable 25% of its market cap. It also held cash and investments of $485.6 million, or $1.80 a share.
The company gets 90% of its revenue from customers outside of Canada, so the lower Canadian dollar will help lift its fiscal 2017 earnings to $0.93 a share. The stock trades at 18.3 times that forecast.
That’s a reasonable multiple in light of CAE’s dominant market share. As well, 60% of its revenue comes from recurring service contracts. That also cuts its reliance on new simulator sales.
The company’s steady earnings growth has also let it increase its dividend each year since 2008. The current annual rate of $0.30 a share yields 1.8%.
A new acquisition better positions auto-parts maker Linamar Corp to benefit from an industry shift to lighter, faster cars. Double-digit gains in sales and earnings should also drive future growth.
LINAMAR CORP. (Toronto symbol LNR; www.linamar.com) make a variety of automotive parts, including cylinder heads, cylinder blocks, camshafts, crankshafts and connecting rods.
The company also makes self-propelled elevating work platforms. It sells these products under the Skyjack name.
In February 2016, Linamar purchased Montupet, a French maker of aluminum car parts, with global operations. It paid $1.2 billion for Montupet’s shares, and assumed $97.5 million of its debt.
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The purchase will let the company profit as automakers use aluminum to make cars lighter and boost fuel efficiency.
Linamar’s sales in the three months ended March 31, 2016, rose 18.8%, to $1.5 billion from $1.3 billion a year earlier.
Sales at its Powertrain/Driveline division (87% of total revenue) jumped 23.8%. In addition to the purchase of Montupet, favourable currency rates also contributed to Linamar’s gain.
That offset a 5.5% decline in sales for its Industrial division (13%) as some large customers delayed buying equipment.
Earnings in the quarter rose 11.2%, to $126.4 million, or $1.92 a share, from $113.7 million, or $1.73.
The company borrowed most of the cash it needed to buy Montupet. As a result, its long-term debt rose to $1.8 billion (as of March 31, 2016) from $537.4 million at the end of 2015. That’s a high, but still manageable, 51% of its market cap. The parts maker also holds cash of $408.4 million.
Linamar will probably earn $7.96 a share in 2016, and the stock trades at a low 6.7 times that estimate. The $0.40 dividend yields 0.8%.
Finning International Inc. saw its revenue take a hit across almost most business lines. One, however, experienced a 46.3% gain as oil producers and mining outfits trimmed their costs in the down market. That should help to protect cash flow and this mining stock’s dividend.
In general, stocks in the Resources & Commodities sector—as well as those in Manufacturing & Industry—expose you to above-average volatility. Those in either Finance or Utilities involve below average volatility. Consumer stocks fall in the middle.
A good way to cut your risk with Manufacturing and Industry stocks is to focus on market leaders like Finning. These well-established companies have built their strong reputations over decades. That makes it difficult for new competitors to take away their customers.
FINNING INTERNATIONAL INC. (Toronto symbol FTT; www.finning.com) sells and services Caterpillar-brand heavy equipment in Canada, South America and the U.K. Its main customers are in the oil, mining, forest-products and construction industries.
The company continues to cut costs as low commodity prices hurt equipment demand. It recently announced plans to eliminate about 525 jobs by mid-2016. That’s in addition to the 1,900 workers, or 13% of its global workforce, it laid off last year.
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Because of the moves, Finning has already reduced its annual expenses by $150 million, and expects higher savings this year.
Meanwhile, the company’s earnings in the three months ended March 31, 2016, fell 71.7%, to $15 million, or $0.09 a share. If you exclude writedowns and other unusual items, Finning earned $0.19 a share. A year earlier, it earned $53 million, or $0.31 a share.
Overall revenue declined 3.0%, to $1.49 billion from $1.54 billion. Sales of new equipment fell 6.7%, rental-equipment revenue dropped 21.1%, and product-support revenue declined 3.1%. However, used-equipment sales jumped 46.3%.
Finning’s sound balance sheet will help it weather the current downturn in commodity prices. Its long-term-debt of $1.5 billion (as of March 31, 2016) is a high 38% of its currently depressed market cap. However, it doesn’t have to start repaying most of that debt until after 2020. It also held cash of $425.0 million, or $2.53 a share.
Finning will likely earn $1.08 a share in 2016, and the stock trades at 21.3 times that estimate. That’s still a reasonable multiple in light of the company’s high market share and cost controls.
Moreover, Finning continues to pay quarterly dividends of $0.1825 a share, for an annualized yield of 3.2%. In the latest quarter, those payments totaled $31 million. That’s a high 103% of its $30 million free cash flow (cash flow less capital expenditures). However, Finning expects its free cash flow will total $300 million for all of 2016, so the current payout seems sustainable.
Pat McKeough recently replied to a member of his Inner Circle asking for an opinion on Fastenal Company. The distributor of industrial tools and supplies was able to increase its dividend despite slowing sales to the oil and gas sector.
Q: Hi Pat: I would be interested in your opinion on Fastenal (symbol FAST on Nasdaq).
A: FASTENAL COMPANY (symbol FAST on Nasdaq; www.fastenal.com) is a leading wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies. It has 2,630 wholesale and retail stores in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central America, Asia, Europe and South Africa. The company also owns 14 distribution centres—in the U.S. (11), Canada (2) and Mexico (1).
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Fastenal sells: threaded fasteners; tools and equipment; abrasives and cutting tools; components and accessories for hydraulics, pneumatics, plumbing and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning); material-handling products; and janitorial, welding, safety and electrical supplies.
The company serves clients in the construction and manufacturing markets. Its construction customers include general, electrical, plumbing, sheet-metal and road contractors. In manufacturing, Fastenal sells its products to original equipment manufacturers and maintenance/repair operations. It also serves farmers, truckers, railroads, mining companies, governments, schools and certain retail trades.
In recent years, Fastenal started selling its industrial products through vending machines that operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Revenue rose 39.8%, from $2.8 billion in 2011 to $3.9 billion in 2015. Part of the company’s growth is due to its purchase of related businesses. For example, in 2015 it paid $23.5 million for certain assets of Fasteners Inc. This firm distributes industrial and construction equipment in Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Montana.
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Fastenal’s earnings jumped 43.4%, from $357.9 million in 2011 to $513.3 million in 2015. Due to fewer shares outstanding, earnings per share gained 46.3%, from $1.21 to $1.77.
In the three months ended March 31, 2016, sales for the company rose 3.5%, to $986.7 million from $953.3 million a year earlier. Earnings fell 1.1%, to $126.2 million from $127.6 million. However, per-share earnings rose 2.3%, to $0.44 from $0.43, on fewer shares outstanding.
Demand for Fastenal’s products has softened lately. That’s mainly because oil and gas producers are spending less on their operations until commodity prices improve. In addition, the company gets 11% of its sales from overseas markets and the higher U.S. dollar has weighed on its results.
Fastenal’s long-term debt of $362.4 million is a low 3% of its market cap. The company also holds cash of $150.6 million, or $0.52 a share. It recently raised its quarterly dividend by 7.1%, to $0.30 a share from $0.28. The new annual rate of $1.20 yields 2.6%.
The stock trades at 25.3 times the $1.82 a share that Fastenal will probably earn in 2016. The company benefits from being a niche supplier of industrial and construction products. That cuts its reliance on customers that operate in these cyclical industries. But it will need a sustained economic rebound to post higher sales and earnings.
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Information You Give Us: We receive and store any information you enter on our website or give us in any other way through sign-up forms or ordering forms for publications and services. You can choose not to provide certain information, but then you might not be able to take advantage of many of our services and features. We use the information that you provide for such purposes as responding to your requests, customizing your web browsing experience for you, improving our website, and communicating with you.
Automatic Information: We receive and store certain types of information whenever you interact with us. For example, like many websites, we use "cookies," and we obtain certain types of information when your web browser accesses TSI Network.
Information from Other Sources: For reasons such as improving personalization of our service (for example, providing better product recommendations or special offers that we think will interest you), we might receive information about you from other sources and add it to our account information. We also sometimes receive updated delivery and address information from our shippers or other sources so that we can correct our records and deliver your next purchase or communication more easily.
We do reserve the right, however, to collect and perform statistical analyses of the internet traffic to our website for our internal use. However, information collected does not allow us to identify any individual, and will not collect any personal information of the visitor. Furthermore, we do not sell, rent or loan to any outside parties the information collected and analyzed.
Although you may be able to access some of our websites without being required to register or provide personal information, certain websites and sections of our websites may require registration. In addition, if you choose to contact us to ask a question, we will collect your personal information so that we can respond to your question.
To make the visitor’s experience on our website easier, we may use per-session “cookies” (session identifiers) to track the state of the visitor session. This “cookie” is destroyed when your session with our website is over.
Cookies are alphanumeric identifiers that we transfer to your computer's hard drive through your web browser to enable our systems to recognize your browser and to provide features like "Remember Me" for our paying subscribers. Cookies are also used during the ordering process to help ensure your order is handled correctly. We do not extract any information about individual users or their computers as a part of this process.
The "Help" portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable cookies altogether. However, cookies allow you to take full advantage of some of TSI Network's most useful features, and may be required to access certain areas of our website.
Internet Protocol (or IP) addresses are collected for all visitors to this site. This information is used for the purposes of traffic analysis.
Does TSI Network Use the Information It Receives?
"Contact Us" and Comment Features: TSI Network encourages visitors to its websites to contact us with questions and comments. Email addresses and other information of persons using these features may be collected in order to facilitate our responses to those inquiries.
Purchases of Merchandise: TSI Network websites may offer individuals the opportunity to purchase branded or other merchandise online. In connection with those purchases, customers may be asked to submit personal information, such as shipping addresses and credit card information, which is required to complete the transaction. TSI Network may also offer a Membership program, through which purchasers of its products may receive discounts on their online purchases. Membership registration may involve the submission of personal information to TSI Network and assignment of a user ID and password.
Agents: We employ other companies and individuals to perform functions on our behalf. Examples include fulfilling orders, delivering packages, sending postal mail and email, removing repetitive information from customer lists, analyzing data, providing marketing assistance, processing credit card payments and providing customer service. They have access to personal information needed to perform their functions, but may not use it for other purposes.
Promotional Offers: We may make our postal mailing list available to organizations offering products or services that might interest you. If you prefer NOT to receive these offers, please send an email with your name and address to service@tsinetwork.ca with "Do Not Rent Name" in the subject line. We do NOT make our email list available outside our organization.
Protection of TSI Network and Others: We release account and other personal information when we believe release is appropriate to comply with law; enforce the terms of the Legal notices that accompany this policy; or protect the rights, property or safety of TSI Network, our users or others. This includes exchanging information with other companies and organizations for fraud protection and credit risk reduction.
In addition to these limited disclosures of personal information, TSI Network may provide its affiliates or unaffiliated third parties with aggregate information about visitors to our sites. For example, we might disclose the median ages of visitors to our websites, or the numbers of visitors to our websites that come from different geographic areas. Such aggregate information will not include information of any individual visitors to our websites.
TSI Network may provide personal and other information to a purchaser or successor entity in connection with the sale of TSI Network, a subsidiary or line of business associated with TSI Network, or substantially all of the assets of TSI Network or one of its subsidiaries, affiliates or lines of business.
With Your Consent: Other than as set out above, you will receive notice when information about you might go to third parties, and you will have an opportunity to choose not to share the information.
Except as provided herein, TSI Network will not sell or rent personal information about you to unaffiliated third parties.
We may disclose personal information you have provided through our websites, for the above purposes, to persons or companies that we retain to carry out and other activities for which you have registered or in which you have otherwise asked to participate. In particular, we may for these purposes transfer information to any country (including the USA and other countries which may not offer the same level of data protection as Canada). We also will disclose personal information if required by law, including compliance with warrants, subpoenas or other legal processes.
TSI Network requires persons and companies to which it discloses personal information to restrict their use of such information to the purposes for which it has been provided by TSI Network, to adequately protect the information, and not to disclose that information to others. TSI Network cannot be responsible, however, for any damages caused by the failure of unaffiliated third parties to honour their privacy obligations to TSI Network. Similarly, TSI Network is not responsible for the privacy policies and practices of other websites that are linked to our websites.
COMMENTS: TERMS OF USE
We’re always happy to receive feedback, comments and ideas from TSI Network visitors, and we encourage you to add your perspective to any issue by leaving your comments on the site.
To make sure users get the most out of the site’s comments function, we’ve provided a few guidelines:
Do not post threatening, harassing, defamatory, or libelous material.
Do not intentionally make false or misleading statements.
Do not offer to sell or buy any product or service.
Do not post material that infringes copyright.
Do not post information that you know to be confidential or sensitive or otherwise in breach of the law.
TSI Network will not accept responsibility for information posted in the comments.
Please note that we reserve the right to delete or edit all comments. As well, we may close posts to further comments at our discretion. If a user repeatedly abuses our comment policy, we may also revoke that user’s access to our comments section.
By commenting on TSI Network, you agree that you retain all ownership rights in what you post on the site, and that you will relieve us from any and all liability that may result from those postings.
Special Note for Parents
TSI Network does not sell products for purchase by children. If you are under 18, you may use TSI Network's site only with involvement of a parent or guardian
How do we protect your personal information?
TSI Network does everything possible to prevent unauthorized intrusion to its websites and the alteration, acquisition or misuse of personal information by unauthorized persons. Notably passwords submitted by users of our websites are encrypted using encryption mechanisms. However, TSI Network cautions visitors to its websites that no network, including the Internet, is entirely secure. Accordingly, we cannot be responsible for loss, corruption or unauthorized acquisition of personal information provided to our websites, or for any damages resulting from such loss, corruption or unauthorized acquisition.
How do we maintain the integrity of your personal information?
TSI Network has procedures in place to keep your personal information accurate, complete and current for the purposes for which it is collected and used. You may review the information that you have provided to us and where appropriate you may request that it be corrected. If you wish to review your personal information please send a request to: service@tsinetwork.ca.
How do I withdraw my consent to use Personal Information? Access, Correction, Inquiries and Complaints
If you wish to request access to, or correction of, your personal information in our custody or control, or find out how we've used or disclosed that information, please make your request in writing to us. We may need to verify your identity before searching for or providing you with personal information. In some circumstances, we may not be able to provide access to your personal information, for example if it contains the personal information of other persons, if it constitutes confidential commercial information, or if it is protected by solicitor-client privilege. If we deny your request for access to, or refuse a request to correct, your personal information, we will advise you of the reasons for this refusal.
If you do not want to receive promotional offers, please notify TSI Network by sending an email to service@tsinetwork.ca.
How can you ask questions about our Privacy Policy and access your personal information?
The provision of information by you is entirely voluntary and you have the right not to provide information. Subject to applicable law, you may have the right to receive certain information as to whether or not personal information relating to you is held by TSI Network and to obtain a copy of such information that is sought. You may also have the right to require information, where appropriate, to be erased, blocked or made anonymous or to have data updated or corrected. If you do not wish TSI Network to hold information about you or if you wish to have access to information, modify information, or object to any processing of information or if you have questions please contact us.
What Choices Do I Have?
As discussed, you can always choose not to provide information even though it might be needed to make a purchase or to take advantage of TSI Network features.
You can add or update certain information as explained in the section "How Can I Change My Information?"
If you do not want to receive email or other mail from us, please notify TSI Network by sending an email to service@tsinetwork.ca.
The "Help" portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable cookies altogether. However, you will not be able to use important features of TSI Network sites if you do not use cookies.
Changes to this Policy
This Policy is the sole authorized statement of TSI Network's practices with respect to the collection of personal information through TSI Network's websites and the subsequent use and disclosure of such information. Any summaries of this Policy generated by third party software or otherwise (for example, in connection with the "Platform for Privacy Preferences" or "P3P") shall have no legal effect, are in no way binding upon TSI Network, shall not be relied upon in substitute for this Policy, and neither supersede nor modify this Policy.
TSI Network may revise this Policy from time to time.
Legal Notices and Disclaimers
The contents of this web site and our publications are based upon sources of information believed to be reliable, but no warranty or representation, expressed or implied, is given as to their accuracy or completeness. Any opinion reflects the Successful Investor’s judgment at the date of publication and neither the Successful Investor, nor any of its affiliated companies, nor any of their officers, directors or employees, accepts any responsibility in respect of the information or recommendations contained in the publications or on this web site. Moreover, the information or recommendations are subject to change without notice.
Information presented on this web site or contained in our publications is not an offer, nor a solicitation, to buy or sell any securities referred to on the web site or in the publications. The material is general information intended for recipients who understand the risks associated with an investment in any securities referred to in the publications or on this web site. The Successful Investor has made no determination regarding whether an investment, course of action, or associated risks are suitable for the recipient.
