Top pick ready to soar higher

Article Excerpt

We chose CAE as top Conservative stock for 2016, as it stands to profit from several long-term trends. For example, the growing need for new airline pilots, particularly in Asia, will spur strong demand for its 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. $17 (Toronto symbol CAE; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 269.3 million; Market cap: $4.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.8; Dividend yield: 1.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; 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 It originally made ground-communication equipment and antennas for the Royal Canadian Air Force.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…