A double plus for CAE

Article Excerpt

Oil has dropped from $74 U.S. a barrel in June to $60, and could fall further. We depend on resource industries more than the U.S. does, so the drop in oil and other commodities pushed down the Canadian dollar from $0.92 U.S. in May to $0.86 today. CAE INC. $6.68 (Toronto symbol CAE; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 255.1 million; Market cap: $1.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; SI Rating: Average) stands to gain from both developments. CAE makes flight simulators and operates pilot-training facilities. Lower fuel prices leave its airline customers with more cash to spend on new simulators and training. Falling oil prices cut consumer costs, leaving more funds for travel. In addition, CAE gets 90% of its revenue from customers outside of Canada. A low Canadian dollar increases the value of these sales. The company may only sell 20 simulators this year, down from 34 last year. But its commercial pilot training has held up well. Meanwhile, CAE…