Buyback plan spurs share-price rise

Article Excerpt

POTASH CORP. OF SASKATCHEWAN $140 (Toronto symbol POT; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 297.6 million; Market cap: $41.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 6.7; Dividend yield: 0.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.potashcorp.com) has gained 2% since BHP Billiton Ltd. (New York symbol BHP) dropped its hostile, $130.00 U.S.-a-share takeover offer. That’s partly because the company plans to buy back $2 billion U.S. of its shares, probably by the end of 2010. Meanwhile, the company earned $1.32 a share in the three months ended September 30, 2010 (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars). That’s up 61.0% from $0.82 a year earlier. Revenue jumped 43.3%, to $1.6 billion from $1.1 billion. Potash Corp. continues to benefit from rising demand for its fertilizers, particularly in India, China and other parts of Asia. The company sold 1.9 million tonnes of potash in the quarter, up 87.1% from a year earlier. The higher sales volumes offset a 21.5% decline in potash prices, to…