Potash Corp. abandons takeover attempt

Article Excerpt

POTASH CORP. OF SASKATCHEWAN $44 (Toronto symbol POT; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 865.1 million; Market cap: $38.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 4.7; Dividend yield: 2.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.potashcorp.com) no longer aims to buy control of Israel Chemicals, which produces potash from minerals it extracts from the Dead Sea. Potash Corp. wanted to increase its stake from 13.9% to at least 51%, but the plan faced intense political opposition. The company plans to hang on to this investment and may try to buy more of Israel Chemicals in the future. Meanwhile, the company’s sales rose 20.3% in the three months ended March 31, 2013, to $2.1 billion from $1.7 billion a year earlier (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars). Earnings rose 13.2%, to $556 million from $491 million. Due to more shares outstanding, per-share earnings rose 12.5%, to $0.63 from $0.56. New contracts with potash buyers in China and India, plus higher shipments…