Topic: How To Invest

Q: Hey Pat: What’s your opinion on Imperial Metals (III)? Thanks.

Article Excerpt

A: Imperial Metals, $2.18, symbol III on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 114.5 million; Market cap: $249.6 million; www.imperialmetals.com), is a Vancouver-based mining company. Its key assets are the Mount Polley copper/gold mine (100%), the Huckleberry copper/molybdenum mine (50%), and the Red Chris copper/gold mine (100%). All are located in B.C. Imperial also holds 50% interest in the Ruddock Creek lead/zinc property. The company continues to report rising production and cash flow. In the three months ended March 31, 2018, revenues rose 1.9%, to $117.9 million from $115.7 million. Imperial’s cash flow per share jumped 93.8%, to $0.31 from $0.16. That was mostly due to lower operating costs. The company holds cash of $9.6 million. However, its total debt of $829.7 million is a very high 3.3 times its $249.6 million market cap. That’s a big risk factor—it faces significant liquidity pressure if it does not enter into a new financing plan or extend its debt maturities by the 2018 fourth quarter. On May 23,…