A humorous look at the companies that caught our eye, for better or worse, this week:
CRACKER BARREL (STAR)
True or false: When you order Grandpa’s Country Fried Breakfast at Cracker Barrel, you actually have to sit with Grandpa and listen to him yammer on about the old days. Answer: false. With the Tennessee-based homestyle restaurant and gifts chain announcing a special dividend of $3.25 (U.S.) a share and also hiking its regular dividend following solid quarterly results, Grandpa’s too busy counting up all his cash.
CBRL (NYSE), $166.28 (U.S.), up $13.51 or 8.8% over week
MICHAEL KORS HOLDINGS (STAR)
Creative uses for a Michael Kors handbag:
1) Fighting off a would-be mugger;
2) Sneaking your Chihuahua into a fancy restaurant;
3) Pulling the bag over your head at a Leafs game.
Even as other retailers struggle, the maker of designer handbags, clothing, watches and accessories posted better-than-expected results, boosted by new store openings and e-commerce sales. Investors are stuffing their bags with money.
KORS (NYSE), $48.45 (U.S.), up $6.66 or 15.9% over week
OVIVO (STAR)
Bad: Going for a swim in industrial waste-water.
Good: Owning shares of water treatment company Ovivo.
Lifted by new equipment sales and favourable currency effects, the Montreal-based company that serves municipalities and a range of industries posted a 14.3-per-cent increase in revenue to $91.6-million for its fiscal fourth quarter and swung to a profit, sending the stock up sharply. Shareholders will drink to that.
OVI.A (TSX), $2.65, Up 45¢ or 20.5% over week
HOVNANIAN ENTERPRISES (DOG)
” It wasn’t the big bad wolf that felled Hovnanian’s shares this week but the company’s unexpected fiscal second-quarter loss and disappointing full-year outlook. Even as it delivered more houses and posted higher revenue in the quarter, the U.S. house builder reported a loss of $8.5-million (U.S.). The three little pigs got off easy by comparison.
HOV (NYSE), $1.66 (U.S.), down 22¢ or 11.7% over week
SIGNET JEWELERS (DOG)
Think you had a rough week? Be glad you aren’t a Signet shareholder. First, Buzzfeed reported that some customers have complained their diamonds were swapped out for less expensive stones when their rings were repaired (a claim Signet denies). Then, Grant’s Interest Rate Observer raised concerns that Signet – which operates Kay, Zales and Jared – is relying on credit to prop up sales. Investors are pawning their gold to raise cash.
SIG (NYSE), $88.19 (U.S.), down $11.39 or 11.4% over week