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A humorous look at the companies that caught our eye, for better or worse, this week.

Talisman Energy


TLM (TSX)

  Dec. 19, 2014 close: $9.14
  up $4.10 or 81.3% over week

If there’s a Christmas party in the oil patch, we know who’s buying the drinks: Talisman Energy shareholders. Even as the price of crude was hitting fresh five-year lows, shares of Calgary-based Talisman soared after Spain’s Repsol SA offered $8.3-billion (U.S.) or $9.33 a share (Canadian) for the oil and gas producer. Apparently, Repsol is convinced oil is close to a bottom, but whether that’s true or not, it’s bottoms-up for Talisman investors.

Boeing


BA (NYSE)

  Dec. 19, 2014 close: $126.23 (U.S.)
  up $5.46 or 4.5% over week

Stock markets have given investors a bumpy ride of late, but Boeing shareholders are enjoying an exceptionally smooth flight. Citing “strong operating performance” and “significant cash flow,” the Chicago-based maker of passenger planes and military aircraft hiked its dividend by a hefty 25 per cent and raised its share buyback program to $12-billion from $10-billion. The stock’s cruising above the clouds.

S&P/TSX composite


TSX

  Dec. 19, 2014 close: 14,468.26
  up 737.21 or 5.4% over week

“Honey, bad news. The TSX soared 737 points this week.”
“How is that bad news?”
“Because when the market was tumbling I took out a massive short position – just before it rebounded.”
“That’s okay, dear. I maxed out our home-equity line of credit and doubled down on our triple-leveraged bull ETF.”
“Awesome! So we can still go to Vegas over Christmas?”


Dunkin' Brands


DNKN (Nasdaq)

  Dec. 19, 2014 close: $41.67 (U.S.)
  down $5.09 or 10.9% over week

Coffee can give you a bad case of the jitters – just ask a Dunkin’ Brands shareholder. Citing soft consumer spending and slowing sales of packaged coffee, the owner of Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin-Robbins slashed its 2014 same-store sales growth outlook to 1.4 per cent – down from a previous estimate of 2 to 3 per cent – and issued disappointing earnings guidance for 2015. With the stock down on the year, investors are reaching for the booze instead.

Alimentation Couche-Tard


ATD.B (TSX)

  Dec. 19, 2014 close: $49.08
  up $8.24 or 20.2% over week

What’s more fun than hanging out at the convenience store with your buddies on a Friday night? Well, owning shares of convenience-store operator Alimentation Couche-Tard, for one. In its latest acquisition, the Canadian company is shelling out about $860-million (U.S.) for The Pantry, which owns 1,500 c-stores in the southeastern United States. As any Couche-Tard shareholder can tell you, making money has never been more convenient.