AtkinsRéalis Group Inc. (ATRL.TO)

World-class organization. Their problems have happened in the past to other companies which they tend to grind through for a couple of years, put it behind them and move forward. We are close to a 2-year high at this time, so if you own, consider taking some profits. Would be adding on any pullbacks, since the runway is much clearer now.

(A Top Pick Dec 20/12. Up 23.5%.) Sold his holdings because he thought it had recovered from being greatly undervalued.

Going through massive problems and issues. New CEO and they are trying to get themselves back on track. Major global player in infrastructure. A dual-class share company which doesn’t meet his criteria. Feels there are many better companies out there.

There is still the announcement of the fine that they will have to pay for their bad dealings. If the stock sells off on that then it is a buying opportunity. He continues to like it and thinks the worst is over.

(A Top Pick Jan 9/13. Up 13.23%.) There was so much bad news on this company at that time, but the stock rarely fell below $39 in the last year. They are now securing financing to take over some oil/gas play.

On the sidelines with this and has been for quite some time. Brought in new management and high level compliance people and are going through all the motions that they need to go through to fix the company. Didn’t have a lot of issues in the US and that might start to improve. This will be a long-term turnaround and a “show me” story.

(Top Pick Nov 2/12, Up 15.09%) Has lagged the market but it has still gone up. The best time to buy it was when there was temporary noise. They continue to gets lots and lots of contracts. Last quarter was the kitchen sink quarter although there is still some bad news to come and investors know this.

Not his favourite name. The issues they have had are not behind them. In the fullness of time when people put a price tag on parts of the business, the infrastructure part of the business is overpriced. Prefers STN-T and better still is Genevar. Decent sized business in US and Europe.

Engineering and construction sectors have been performing well recently. A lot of stocks have broken out on the basis that corporations may be spending a little bit more money. This one is performing in line with the group. There are always political risks with this. Stock has been trading in the $40-$45 range for months and months and looks like it is trying to break out. He would prefer to wait and see.

(A Top Pick Oct 19/12. Up 15.2%.) The company has great depth. There are thousands of engineers there that are not taking money under the table. Feels that they have got the bad apples out of there. New management and he thinks they are going to do okay from here.

Stock was down today. Announcement at 10 pm last night saying write-downs that previous management had locked them into would wipe out profits. This is the kitchen sink quarter and looking forward it will improve. An opportunity to buy now that the bad news is out of the way.

Near-term outlook for the company is clouded because of concerns about lawsuits and wrongdoing. However, PE is 16X for 2014 and earnings are expected to show fairly brisk growth of 30%. Fundamental business is good and the company is extremely good at what they do. If you have a 12 month timeframe, he would classify this as a Hold, otherwise move on to something else.

In the thick of it right now. Pops every time they divest of something. Their earnings stream is somewhat suspect. Declining backlog and it is suspect. Reputational risk – there could be more skeletons. They are going to need cash to fund a lot of the projects they are bidding on.

Sold it early on when news of the scandals broke. It will take time for their new culture to seep through. He would hold off here and watch it. It does not thrill him at this point.

Because of scandal he is not ready to wade into it at this point. The business that they are in requires a bit of this finessing of governments. He thinks they would have been okay if they had hiked the dividend when the news hit.