Two Canadian fund managers recently made promotional statements for Timminco Limited (TSX: TIM $13.00). Duncan Stewart, a fund manager who also works for Deloitte, was one of the judges who selected Timminco for Deloitte’s “Green 15” award, announced September 25th. On August 16th the Financial Post published an article written by Stewart supporting Timminco. Stewart discloses in the article that he has a long position in Timminco. To read the Financial Post article, click here.
Paul Mesburis of Mavrix Fund Management also promoted Timminco with a “buy” recommendation in commentary published on the Financial Post website on September 24th. Besides Timminco, Mesburis also promoted a Canadian company called Absolute Software Corp., whose stock peaked near $20 last year before falling to under $6 per share.
A portfolio manager at Sprott Asset Management has also been fond of Absolute Software. In an article in the Globe and Mail from October 16, 2007, Peter Hodson, manager of Sprott Growth Fund, listed Absolute Software as one of his top five holdings. Sprott reportedly owns 17% of Timminco’s shares outstanding. A Globe and Mail article from August 14th revealed that Sprott has a history of investing in “overhyped” small cap stocks and selling off the position just before the stocks plunge in value. Some of Sprott’s picks have ended up declining more than 90% in value. To read the August 14th Globe and Mail article, click here.