Second Quarter Report
Canadian General Investments Ld
10 August 2000
June 30, 2000
SECOND QUARTER
REPORT
Report to Shareholders
CGI's portfolio made a strong showing in the six month period ended June 30,
2000. Net asset value appreciation in the half year was 11.6% or 12.3% with
common share dividends added back. Net asset value growth was 21.7% for the
twelve-month period to June 30. Basic net asset value per share was $18.38 or
$16.73 fully diluted at June 30, up from $15.12 and $14.06, respectively, twelve
months ago. Corresponding values at year-end 1999 were $16.49 and $15.20.
Total net assets increased to $346,108,000 at June 30 from $310,127,000 at the
beginning of the year.
This spectacular growth has been achieved despite the extreme volatility of the
market. A surge of close to 30% during the first quarter before the big
correction in new technologies stocks in the second quarter served to cushion
our results. Total portfolio assets have ranged through the half-year from £361
to $465 million, closing out the period at just over $408 million.
The traditional comparison with the TSE 300 Composite Index seems less relevant
than in prior periods. The six-month Index advance of 21.2% included 10%
attributable entirely to the continuing strength of Nortel, which is now well
above 30% of the weighting in the index. At quarter-end, CGI held an 8.4%
position in Nortel at cost, 14.4% at market value. A 10% weighting at cost for
any one security is the maximum allowed for CGI to maintain investment
corporation status. As a further comparative, the overall average return for
the six month period for Canadian diversified mutual funds as reported in the
National Post was 12.4%.
Total investment income of $2,213,000 for the first six months of 2000 was
considerably lower than the $3,078,000 recorded in the corresponding period in
1999, following the trend that began in the first quarter of this year. As the
growth emphasis in the portfolio has shown success in the creation of value on
the capital side, it has been partially responsible for a decline on the income
side.
PORTFOLIO FEATURES
We sold the long-term holding in BCE, Inc., after the company spun out most of
its shares in Nortel Networks Corporation to its shareholders. Technology,
broadly defined, continues to be by far the strongest single theme in the
portfolio at approximately 37.9%. We believe that Canadian world leaders in
engineering sciences such as Bombardier Inc., Ballard Power Systems Inc. and BAE
Systems Canada Inc. are appropriate as constituents under this theme.
Our most overweight sector relative to TSE 300 weightings is oil and gas at
14.0% versus 8.3% within the index at June 30th. This group has shown strong
appreciation.
In financial services we are close to market weighting at 13.8% versus 15.2%.
We have strengthened our positions in banks, insurance companies and financial
managers. We continue overweight in communications and media.
The net realized gain on investments at June 30 stood at $14,155,000 compared to
$5,561,000 at the same time last year. Consideration of capital gains dividends
is at the discretion of the Board of Directors and may be influenced by
performance and market factors.
CGI WARRANTS
The first opportunity for warrant holders to convert their warrants to shares
occurred on June 30 this year. Holders exercised 17,761 warrants on a one for
one basis at an exercise price of $8.42 resulting in proceeds of $149,000. This
increased the common shares outstanding to 18,830,378 and reduced warrants
outstanding to 3,744,584. The remaining warrants are exercisable on June 30 of
each year until their expiration date in 2007.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
A change in the Board of Directors took place in the latest quarter with the
resignation for personal reasons of Mr. Mark D. Mickleborough who served on the
Board with distinction for nearly seven years.
OUTLOOK
Canada continues to be one of the world's best performing stock markets, greatly
aided by the massive influence of Nortel but seemingly justified by low
inflation, healthy economic growth, strong creation of employment opportunities
and high consumer confidence. This reinforces our belief that CGI's common
shares trading recently above a 30% discount to asset value, represents an
excellent opportunity for investing in the Canadian equities market.
E. Louise Morgan Michael A. Smedley
Chairman President
STATEMENT OF NET ASSETS
(Unaudited)
As at June 30, 2000 1999
(000's)
Assets
Investments $ 407,167 $ 329,740
Cash and short-term investments 2,313 2,763
Receivable on securities sold - 5,247
Accrued interest and dividends 347 552
Income taxes recoverable - 9,000
Deferred financing charge 1,080 1,412
410,907 348,714
Liabilities
Payable on securities purchased 1,431 4,020
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 63 85
Accrued dividends on preference shares 133 133
Income taxes payable 3,172 -
Preference shares 60,000 60,000
64,799 64,238
Net Assets $ 346,108 $ 284,476
Shareholders' Equity
Common shares $ 100,810 $ 95,122
Unrealized gain on investments 107,542 58,210
Retained earnings 137,756 131,144
$ 346,108 $ 284,476
Number of common shares outstanding 18,830,378 18,812,617
Number of warrants outstanding 3,744,584 3,762,345
Net asset value per common share
- basic $ 18.38 $ 15.12
Net asset value per common share
- fully diluted for warrants $ 16.73 $ 14.06
STATEMENT OF NET GAIN
ON INVESTMENTS
(Unaudited)
Six months ended June 30, 2000 1999
(000's)
Proceeds from disposition of investments $ 156,426 $ 82,092
Investments at cost, beginning of period 278,617 262,876
Investments purchased during the period 157,210 82,492
Investments at cost, end of period (299,625) (271,530)
Cost of investments disposed of during
the period 136,202 73,838
Realized gain on disposition of
investments before income taxes 20,224 8,254
Income taxes on realized net taxable
capital gains 6,069 2,693
Net realized gain on investments 14,155 5,561
Change in unrealized appreciation
of investments 24,764 9,532
Net gain on investments $ 38,919 $ 15,093
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
(Unaudited)
Six months ended June 30, 2000 1999
(000's)
Investment income
Dividends $ 2,001 $ 2,747
Interest 186 305
Other 26 26
2,213 3,078
Expenses
Management fees 2,099 1,702
Dividends on preference shares 1,611 1,611
Amortization of deferred financing charge 166 166
Directors' fees 57 58
Other 205 266
4,138 3,803
Investment loss before income taxes (1,925) (725)
Income tax recovery 1,007 810
Net investment income (loss) (918) 85
Realized and unrealized gain (loss)
on investments
Net realized gain on investments 14,155 5,561
Change in unrealized appreciation
of investments 24,764 9,532
Net gains on investments 38,919 15,093
Increase in net assets
resulting from operations $ 38,001 $ 15,178
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS
(Unaudited)
Six months ended June 30, 2000 1999
(000's)
Increase in net assets
resulting from operations $ 38,001 $ 15,178
Distributions to common shareholders
From net investment income (loss) (2,257) (1,383)
From net realized gain on investments - (1,383)
(2,257) (2,766)
Income taxes recoverable on distributions
from net realized gain on investments - 451
Net decrease in refundable dividend tax
on hand 88 45
(2,169) (2,270)
Capital share transactions
Shares issued on exercise of warrants 149 -
Increase in net assets 35,981 12,908
Net assets - Beginning of period 310,127 271,568
Net assets - End of period $ 346,108 $ 284,476
Distributions per common share
Regular $ 0.120 $ 0.075
Capital gains - 0.075
$ 0.120 $ 0.150
CANADIAN GENERAL INVESTMENTS, LIMITED
CORPORATE INFORMATION
OFFICE OF THE CANADIAN REGISTRAR
COMPANY AND TRANSFER AGENT
110 Yonge Street, Montreal Trust Company
Suite 1601, Toronto, of Canada
Ontario, Canada, M5C 1T4 151 Front Street W.
Telephone (416)366-2931 8th Floor
1-800-207-0067 Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Fax (416)366-2729 M5J 2N1
e-mail: Tel: (416)981-9633
cgifund@mmainvestments.com Fax: (416)981-9800
website: e-mail:
www.mmainvestments.com mmamail@montrealtrust.com
STOCK EXCHANGE U.K. TRANSFER AGENT
LISTINGS CIBC Mellon Trust Company
The Toronto Stock Exchange
Trading Symbols: Balfour House
Common shares CGI 390 High Road
Preferred shares CGI.PR.A Ilford, Essex
Warrants CGI.WT IG1 1NQ
Tel: 020 8478 1888
The London Stock Exchange
Reuters Symbols: To change your address,
Common shares CGIq.L eliminate multiple mailings, or
Warrants CGIwsq.L for other shareholder account
inquiries, please contact
Representative U.K. Broker: transfer agent as applicable.
Teather & Greenwood
Limited
The Corporation calculates The Corporation will provide
and releases its net asset a list of its weekly top 10
value per share (NAV) on a portfolio holdings (priced at
daily basis. The NAV is pub- market), together with
lished in various media in current discount and market
Canada, the United States return information to any
and the United Kingdom. interested party upon request.
DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT AND SHARE
PURCHASE PLAN
This Plan offers a unique low-cost opportunity for shareholders to increase
their holdings in the Corporation, one of Canada's largest closed-end funds.
Please contact the Plan administrator Montreal Trust Company of Canada for
details.
STATEMENT OF INVESTMENTS
June 30, 2000
NUMBER OF
SHARES OR MARKET
PAR VALUE COST VALUE
(000's)
Communications & Media
125,000 Astral Communications Inc. A* $ 4,254 $ 4,438
50,000 Cogeco Cable Inc. 1,544 1,800
125,000 Le Groupe Videotron Ltee* 4,429 4,300
130,000 Quebecor Inc. B+ 4,407 5,590
100,000 Rogers Communications Inc. B 2,675 4,195
100,000 The Seagram Company Ltd.+ 4,006 8,700
200,000 SHAW Communications Inc. B 1,122 7,300
60,000 The Thomson Corporation* 3,048 3,039
-----------------------
25,485 39,362
-----------------------
Consumer Products
40,000 Biovail Corporation 3,111 3,306
70,000 Corby Distilleries Limited B 4,416 3,605
207,900 Forbes Medi-Tech Inc. 3,621 1,996
115,000 The Molson Companies Limited A* 3,250 3,329
----------------------
14,398 12,236
----------------------
Financial Services
80,000 Bank of Montreal* 4,827 5,000
106,000 Bissett & Associates Investment
Management Ltd.+ 1,835 1,829
150,000 C.I. Fund Management Inc.* 3,538 4,207
300,000 Canada Life Financial Corporation 6,115 9,030
200,000 Desjardins-Laurentian Financial
Corporation A 4,786 3,470
404,300 Guardian Capital Group Ltd A* 2,890 2,951
100,000 Mackenzie Financial Corporation* 2,237 2,225
100,000 Royal Bank of Canada+ 5,973 7,575
300,000 Sun Life Financial Services
of Canada Inc.* 4,598 7,485
150,000 TD Waterhouse Group, Inc. 4,825 3,925
240,000 The Toronto Dominion Bank 6,895 8,640
----------------------
48,519 56,337
----------------------
Forest Products
250,000 Domtar Inc.+ 4,517 3,437
100,000 Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation* 2,090 1,905
---------------------
6,607 5,342
---------------------
Golds & Precious Metals
98,850 Dia Met Minerals Ltd A 1,265 1,769
214,600 Dia Met Minerals Ltd B 4,466 4,292
38,000 Franco-Nevada Mining
Corporation Limited wts 87 314
---------------------
5,818 6,375
---------------------
Industrial Products
30,000 724 Solutions Inc. 2,992 1,953
200,000 ATI Technologies Inc.+ 3,052 2,500
84,240 Alcatel Networks Corporation exch. shares 4,744 8,243
250,000 BAE Systems Canada Inc. 3,829 5,250
80,000 Ballard Power Systems Inc.+ 5,740 10,720
80,000 BCE Emergis Inc. 1,735 7,224
250,000 Bombardier Inc B 2,549 10,050
350,000 Burntsand Inc. 4,482 2,362
70,000 C-MAC Industries Inc.* 5,008 4,900
124,000 Celestica Inc. 6,273 8,940
95,400 Certicom Corporation 3,586 4,808
100,000 Cognos, Inc. 4,309 6,120
60,000 Creo Products Inc. 3,847 2,040
88,000 DuPont Canada Inc. A 3,211 4,101
40,000 Hummingbird Communications Ltd 3,215 2,320
100,000 Intertape Polymer Group Inc. 3,400 2,575
100,000 JDS Uniphase Canada Ltd. exch. shares 4,658 17,710
569,112 Nortel Networks Corporation+ 25,133 58,448
328,500 OnX Incorporated* 3,449 1,741
50,000 PMC-Sierra, Inc+ 7,634 13,143
55,000 Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. 5,401 4,455
107,500 Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc. 4,162 3,807
2,000,000 itemus inc.* 4,543 3,100
---------------------
116,952 186,510
---------------------
Merchandising
108,900 Sears Canada Inc. 4,052 3,730
---------------------
4,052 3,730
Metals & Minerals
75,000 Alcan Aluminium Limited 3,434 3,450
150,000 Cominco Ltd 4,090 3,052
200,000 Falconbridge Limited 3,680 3,650
61,750 Inco Limited pfd. series E 3,826 3,398
220,000 Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Income Fund 2,246 2,475
1,000,000 Teck Corporation due April 30, 2024
exch. deb. 1,000 903
----------------------
18,276 16,928
----------------------
Oil & Gas
350,000 Baytex Energy Ltd A 2,318 4,900
65,300 Bonavista Petroleum Ltd* 1,630 1,698
130,000 Canadian Occidental Petroleum Ltd+ 3,029 5,219
60,000 Crestar Energy, Inc.* 1,495 1,353
500,000 Genesis Exploration Ltd* 4,060 5,500
90,000 Imperial Oil Limited 1,457 3,253
225,000 PanCanadian Petroleum Ltd. 3,629 7,200
80,000 Penn West Petroleum Ltd 2,599 2,928
200,000 Petro-Canada 3,153 5,530
325,000 Prudential Steel Ltd 3,028 7,053
160,000 Rio Alto Exploration Ltd 1,955 4,336
230,000 Suncor Energy, Inc. 2,386 7,866
------------------------
30,739 56,836
=======================
Pipelines
110,000 Enbridge Inc. 3,532 3,415
263,000 TransCanada Pipelines Limited 6,603 2,972
----------------------
10,135 6,387
----------------------
Transportation & Environment
200,000 Air Canada* 4,007 3,900
----------------------
4,007 3,900
----------------------
Utilities
100,000 Canadian Utilities Limited A 2,342 4,190
100,000 Telesystem International Wireless Inc.+ 5,160 2,710
125,000 TransAlta Corporation 2,591 1,969
----------------------
10,093 8,869
----------------------
Preferred Shares
155,000 Falconbridge Limited pfd. series 2 3,404 3,255
36,400 Gentra Inc. pfd. series G 741 531
175,000 Gulf Canada Resources Limited pfd. series A 399 569
----------------------
4,544 4,355
----------------------
Total Investments
- June 30, 2000 $ 299,625 $ 407,167
======================
Total Investments
- June 30, 1999 $ 271,530 $ 329,740
======================
Changes from March 31, 2000
* New Holdings
+ Increased Holdings
INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO
TEN LARGEST INVESTMENTS
June 30, 2000
Company Market % of market
Value Value of Total
(000's) Investment Portfolio
Nortel Networks Corporation $ 58,448 14.4
JDS Uniphase Canada Ltd 17,710 4.3
PMC-Sierra, Inc. 13,143 3.2
Ballard Power Systems Inc. 10,720 2.6
Bombardier Inc. 10,050 2.5
Canada Life Financial Corporation 9,030 2.2
Celestica Inc. 8,940 2.2
The Seagram Company Ltd 8,700 2.1
The Toronto Dominion Bank 8,640 2.1
Alcatel Networks Corporation 8,243 2.0
Totals $ 153,624 37.6