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- huroni i Or How to deal with owning public shares by Harry L. Mardon Once you buy the common shares of a public company you become a part-owner of that company. That gives you the right to cast a vote at annual and special general meetings. If you can't be bothered to attend them, or the travel involv- ed is too costly, you still can exer- cise your right to vote by signing a "proxy" statement. This is sent to you by the corporate management with the notice of meeting. That is not to say you shouldn't buy forest stock. However, be prepared for a roller-coaster ride. And keep in mind that you have never lost money in the stock market until it comes to selling your shares. If you sell them for less than you bought them, you'll be out of pocket. If you hold on to them, their value may rise and you will make a profit. Editor's note: Harry Mardon is Manager of Corporate Communica- tions for Investors Group, the Win- S Newly elected The Ontario Automobile Dealer Association has elected Mr. Kerv Johnston as President for the 1988-89 term of office. The Ontario Automobile Dealer Association is comprised of a membership of over 660 new car franchised dealers representing both domestic and imported cars. Mr. Johnston, President of Kerv Johnston Motors Limited operating as Barrie Honda Auto Sales, a very prominent Honda dealership in our area, brings with him many years of Automotive experience. Mr. Johnston's depth of ex- Auto dealers' President lends itself to establishing him as a great asset, both to the Board of Directors of this Association, and also to Huronia area dealers that he will be representing as local Director. Mr. Johnston is a member of Barrie District Training Council, The Royal Military Institute in Toronto, The Great Lakes Cruising Club, Vice-President of Cowan Mini-Storage Innisfil Limited and is a Past Director of Barrie Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Johnston was also quite active in Provincial and Federal grass root politics and held & However, if you send your sign- ed proxy back to management, they will vote your shares in a mat- ter which supports them should an issue come to a vote at the meeting. The proxy system generally works well. After all, you shouldn't have invested in the company in the first place unless you were convinced it was a well-managed one. If you later discover your trust in the management was misplaced, your best course of action usually would be to sell your shares as soon as possible - provided you won't lose too much money. There are a number of other im- portant factors you should consider besides the quality of manage- ment, when it comes to investing in a company. Your very first step should be to select an industry sector which you'd like to invest in. Let's suppose you decide on the food sector. One of its attractions is that it's virtually recession-proof. People have to eat. Now it is a matter of selecting a company within the food sector which has top-quality management, few if any labor disruptions and a solid financial performance. You also will want to find out if a par- ticular company is innovative, growth-oriented and vigorously competitive within the industry. If you are satisified with the answers you get to these and other questions, you probably will invest in the company's stock. In all likelihood the company you have selected will be one of the major firms in the industry. But don't put all your investment money in a single company - or, for that matter, ina single industry ) ) sector. You should diversify your a SERVICES (705) 722-8767 (705) 549-3993 (705) 722-2897 nipeg based financial planning ser- \ tikes barhbanie Johnston MORTGAGE e Having a Problem Getting a Mortgage? WE CAN HELP! ePrivate Funds Available elst and 2nd Arranged eWe Buy Mortgages the Presidency of both Barrie and perience in the Automobile Industry Riding Associations. during the past 20 years in Barrie Susan Kronschnabl Mortgage Consultant Builders Mortgages new or relatively new companies which have enjoyed a spectacular growth in the price of their shares over a short term. Some of these firms may eventually become solid performers but many others will go into a tailspin. Even a good number of major, well-established companies in cer- tain industries experience sharp declines in the value of their shares. This usually occurs in times of economic recession. For example, the forestry in- dustry is very vulnerable to boom- and- bust cycles. The demand for wood products hinges to a large extent on the level of construction activity. In turn, construction has its ups and downs mainly due to interest rates. The share prices of forestry companies will react to these business conditions. BARRIE RESIDENCE PAGER Unit #30 - 25 Cedar Pointe Drive | Barrie Letters The Huronia Financial Forum welcomes letters, questions and information pertaining to the financial climate in your community. All correspondence submitted must be legi- ble, signed and carry the writers address and telephone number. The information submitted does not necessarily reflect the opinion of this newspaper, its publisher or editors. === Published monthly by Telemedia Communications Inc. alliz 14 Queen Street West, Elmvale, Ontario LOL 1P0 (705)322-1871 IE Special feature of Elmvale Lance, Wasaga Times, Midland Times and Penetanguishene Citizen Manager: Judy French August 1988, Page B3