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Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/526329
(bc ferries) andriy baranskyy; (gold) istock July 2015 BCBusinEss 101 the parent company US$191 million), we conservatively pared our estimate of 2014 revenues by 11.1 per cent. Teck Resources Ltd. Revenue change: -8.3% net income: $382 million net income change: -62.2% Following a famously bad year for min- ing, other companies could have been mentioned here, but Teck is the biggest. Indeed, despite a 62.2 per cent decline in profit last year and a stock price that was halved over the course of 2014, the diversified mining company still earned $8.6 billion in revenues—second only to Telus—and, importantly, stayed in the black. Still, commodity prices remain low, and this spring Teck announced it was slashing its semi-annual dividend rate by two-thirds and temporarily shut- ting down six Canadian mines. BC Ferry services inc. Revenue change: 1.9% net income: $13 million net income change: -21.1% Another government-backed transpor- tation body with no shortage of critics. BC Ferries—a former Crown corporation that's now run (sort of) independently, with the help of a provincial subsidy— has been at odds with the hand that feeds it: the B.C. government. The province has been pressuring BC Ferries to cut costs to offset declining ridership, which a 2014 report from the Union of BC Municipalities blamed on steep fare increases between 2003 and 2013 (fares went up 47 per cent on major routes and 80 per cent on minor ones). Last November, Transportation Minister Todd Stone vetoed BC Ferries' plan to close one of Nanaimo's two terminals. Upset, BC Ferries CEO Mike Corrigan said he can't cut costs without impacting a major route. Stone said the organization should lay off managers and stop free rides for employees. Goldcorp inc. Revenue change: 2.1% net income: -$2.38 billion net income change: nA The good news is Goldcorp didn't lose as much money as it did the year before. The bad news is that it still lost a lot of it. As gold continues its three-year slump, no one can say if prices have hit bottom. They could certainly go lower. Then again, with a rapidly growing con- sumer class in countries like China and India, demand for gold in jewellery could increase. That, at least, is a prettier end than gold's other popular use: as a cur- rency for bearish libertarians betting on civilization's demise. ■ And the Ugly... Biggest Revenue Losers (by percentage) RanK comPanY Revenue 2014 (000s) Revenue 2013 (000s) PeRcent change 1 coast capital Savings credit union $326,325 $425,567 -23.3 2 Polygon homes Ltd. $470,000 $560,000 -16.1 3 Best Buy canada Ltd. $4,000,000 e $4,500,000 e -11.1 4 ainsworth Lumber co. Ltd. $444,005 $488,056 -9.0 5 teck Resources Ltd. $8,599,000 $9,382,000 -8.3 6 Silver Wheaton corp. $684,964 c $727,606 c -5.9 7 B2gold inc. $537,460 c $570,853 c -5.8 8 Ledcor group $3,100,000 $3,200,000 -3.1 9 hSBc Bank canada $2,110,000 $2,161,000 -2.4 10 Pan american Silver corp. $830,495 c $849,169 c -2.2 nOTEs • Currency conversion for 2014 is at a rate of us$1.1044664. • Currency conversion for 2013 is at a rate of us$1.02991480. • e = estimate SINKING PROFIT BC ferries and goldcorp had bad years, for very different reasons