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UK government backing for Tungsten West helps Baker Steel Resources advance by 17% in August. The UK National Wealth Fund's decision to back Devon miner Tungsten West last month helped lift the net asset value of Baker Steel Resources Trust (BSRT) by over 17%, consolidating its position at the top of the buoyant AIC Commodities and Natural Resources sector. Tungsten West (TUN), a £646m tin and tungsten miner that is BSRT's top holding, jumped 47% in response to the UK government's infrastructure backer buying a 7% stake for £36m, the mining fund's latest fact sheet shows. The National Wealth Fund also provided £25m in debt. BSRT said the financing would not only fully fund the company's Hemerdon tungsten mine into production but boded well for future license extensions given the importance the government was placing on the project to provide a domestic supply of vital minerals to British defence, energy and aerospace businesses. Trevor Steel, chief investment officer of BSRT's fund manager Baker Steel Capital Managers, said: "The support for the Hemerdon tungsten mine by the UK National Wealth Fund means its redevelopment is now fully funded and ensures the project stays on track for full production by the end of the first quarter next year thus taking advantage of the current high tungsten price which has increased ten-fold since the beginning of last year which if maintained would mean margins of around 90%." Following this, Tungsten West makes up 28% of BSRT, with its stake worth £53.2m. The 17.3% rise in BSRT's portfolio to £190.2m - with net asset value (NAV) per share up 26.6p to 180.7p at 31 August - was not fully reflected in the investment company's share price, however, which rose 9% from 129p to 141p. Nevertheless, it maintained BSRT's top position in its AIC peer group extending its one-year total shareholder return to 110.5%. Over three years BSRT has generated 299% for shareholders as it has benefited from the intense demand for minerals caused by the expansion of artificial intelligence and the transition to clean energy. That impressive growth is overshadowed by Golden Prospect Precious Metals (GPM) which has soared 314%. Steel won't worry about that too much that given in July the gold mining fund appointed him and co-manager Mark Burridge to take on its portfolio after its previous managers Keith Watson and Robert Crayfourd left CQS Manulife for Tufton Investment Management. The wide discount on BSRT's shares remains a puzzle given its strong performance. The gap between the share price and NAV widened to 22% in August but has narrowed from 28% in January after BSRT's board launched its first buybacks in 11 years in February. Since then the company has purchased £1.4m of its shares though none were bought back in August. "Significant opportunities" at First Tin. BSRT's update also highlighted progress at First Tin (1SN), a London-listed "sustainable" Australian miner that is its eighth biggest holding. Shares in the £62m company spiked last month after an updated feasibility study on its Taronga open pit mine forecast average production of 3,200 tonnes of tin over a 13.5 year life, though there were "significant opportunities" to extend this, Steel said. The company anticipates spending US$208m in bringing this production on line. Steel said: "First Tin's updated feasibility study on the Taronga tin project demonstrates a robust project for this critical mineral. The next major milestone will be the grant of its operating licence which First Tin hope to receive by the year end." Frist Tin accounted for 3.4% of BSRT at the end of August, a stake worth £6.5m. Its view. Richard Williams, senior analyst at QuotedData, said: "BSRT's strategy of backing development-stage mining assets, where significant value can be unlocked as projects are de-risked, is clearly illustrated here. The National Wealth Fund financing removes a major hurdle for Tungsten West's Hemerdon project, demonstrating how a key development milestone can translate into a meaningful NAV uplift."

Manulife Financial stock ranks among Top 25 dividend picks on valuation and profitability. By Joel Kornblau, Editor, Dividend Channel, Wednesday, September 2, 2026, 7:20 AM ET Manulife Financial Corp (MFC.CA) has been named a Top 25 dividend stock in the latest Canada Stock Channel "DividendRank" report. The ranking highlights a combination of factors that are often central to dividend stock analysis: valuation, profitability, dividend consistency, and multi-year growth in underlying fundamentals. For Manulife, the inclusion reinforces a familiar investment case. The company is widely followed as a large life insurer and wealth management business with an established record of quarterly dividend payments. In that context, the stock's appeal rests not only on current income, but also on the durability of cash generation and the company's capacity to support distributions through business cycles. Why Manulife stands out in dividend screening. The report noted that, within its coverage universe, MFC.CA showed both attractive valuation metrics and strong profitability measures. Those traits tend to matter because dividend investors are not assessing yield in isolation. A high-quality dividend stock generally pairs a meaningful payout with earnings power, balance-sheet resilience, and enough financial flexibility to preserve or raise distributions over time. The report stated: "Dividend investors approaching investing from a value standpoint are generally most interested in researching the strongest most profitable companies, that also happen to be trading at an attractive valuation. That's what we aim to find using our proprietary DividendRank formula, which ranks the coverage universe based upon our various criteria for both profitability and valuation, to generate a list of the top most 'interesting' stocks, meant for investors as a source of ideas that merit further research." That framework is especially relevant for insurers such as Manulife. Reported earnings can fluctuate with capital markets, interest rates, actuarial assumptions, and investment results, so screening for both profitability and valuation can help separate temporarily high yields from income opportunities supported by a stronger operating base. Dividend history remains a core part of the investment case. Manulife Financial Corp currently pays an annualized dividend of $1.94 per share in quarterly installments. Its most recent dividend ex-date was 08/21/2026. The company's long-term dividend history remains one of the clearest data points for evaluating the stock as an income holding. Dividend history does not guarantee future payments, but it can provide useful evidence on several questions: * How consistently management has treated the dividend over time * Whether the company has demonstrated an ability to recover from weaker periods * How payout growth has tracked underlying earnings and capital strength * Whether the dividend profile appears stable rather than opportunistic In practice, long-term dividend analysis is most useful when it is paired with a broader review of earnings quality, payout ratios, regulatory capital, and cash flow generation. For financial stocks, that broader context matters because dividends are ultimately sustained by recurring business performance rather than by headline yield alone. What investors typically watch in a financial dividend stock. For a company like Manulife, dividend sustainability is generally tied to a few recurring variables: * Earnings capacity: the ability of core insurance and wealth businesses to produce steady profits across changing market conditions. * Capital strength: insurers operate under regulatory capital frameworks, making capital adequacy a central consideration for dividend policy. * Interest rate sensitivity: rates can affect investment income, product economics, and valuation of long-dated liabilities. * Business diversification: exposure across insurance, retirement, and asset management can help moderate pressure in any one segment. These factors help explain why a ranking system that emphasizes both profitability and valuation may highlight large insurers. A company can offer an established dividend stream, but the more important question is whether its business model can continue funding that stream while preserving financial flexibility. Long-Term perspective on MFC.CA dividend performance. The chart below illustrates the long-term dividend history referenced in the report. Viewed over time, dividend progression can offer insight into management's capital allocation priorities and the company's operating resilience. For income-focused equity analysis, that historical record often becomes a starting point for evaluating whether current distributions are supported by fundamentals rather than merely by market sentiment. For a wider view of dividend stocks, review The DividendRank Canada Top 25 and compare the current list with the stock highlighted above.

Manulife Financial Corporation reveals its plans for a $750 million public offering of subordinated notes, aimed to strengthen regulatory capital.