Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Brendan Wood International Announces Annual Corporate TopGun Designations in Canada - 2,500 Global Institutional Investors Rate "Best of the Best".

TopGun Press:
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Feb. 22, 2010) - Worldwide intelligence-based advisory firm Brendan Wood International (BWI) today announced its shareholders' choice list of Canadian TopGun Companies, CEOs, CFOs and Boards of Directors. A total of 26 companies received TopGun shareholder confidence designations, selected from 250 Canadian companies evaluated. In the large-cap categories, Agnico-Eagle Mines, Canadian National Railway, Canadian Natural Resources, Enbridge, EnCana, RioCan Real Estate and Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan received a sweep of all 4 designations. Recipients of the prestigious award reflect BWI's year-round discussions with investors worldwide defining their shareholder confidence criteria and identifying corporations that best meet investors' stringent tests.

The TopGun designation is awarded by the Brendan Wood Worldwide Panel of Shareholders, consisting of 2,500 professional investors who in fact manage trillions of dollars in equity capital. Continuous investigative debriefings with shareholders throughout the world are performed on an ongoing basis. The results are based upon the ratings of investors throughout 2009. Through its "Shareholder Confidence Index," Brendan Wood International monitors the confidence level of investors and their advisors in companies and senior management of the world's largest and most transactionally active companies. Below is the list of Canadian TopGun recipients:

TopGun Companies - Shareholder Confidence
Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited
Barrick Gold Corporation
Brookfield Properties
Canadian National Railway
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.
Crescent Point Energy Trust
Enbridge Inc.
EnCana Corporation
Goldcorp Inc.
Kinross Gold Corporation
Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc.
Research In Motion
RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust
Rogers Communications
Royal Bank of Canada
Shaw Communications
Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation
Suncor Energy
Toronto-Dominion Bank
TransCanada Corporation

TopGun CEOs
Company - CEO
Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited - Sean Boyd
Brookfield Properties - Richard B. Clark
Canadian National Railway - E. Hunter Harrison*
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. - Steve W. Laut
Enbridge Inc. - Patrick D. Daniel
EnCana Corporation - Randall K. Eresman
Kinross Gold Corporation - Tye W. Burt
Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. - William J. Doyle
Research In Motion - Michael Lazaridis/James L. Balsillie
RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust - Edward Sonshine, Q.C.
Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation - Juergen Schreiber
Toronto-Dominion Bank - W. Edmund Clark
*E. Hunter Harrison has since retired from the position of CEO

TopGun CFOs
Company - CFO
Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited - David Garafalo
Brookfield Properties - Bryan K. Davis
Canadian National Railway - Claude Mongeau*
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. - Douglas A. Proll
Enbridge Inc. - J. Richard Bird
EnCana Corporation - Brian Ferguson**
Kinross Gold Corporation - Thomas M. Boehlert
Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. - Wayne R. Brownlee
RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust - Raghunath Davloor
*Claude Mongeau has since risen to the position of CEO
**Brian Ferguson has since risen to the position of CEO at Cenovus Energy

TopGun Boards of Directors
Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited
Canadian National Railway
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.
Crescent Point Energy Trust
Enbridge Inc.
EnCana Corporation
Goldcorp Inc.
Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc.
RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust
Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation

The Index ranks CEOs and CFOs based on the quality of management, including the positioning and strategy for the corporation; the depth of the management team and execution capability; and the accountability and clear communication with investors focused on the strategy and development of the business. The quality of the Board of Directors is measured based on whether they remain independent, consistently look out for the interests of shareholders and the extent to which they can influence the strategy and development of the business.

Additionally, 6 companies were nominated as TopGun Rising Star companies. A Rising Star company is a small/mid-cap company who is considered by investors to have superb management, strong positioning and an excellent growth profile. The TopGun Rising Star companies are:

TopGun Companies - Rising Stars
Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust
Bonavista Energy Trust
Dollarama Inc.
Eldorado Gold Corporation
Red Bank Mining Inc.
Silver Wheaton Corporation

BWI's Chairman Brendan Wood described the recipients as "the best of the best in Canada." He commented, "In a year when shareholders lacked confidence in the capital markets, these companies and their management teams stand out as having been elected by shareholders for outstanding professionalism and integrity. It's a testament to say that shareholders have the utmost confidence in your company during a time where confidence is difficult to come by." TopGun award winners will be recognized at Brendan Wood International's upcoming TopGun Ball, in support of Lazarus Charities, on March 4th and again at The TopGun Worldwide Classic Conference, scheduled for later this year in Palm Beach, Florida.

Brendan Wood International
Founded in 1970, Brendan Wood International is a worldwide intelligence firm that draws on a unique global intelligence network to identify TopGun performance in the global capital markets. The Shareholder Confidence Index is based on intelligence from this network and is one of Brendan Wood International's suite of proprietary products available to investors and corporations that are focused on TopGun performances.
Experience, independence, a global network and proprietary data uniquely prepare Brendan Wood International to offer a wide range of services to the capital markets, including:

-- Worldwide investigations of TopGun performance in the capital markets
-- Assisting corporations to select TopGun banking groups to represent them in capital markets transactions
-- Career Management and Agency Placement of TopGun executives, bankers and capital markets
professionals
-- Directly assisting corporations to achieve the highest levels of Shareholder Confidence
-- Directly assisting investment banks to optimize their worldwide share of TopGun banking relationships

Brendan Wood International's website: www.brendanwood.com
For more information, please contact
Brendan Wood International
Johann T. Rodrigues
Panel Manager
+1-416-924-8110 ext. 323
jrodrigues@brendanwood.com
www.brendanwood.com