The Bismarck Tribune from Bismarck, North Dakota • 51

Inside: Mutual funds (2F) Business people (3F) THE BISMARCK TRIBUNE August 30, 1998 "1 mm The Motley Fool 3 Our Mission: To inform, to amuse and to help you make money I -i ism ii it. im HIES The Statement of Cash Flows Otis the postal carrier has just delivered the investor's package you requested from Coca-Cola. You've been thinking of buying stock in Coke, but good ool that you are, you want to research it first. You flip through the glossy photos of. happy people drinking Coke.

Then you bear down and scrutinize the three main financial The plummeting exchange rate on the Canadian dollar, now down to 63 U.S. cents on the dollar compared to 84 cents five years ago, has put a large dent in the numoer of Canadian visitors coming to North Dakota. The Bank of North Dakota is exchanging 60 percent fewer Canadian dollars for area banks than it did just last summer. hi 35r TT sA tot ill X1; -j4 My i i 13Y A statements. The easiest of the three statements is the income statement, which shows how much money the company made over the last By MIKE MCCLEARY ot the Tribune year.

Next up is the balance sheet, revealing how much cash, inventories and debt Coke has. The third and most complex of all financial statements is the statement of cash flows. The cash flow statement shows how much money Coke is really making, as it works through operations, makes investments and borrows money. It breaks cash inflows and outflows into three categories: operations, investments and financing. Some operating activities include purchases or sales of supplies and changes in payments expected and payments due.

Investing activities include the pur chase or sale of equipment, plants, property, companies, and securities like stocks or bonds. Financing activities include issuing or repurchasing stock and issuing or reducing debt. If the bottom-line number is positive, the company; is "cash flow positive." That's a good thing. But it's' not the only thing you should look at on this statement. Check to see where most of the moolah is coming from.

You'd rather see more greenbacks generated from operations than financing. For example, under financing activities, Coke's "payments of debt" jump from $212 million in 1995 to $751 million in 1997. This shows the firm increasingly paying off debt. In each of the last few years, Coke has repurchased more than $1 billion worth of its own stock. Coke is actively increasing its stock share value by reducing the number of shares outstanding.

"Net cash provided by operating activities" in 1997 is a hefty $4.03 billion, about eight times more than was needed for investing activities. This is where the money to pay down debt and buy back stock came from. Name That Company I begaa life-as the-Haloid Relatively few people Own any of my products, but most peo Canadian visitors Weak Canadian dollar impacts tourism on both sides of border $6,000 iLs Dollars spent in Bismarck-Mandan by Canadians. (In thousands) JOE GARDYASZ, Bismarck Tribune $5,000 $4,000 $3,000 $2,000 $1,000 $0 A Five years ago, Canadian visitors made up about 25 percent of Expressway Inn Suites' business in Bismarck. Since then, it's plummeted to about 1 percent.

The weak Canadian dollar is primarily to blame, Manager Mark Dosch said. Located across the street from Kirkwood Mall, the hotel was a real draw for Canadian tourists traveling to Bismarck for shopping excursions. Canadian visitors played a much bigger part in Bis-marck-Mandan tourism picture when their dollar, or "loonie," was flying much higher at about 84 cents American. 'Nicknamed for the bird pietured on the coined version, the loonie is now worth just 63 cents here, which is grounding many would-be Canadian tourists. Hotel room stays by Canadians in Bismarck-Mandan have declined significantly since 1992, according to a survey conducted last week by the Bismarck-Mandan Convention Visitors Bureau.

With the exchange rate as low as it is, "I'm surprised we have any Canadian visitors at all," said Terry Harzinski, the CVB's executive director. 1992 1993 1994 1995 1998 ple have used them. Many 25,000 Canadian visits to Bismarck-Mandan hotels in room nights. copycat competitors have tried to duplicate my success. Much of my business is based on a "dry writing" Jen process.

I funded research in 20,000 the 1970s that developed the first commercial computer mouse, laser printing, Ethernet "They're the ones who can afford to take a hit on the exchange, versus the common guy coming clown for some shopping. It's just pricing them out of the market." Additional Canadian taxes imposed on goods purchased in the states has also had an impac but the weak dollar has been the main factor, Dosch said. "Down the road, if it gets back to a 20 percent discount, I think we'll see some return," he said. "This month we've seen a further discount, a further widening and it really put a halt to things." While the weak dollar is obviously affecting tourism statewide, certain pockets of the state are still seeing Canadian travelers, said Joanne Burke, deputy director of the North Dakota Tourism Department. "The numbers aren't what they used to be, but the numbers are still said.

Minot. which used to have 60 percent Canadian visitors, now has 25 percent, "forfhstance. "Communities like Minot can't afford to ignore a market that's giving them 25 percent of their tourism," Burke said. North Dakota tourism officials plan to meet with Canadian officials this week to discuss cross-promotions that various cities might coordinate for events on either side of the border, Burke said. Grand Forks officials, for instance, are working with Winnipeg to see whether they can draw some visitors from the Can-Am Games planned next July in Winnipeg.

"I don't think there has been this cooperative attitude before, and it's exciting to work with," she said. Less avareness on American side American travelers to destinations such as Winnipeg often don't fully realize the added advantage of the lower dollar until they arrive, said Penny executive director of Tourism Winnipeg. "For Canadians, because it's a major news item every day, they are very aware of the state of our dollar every day," she said. Canadian tourism offices have always advertised the advantageous exchange rate, and are emphasizing the added advantage now, McMillan said. Hotel occupancy rates in Winnipeg are up 6 percent over last year, which is significant considering many hotels were filled with Red River flood evacuees last year, she said.

However, that can be attributed as much to Canadians vacationing closer to home as it can be to more American tourists. Meanwhile, North Dakotans are slowly awakening to the advantages of cheaper travel to the north. "We haven't seen a huge increase in tourism, but have seen some people go for weekend trips to Canada" said Katherine Satrom. owner of Satrom Travel Tour. The agency has offices in Bismarck.

Mandan, Minot and Bowman. and many other groundbreaking technologies. A scan of my finan 10,000 Flying high cial record reveals that half my sales are generated in the United States. My profit margin has roughly tripled in the last decade, and I employ some 91,000 people. Who am 5,000 0 y.

1992 1993 1994 1995 1998 By JASON LUEDER of the Tribune SOURCE: Bismarck-Mandan Convention and Visitors Bureau Know i lie answer? Send it to us with Foolish Trivia on the top and you'll be entered into a drawing for a nifty prize! LAST WEEK'S TRIVIA ANSWER I was founded by two brothers in 1923. One of my most profitable employees appeared in 1928, and he's still drawing crowds today. People may think to themselves that it's a goofy world when they realize how much money I've made with mice, pigs and ducks. My foray into France wasn't as easy as A-B-C, though. I own a hockey team, Miramax and ESPN.

In 1996 1 signed a 10-year multinational marketing alliance with McDonald's. Over the past 43 years, my stock has grown at an annual average of about 16 percent. Who am (Answer Walt Disney Co.) Back in 1992, Canadian visitors accounted for more than 21,000 room nights at area hotels, spending more than $5.74 million. Three years later, room nights had dropped to fewer than 4,900 a decline of more than 75 percent. "When their dollar was worth more they'd come down here for just weekends and do a lot of shopping," Harzinski said.

"I would say once it dropped below 78 cents, Canadian traffic dropped way off." It dropped off so much that the CVB stopped tracking it in 1995. However, the visitors bureau just completed a survey of the hotels to see whether a South Dakota advertising campaign targeting Canadians was giving them any pass-through traffic. "If we're getting some this year and the exchange rate starts going the other way, we want to be prepared to get going up there with an advertising campaign," Harzinski said. "But with the exchange rate where it is right now, it's not worth it to be up there." In an informal survey conducted by Kirkwood Mall management, merchants indicated Canadian traffic hasn't changed any over what's been seen in the past four or five years. "I don't think it's affecting our economy right now, because we've adjusted to it," said Lisa Morrell, the mall's marketing director.

Another indicator of the decrease: Bank of North Dakota has seen a 60 percent decline in the amount of Canadian currency it exchanges for area banks this summer compared last summer. "Based on the amount of currency that is flowing into our institution, there's not a lot of currency flowing into this state," spokesman Dale Eberle said. In the first half of 1998, border crossings by Manitoba residents for overnight stays were down more than 15 percent compared to two years ago. In comparison, U.S. visitors to Manitoba for overnight stays were up 4 percent.

More affluent still coming From a hotel manager's perspective, it's the Canadians in the more affluent 55-plus crowd who are still crossing the border to visit Bismarck, Dosch said. Write to Us! Send questions for Ask the Fool, Dumbest (or Smartest) Investments (up to 100 words), and i your Trivia entries to Foolfool.com or via regular mail co The Bismarck Tribune, attn: The Motley Fool. Sorry, we can't provide individual financial advice. Right on the Money Company turns negotiations toward Anderson Broadcasting Now, Andy Anderson says he's very close to finalizing an agreement with Cumulus to sell his stations. "We're awaiting final contract arrangements," Anderson said Friday.

Anderson Broadcasting owns KQDY-FM, KSSS 101 Rocks and KBMR 1130 AM, and plans to put a second AM on the air this year. Cumulus Chairman Richard Weening is now looking into bringing a couple of tailor-made workshops to North Dakota in November. "I'm looking for the handful of people who are really interested in taking their leadership skills to the next lev el." said David Parks, a principal with The Tom Peters Group. The seminars, which would be held in Bismarck and Fargo, would probably run $1,000 per person to attend. Parks was calling around to arious business leaders last week, dying to get a feel for the interest level there would be for such a seminar.

"I'm taking the view if 5,000 turn up for Tom, and 1,000 turn up for Jim, then 15 to 20 may turn out for this." Parks said. (Joe Ganiyasz is the business reporter (hr the Tribune. lie euu be reueiied bi plume at or In fax at His e-mail addirss is to comment," he said. "I suggest that if you got that piece of speculation from Meyer that you go back to Meyer for a comment." Meyer Broadcasting owner Judy Johnson did not return calls throughout the week from the Tribune. Cumulus specializes in buying up radio stations in small- to mid-sized markets, forming dominant groups of stations within those markets.

It now owns or operates 156 stations in 32 U.S. markets. The consolidation will put Cumulus head-to-head with whoever decides to buy the Meyer radio stations if they're still for sale. In terms of independent stations, Meyer's are the "crown jewels" in this region, says Pat Martin, publisher of a television industry newsletter in Milwaukee who spent most of his career in radio. "They're premium properties and have been for many years," Martin said.

KFYR had the top Arbitron ratings in the Bismarck market this spring, with a 16.1 share of the 12-and-older market. Y-93 was second with a 15.3 share. As the consolidation of radio stations continues across the country, we'll be watching to see how the game plays out. An effort by Leadership North Dakota to identify and train more leaders in the state has captured tire attention of the Tom Peters Group, a marketing and business development organization. In June the group's founder, Tom Peters, spoke to a crowd of about 5,800 in a free seminar hosted by Leadership North Dakota.

In early October the group's chairman, Jim Kouzes, will speak to probably 1,000 people at the Governor's Leadership Development Conference. The group, which normally conducts leadership seminars for large corporations. Cumulus dancing with new partner for Bismarck stations In an interesting turnabout, the country's fourth-largest broadcaster is now talking with Anderson Broadcasting about buying Anderson's four Bismarck radio stations. Milwaukee-based Cumulus Media had been negotiating with Meyer Broadcasting to buy Meyer's KFYR-AM and Y-93 FM, but those talks apparently fell through. Buying out Anderson would consolidate two of the three major station groups in Bismarck-Mandan and eight stations under one owner, leaving Meyer as the sole independent group of stations.

Earlier this month, Cumulus completed its purchase of four other Bismarck radio stations from Jim Ingstad Broadcasting of Fargo. Cumulus bought KBYZ 96.5 The Fox, KKCT 97.5, KACL Cool 98.7 FM and KLXX 1270 AM in a $7 million deal. Joe Gardyasz declined to comment on why talks broke off with Meyer, which owns the two most popular stations in the Bismarck-Mandan market. "It would be very inappropriate for me.