By Nicole Strandlund Business Edge

Act I: Sew Long

* The player: Gildan Activewear Inc. (TSX:GIL)

* Action: Up 52 per cent or $25.87 in a year (from $49.88 on May 8, 2006)

* Recent Price: $75.43

* 52-week high/low: $75.75/42.26 With a snip and a tuck, Gildan Activewear, the Canadian marketer and manufacturer of T-shirts, fleece, sport shirts and underwear, announced a trim for its North American operations in late March. In order to compete in the fierce North American apparel industry, the company had to move its operations, well, away from North America.

Two sewing facilities in Mexico have already been closed, and two more will meet their demise in the fourth quarter of this fiscal year: A textile facility in Montreal and a cutting facility in New York. All manufacturing for the company will be consolidated into the company's Central American and Caribbean Basin operations.

The company isn't fully fleeing our continent; the Caribbean Basin is technically part of North America, and the company is still maintaining its corporate office in Montreal - although now in leased premises.

But let's hope the 465 Canadian and U.S. employees and the 1,365 Mexican employees affected by the closures are shareholders. With the third stock-split in nine years (this time two-for-one in the form of a dividend), and the new highs hit this week, the share price is sure to soften the blow of unemployment.

Act II: Mega Magnet Trouble

* The player: Mega Brands Inc. (TSX:MB)

* Action: Down 23 per cent or $6.47 from its high in November 2006

* Recent Price: $21.13

* 52-week high/low: $27.60/20 Kids may wish for Magnetix building sets, but shareholders of Mega Brands, the company that manufactures the magnet-based toy, are likely wishing they'd never heard of it.

Magnetix was nominated the 2005 Activity Toy of the Year by the Toy Industry Association, and is one of the top 10 most-wanted building sets according to toy industry magazine TD Monthly. But legal trouble surrounding the toy is pulling the company's stock down.

In March 2006, Mega Brands recalled 3.8 million of the sets after one child died and four others were seriously injured from swallowing the toy's magnets. On April 20 of this year, the company announced a recall of an additional four million sets. A few days later, the parents of a child in Indiana who sustained life-threatening intestinal injuries after swallowing the magnets launched a lawsuit against the company. And that may only be the beginning; in total there has been one death, one aspiration and 27 intestinal injuries from the toy.

The company has self-insured for future potential lawsuits.

Act III: Strong As An Oak

* The player: Stella-Jones Inc. (TSX:SJ)

* Action: Up 75 per cent or $17.25 in a year (from $23 on May 8, 2006)

* Recent Price: $40.25

* 52-week high/low: $40.50/17.50 Knock on wood, but this Montreal-based treated-lumber products company is producing solid results for its shareholders.

On the heels of a strong 2006, Stella-Jones, a producer and marketer of industrial treated-wood products such as railway ties and wood poles for utilities, recently released results for the strongest first quarter in the company's history.

Sales for the first quarter ending March 31 were $61.9 million, a 38.1-per-cent increase over the $44.9 million in sales for the same quarter last year. Net earnings were up 74 per cent for the same period, to $6.1 million from $3.5 million in Q1 2006.

In February, the company acquired a Washington facility, contributing $2.8 million to first-quarter sales, but the company's existing operations also showed growth.

Utility pole sales more than doubled to $30.6 million, up $15.3 million over Q1 2006, residential lumber sales gained 104.9 per cent to $3.71 million, and railway ties sales increased 15.7 per cent to $24.6 million.

Shareholders who've nursed this stock since it was a sapling must be beaming.

Act IV: Rippin' It Up

* The player: The Forzani Group Ltd. (TSX:FGL)

* Action: Up 51 per cent or $7.69 in a year (from $15.16 on May 8, 2006)

* Recent Price: $22.85

* 52-week high/low: $22.79/14.41 Unseasonable winter weather in Eastern Canada this year hurt sporting goods retailers such as The Forzani Group Ltd., but Western Canada more than made up for the losses.

Forzani, which operates Sport Chek, Coast Mountain Sports, Sport Mart and National Sports stores, and franchises under banners such as Sports Experts and RnR, posted record results for its 2007 fiscal year (ending Jan. 28, 2007).

The company, which has 479 stores across Canada, reported $1.26 billion in revenue for the year, an 11.9-per-cent increase over the previous year, and net earnings of $35 million, up 156 per cent from $13.8 million the year before.

Shares are up 21 per cent year to date ($18.92 Jan. 2, 2007), and 16 per cent since the results ($19.70 March 23, 2007).

As a snowboarder might say, "Bonus life, dude. That's wicked epic."

* NOTE: The above is not intended as investment advice to buy or sell any mentioned securities. Investors should do due diligence before investing. Quotes are based on results through May 8, 2007.

(Nicole Strandlund can be reached at nicole@businessedge.ca)