(Business Edge writer David Hatton regularly profiles the top stock picks of Canada's most accomplished investment pros.)

FEATURED PRO: Jean-Francois Tardif is a portfolio manager with Sprott Asset Management (www.sprott.ca). He is the lead manager for the Sprott Opportunities Hedge Fund.

Fund form: As of last month, the Sprott Opportunities Hedge Fund has posted a return of 15.9 per cent for this year.

The fund has had an annualized return of 31 per cent since its inception in April of 2004.

Jean-Francois Tardif

Management Expense Ratio: Seven per cent

First Star

* Atrium Innovations Inc. (TSX:ATB)

* Recent Price: $22.35

* 52-Week Range: $29.77 (07/13) - $13.90 (10/31)

* Snapshot: Quebec-based Atrium Innovations Inc.

is a leading developer and manufacturer of science-based products for the cosmetics, pharmaceutical, chemical and nutritional industries. The company says it focuses primarily on parts of the health- and personal-care markets that follow the trend toward healthy living and an aging population. Last winter, it announced revenues of US$306.1 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2006, up 52 per cent from US$200.9 million in the previous fiscal year.

* CEO: Pierre Fitzgibbon

* Head Office: Quebec City

* Vital Stats: Price/Earnings Ratio (Trailing Twelve Months - ttm): 21.90; Revenue (last fiscal year): US$306.1 million; Earnings Per Share (ttm): 1.02; Market Cap: $684 million.

* Tardif's View: "The stock pulled back here recently, so it could be a good buy. We own it so, obviously, we like it enough. They are in the health-care field, offering naturopathic alternatives.

The stock is in U.S. dollars, so even with the exchange rate around par, by the time you convert it you still lose something ... But they also just made a very large acquisition in Europe - Germany, actually - so it's definitely one to watch."

* Risk Rating: Medium

* Web Watch: www.atrium-bio.com

Second Star

* ATS Andlauer Income Fund (TSX:ATS.UN)

* Recent Price: $12.20

* 52-Week Range: $15.79 (05/17) - $10.15 (11/03)

* Snapshot: An industry award-winning transportation company, ATS provides integrated trucking, courier and air-freight solutions.

It recently made inroads with pharma manufacturers and developers when it announced it had developed shipping methods compliant with Health Canada's regulations on sending temperature-sensitive products.

* CEO: Michael Andlauer

* Head Office: Toronto

* Vital Stats: Price/Earnings Ratio (ttm): 9.50; Revenue (last fiscal year): $175.68 million; Earnings Per Share (ttm): 1.29; Market Cap: $111 million.

* Tardif's View: "The company seems to be very smart, very entrepreneurial and very successful overall. They seem to target certain (niche markets) and do very well at it. No matter what is happening with the economy, the transportation sector will always be strong. The fund units are cheap and over time they will grow."

* Risk Rating: Medium

* Web Watch: www.ats.ca Third Star

* Horizon North Logistics Inc. (TSX:HNL)

* Recent Price: $3.29

* 52-Week Range: $4.05 (11/30) - $2.80 (10/05)

* Snapshot: The company provides services to large natural resource-development projects such as diamond mines, oilsands, pipelines, offshore drilling and northern oil and gas development.

Two of its biggest operating divisions are camps and catering (services), and marine (services). They stand to benefit from supplying services to oil and gas pipeline builders if the Mackenzie Gas Project goes ahead. That project is currently bogged down in negotiations between the area's First Nations groups and the federal government.

* CEO: Robert J. Hunt

* Head Office: Calgary

* Vital Stats: Price/ Earnings Ratio: n/a; Revenue (last fiscal year): $3.8 million; Earnings Per Share: 0.01; Market Cap: $280.5 million.

* Tardif's View: "It's a company being built by the Mullen family, who have a good sense of what works in business and what doesn't. They've been buying up a lot of businesses in the North; eventually there will be a pipeline and that section will be built up, which is a few years away. In the meantime, they're still making money, and ultimately, when the pipeline is built, that stock will go up many times its value. It's a very strategic choice."

* Risk Rating: Medium

* Web Watch: www.horizonnorth.ca

* Disclosure: Tardif owns shares in the Sprott Opportunities Hedge Fund in which the featured stocks are held.

This feature is provided for informational purposes. Investors are advised to do their own research or consult a qualified investment professional before making investment decisions.

(David Hatton can be reached at hatton@businessedge.ca)