LOBLAW COMPANIES LTD. $46 (Toronto symbol L; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 280.9 million; Market cap: $12.9 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.4; Dividend yield: 2.1%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.loblaw.ca) is spending $100 million to upgrade its 77 Provigo and 32 Loblaw supermarkets in Quebec. That’s equal to 58% of its 2013 firstquarter earnings of $171 million, or $0.61 a share.
These improvements include faster checkout lines, a better selection of fresh products, and the addition of on-site baked bagels and juice bars. In addition, the company will rebrand six of its existing Loblaw stores, plus one under construction, as Provigo Le Marché.
Loblaw is a buy.