Top pick Barrick Mining just raised its dividend a whopping 140% as it generates record earnings and continues its strategic asset reorganization.
Warner Music Group Corp. is well-positioned for higher-margin catalog revenues, added streaming adoption, and new AI monetization opportunities.
ARC Resources keeps returning its cash flow to shareholders through a growing dividend and substantial share buybacks.
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LOBLAW COMPANIES $66.80 (Toronto symbol L; Shares outstanding: 412.4 million; Market cap: $27.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 1.5%; www.loblaw.ca) is Canada’s largest food retailer, with about 1,200 supermarkets. Its banners include Loblaws, Provigo, Fortinos, Real Canadian Superstore and No Frills. George Weston Ltd. (see below) owns 46% of the company. In the three months ended October 10, 2015, Loblaw earned $408 million, or $0.99 a share, up 10.0% from $371 million, or $0.90, a year earlier. Sales rose 2.5%, to $13.9 billion from $13.6 billion. Excluding gasoline, same-store sales rose 3.1% at Loblaw and 4.9% at the 1,300-store Shoppers Drug Mart chain, which the company bought for $12.3 billion in March 2014. Loblaw continues to integrate its operations with Shoppers Drug. It expects these moves to save it at least $222 million in 2016....
BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $59.87 (Toronto symbol BNS; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $72.0 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.7%, www.scotiabank.com) has extended its Scene loyalty card program with Cineplex Inc. for an additional 10 years, to October 31, 2025. Scene lets cardholders earn points they can redeem for free movies at Cineplex’s theatres. It’s one of Canada’s most popular loyalty plans, with over seven million members. The deal gives the bank lots of opportunities to cross-sell other services to Scene members. In particular, Scene is very popular with young moviegoers. So it’s a great way to begin a relationship with them when they’re just starting to bank and use credit and debit cards....
ENBRIDGE INC. $47.24 (Toronto symbol ENB; Shares outstanding: 860.1 million; Market cap: $40.5 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 3.9%; www.enbridge.com) has paid $200 million U.S. for 100% of the New Creek Wind Project in West Virginia. This development consists of 49 wind turbines that can generate a total of 103 megawatts. It should start up in December 2016. The company has long-term contracts to sell this power at fixed rates, which cuts the risk of this investment. Including this purchase, Enbridge has invested $5 billion (Canadian) in renewable power projects with a total capacity of 2,000 megawatts....
CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY $190.97 (Toronto symbol CP; Shares outstanding: 152.9 million; Market cap: $29.4 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Yield: 0.7%; www.cpr.ca) has offered to buy U.S. railway Norfolk Southern (New York symbol NSC). The combined company would be North America’s largest railway, with more than 56,000 kilometres of track. Buying Norfolk would also give CP greater access to ports on the U.S. Gulf Coast and Atlantic Ocean. Norfolk shareholders would receive $46.72 U.S. a share in cash and 0.348 of a CP share (or roughly 50% in cash and 50% in stock). That would give them 41% of the combined firm....