acquisition

BANK OF MONTREAL, $83.44, Toronto symbol BMO, gained 1% this week after announcing it will raise its dividend. The bank also said it’s setting aside more funds to cover potential bad loans to Canadian oil and gas firms; and with more of its customers banking online, it will cut 4% of its workforce. In its fiscal 2016 second quarter, which ended April 30, 2016, Bank of Montreal earned $1.152 billion. That’s a gain of 0.5% over $1.146 billion a year earlier. Due to fewer shares outstanding, earnings per share rose 1.2%, to $1.73 from $1.71. These figures exclude severance payments and other unusual items. On that basis, the latest earnings missed the consensus estimate of $1.75 a share....

VISA INC. $79 (New York symbol V; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 2.4 billion; Market cap: $189.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 13.3; Dividend yield: 0.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.visa.com) operates the world’s largest electronic payments network. It can process over 65,000 credit, debit, prepaid and commercial transactions per second. Visa gets most of its revenue from the fees it charges card issuers and merchants that use its network. These fees are based on transaction volumes and other factors. The banks that issue the credit cards are responsible for evaluating customer creditworthiness and collecting payments, not Visa....

These three companies are a great way to widen your Finance sector exposure beyond banks. They are all leaders in their markets, and trade at reasonable multiples to earnings. Moreover, new investments in their businesses are setting them up for future growth. VISA INC. $79 (New York symbol V; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 2.4 billion; Market cap: $189.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 13.3; Dividend yield: 0.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.visa.com) operates the world’s largest electronic payments network. It can process over 65,000 credit, debit, prepaid and commercial transactions per second....

FEDEX CORP. $164 (New York symbol FDX; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 268.4 million; Market cap: $44.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.9; Dividend yield: 0.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.fedex.com) has completed its $4.9-billion acquisition of TNT Express NV. The purchase makes the company the second largest courier in Europe behind United Parcel Service. The acquisition will also help FedEx with its goal of increasing its earnings per share by 10% to 15% annually. The stock trades at a moderate 15.2 times the $10.78 a share that the company will probably earn in the fiscal year ending May 31, 2016....

GENUINE PARTS CO. $96 (New York symbol GPC; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 149.6 million; Market cap: $14.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.9; Dividend yield: 2.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.genpt.com) distributes replacement auto parts, industrial parts, office products and electrical equipment. The company is paying an undisclosed sum for The Safety Zone. This private firm makes and distributes a variety of safety products for the janitorial, food service and other industries. These include latex gloves, lab coats and gowns, ear plugs and safety glasses. The purchase will add $180 million to Genuine’s annual sales of $15.3 billion....

STANLEY BLACK & DECKER INC. $114 (New York symbol SWK; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 150.1 million; Market cap: $17.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.5; Dividend yield: 1.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.stanleyblack anddecker.com) is one of the world’s largest makers of hand and power tools for consumers. This business supplies 64% of its sales. Stanley also makes building-security products, such as locks and gates (19% of sales), and specialized tools for auto mechanics and industrial workers (17%). Stanley makes acquisitions work ...

STANLEY BLACK & DECKER INC. $114 (New York symbol SWK; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 150.1 million; Market cap: $17.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.5; Dividend yield: 1.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.stanleyblack anddecker.com) is one of the world’s largest makers of hand and power tools for consumers. This business supplies 64% of its sales. Stanley also makes building-security products, such as locks and gates (19% of sales), and specialized tools for auto mechanics and industrial workers (17%). Stanley makes acquisitions work ...

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Slate Retail REIT, $13.97, symbol SRT.UN on Toronto (Units outstanding: 35.4 million; Market cap: $459.9 million; www.slateretailreit.com), owns 66 retail malls in 20 U.S. states. In all, those properties contain 7.7 million square feet. Slate’s overall occupancy rate was a high 94.4% as of March 31, 2016. The REIT took its current form on April 15, 2014. That’s when Slate Asset Management L.P. reorganized its publicly traded operations. This firm owns 6.7% of Slate Retail and manages the REIT....

Stella-Jones Inc., $49.00, symbol SJ on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 69.1 million; Market cap: $3.4 billion; www.stella-jones.com), makes pressure-treated wood products. They include: railway ties (45% of sales); utility poles (34%); treated lumber products for the residential market (12%); lumber for industrial uses such as construction timbers and highway guardrails (6%); and logs and lumber (3%). The company gets most of its utility poles from timberlands that it leases in Quebec and B.C. It also buys wood for railway ties and other products from sawmills in the U.S. and Canada. The U.S. also provides 82% of its sales, while Canada supplies the remaining 18%....