recent acquisitions

Insurer Great-West Lifeco and mutual funds provider IGM Financial continue to benefit from their recent moves to focus on their core businesses. We still like both, but prefer IGM for your new buying.


GREAT-WEST LIFECO INC. $48 is a hold. The insurer (Toronto symbol GWO; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; shares outstanding: 931.2 million; Market cap: $44.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.4; Dividend yield: 4.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.greatwestlifeco.com) is Canada’s second-largest life insurer, after Manulife Financial....

Linamar Corp. grew sales 11.6% and earnings 17.2% and still trades cheaply despite recent moves to benefit from the ongoing EV growth cycle.

The shares of Pembina Pipeline have jumped 35% in the past year, and hit a new all-time high of $56 in September 2024. That’s largely due to its recent acquisitions and new projects. Falling interest rates will also ease its debt payments and free up cash for more dividends....

These two insurers have a bright future, particularly as population growth will drive demand for new policies and retirement planning services. For now, we prefer Sun Life as Great-West’s recent acquisitions add to its risk.


GREAT-WEST LIFECO INC....

NORDSTROM INC. $22.56 is a hold. The retailer (New York symbol JWN; Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 164.2 million; Market cap: $3.7 billion; Dividend yield: 3.4%; Takeover Target Rating: Highest; www.nordstrom.com) owns and operates over 370 stores in the U.S....

SALESFORCE INC., $254.57, symbol CRM on New York, provides cloud-based software for customer relationship management applications such as sales, customer service, marketing automation, e-commerce, analytics, and application development.

Founded in 1999 by current CEO Marc Benioff and three other co-founders, the company pioneered the SaaS (software as a service) software model and subscription-based revenue.

Software-as-a-service is where subscribers pay a monthly or yearly fee for software implementation, support and upgrades....

Bank of Nova Scotia and insurer Great-West are leading competitors in their respective markets; look for that to cut your ongoing risk. Still, for now, we see Great-West as a hold, while Bank of Nova Scotia remains a buy.


BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA, $68.69, is a buy. The lender (Toronto symbol BNS; Shares o/s: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $84.5 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Yield: 6.2%; www.scotiabank.com) is Canada’s third-largest bank.


Due to the current economic uncertainty as a result of relatively high interest rates and inflation, particularly in Latin America, Scotiabank set aside $1.05 billion in its fiscal 2024 third quarter, ended July 31, 2024, to cover future loan losses....

CANADIAN TIRE CORP., $151.58, Toronto symbol CTC.A, is a top pick for 2024.

Investors benefit from the company’s 502 Canadian Tire stores. They sell automotive parts and services, and household and sporting goods; franchisees run most of the locations....

These two subsidiaries of the Power Corp. holding company are now realizing the benefits of a new plan to better focus on their core areas of expertise. We like both but still prefer IGM for your new buying.


GREAT-WEST LIFECO INC. $42 is a hold. The company (Toronto symbol GWO; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; shares outstanding: 932.1 million; Market cap: $39.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.7; Dividend yield: 5.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.greatwestlifeco.com) is Canada’s second-largest life insurer, after Manulife Financial....

LINAMAR CORP. $62 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol LNR; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 61.6 million; Market cap: $3.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.4; Dividend yield: 1.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.linamar.com) makes a variety of automotive parts, including cylinder heads and cylinder blocks....