Loblaw sells off gas stations

Article Excerpt

LOBLAW COMPANIES $76.86 (Toronto symbol L; Shares outstanding: 400.8 million; Market cap: $30.7 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 1.4%; www. loblaw.ca) operates over 1,090 supermarkets and 1,325 Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacies across Canada. The company will now sell its 213 gas stations to Brookfield Business Partners LP (Toronto symbol BBU.UN). The deal includes convenience stores adjacent to those stations. Loblaw will receive $540 million when it completes the sale in the third quarter of 2017. That’s roughly equal to 33% of the $1.6 billion, or $4.05 a share, the company earned in 2016. The cash will help Loblaw with its plan to open 30 new stores and renovate 500 existing locations in 2017. It will also continue to introduce fresh food sales at select Shoppers stores. The company expects to spend $1.3 billion on that development plan. Loblaw Companies is a buy. buy…