Weston offers you assets at a discount

Article Excerpt

George Weston now plans to sell off its 139-year-old Weston Bakery unit. That will give it lots of cash—potentially as much as $2.2 billion or more—to buy back shares or boost dividends. At the same time, a sale will help to reduce George Weston’s “holding company discount” (the tendency of holding companies to trade for less than the total value of their assets). That discount will, in fact, further narrow as the company unlocks even more value. For now, take advantage of the current discount—about 15%—for your savvy new buying. GEORGE WESTON LTD., $112.11, is a buy. The holding company (Toronto symbol WN; Shares o/s: 152.4 million; Market cap: $17.0 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 2.0%; www.weston.ca) makes a number of products through Weston Foods. They include bakery goods for both the Canadian and U.S. markets. Your George Weston shares also expose you to its 42.6% stake in Loblaw and 61.8% stake in Choice Properties REIT (symbol CHP.UN on Toronto). That’s one of Canada’s biggest…