Tim’s Earns An SI Rating Upgrade

Article Excerpt

TIM HORTONS INC. $38 (Toronto symbol THI; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 187.1 million; Market cap: $7.1 billion; SI Rating: Average) earned $0.36 a share in the third quarter of 2007, up 33.3% from $0.27 a year earlier. Sales grew 18.6%, to $490.5 million from $413.6 million, due to the opening of 40 new restaurants, successful new menu items and higher selling prices. Same-store sales rose 7.5% in Canada, and 4.5% in the United States. The company recently completed its plan to buy back $200 million worth of its shares. It now aims to repurchase an additional $200 million over the next year. In light of Tim Hortons’ expanding sales and profits, we’ve upgraded its SI Rating, from “Extra risk” to “Average”. Tim Hortons is a buy. buy…