Updating Power Corp.

Article Excerpt

POWER CORP. $33 (Toronto symbol POW; Conservative- Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 415.3 million; Market cap: $13.7 billion; Dividend yield: 3.9%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www. powercorporation.com) is a Montreal-based holding company that owns its financial assets through a 65.7% stake in Power Financial. That company’s holdings include 61.5% of IGM Financial, a leading Canadian mutual fund provider, and 67.6% of insurer Great-West Lifeco. Power Corp. also owns investments in media, real estate, private equity and renewable energy. In addition, it holds an assortment of European investments such as interests in major companies Lafarge/Holcim, Adidas AG and Pernod Ricard. Private equity activist investor Graeme Roustan recently accused the Desmarais family—owners of 59% of Power Corp.’s voting shares—of failing to maximize shareholder value. Roustan has now asked the company’s board to authorize a Special Committee to explore selling some or all of Power’s non-core financial holdings. It would then reinvest the proceeds in its core holdings and, possibly, pay shareholders…