Buy Reitmans, hold on to FirstService

Article Excerpt

REITMANS (CANADA) LTD. $11.97 (Toronto symbol RET.A; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (514-384-1140; www.reitmans.com; Shares outstanding: 65.5 million; Market cap: $784.0 million; Dividend yield: 6.7%) owns 925 women’s clothing stores across Canada. The chain consists of 364 Reitmans, 154 Penningtons, 153 Smart Set, 114 Addition Elle, 74 Thyme Maternity and 66 RW & Co. stores. In the three months ended April 28, 2012, Reitmans lost $53,000, or nil per share, compared to a profit of $624,000, or $0.01 a share, a year earlier. The company’s sales were down 1.0%, to $217.1 million from $219.3 million. Same-store sales declined 0.7%. Fewer shoppers visited Reitmans’ stores in the quarter due to weaker consumer confidence. As well, the company spent more on promotions to fend off rising competition. However, Reitmans’ strong brands should help its earnings rebound as consumer spending continues to recover. The retailer’s balance sheet remains strong: it holds cash of $209.5 million, or $3.20 a share, and just $8.2 million of long-term debt. Its shares…