Loblaw adds to drug hours

Article Excerpt

LOBLAW COS. $39.12 (Toronto symbol L; Shares outstanding: 277.3 million; Market cap: $10.8 billion; SI Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield 2.2%) operates pharmacies in about half of its 1,000 supermarkets. The company now plans to extend some of its Ontario pharmacies’ hours by 25%. It also plans to add more pharmacies and medical clinics to its remaining stores. The Ontario government aims to lower the cost it pays for generic drugs. As a result, it plans to eliminate the fees that generic drug makers pay to drug stores to promote their products. The government feels these fees artificially raise the price of generic drugs. Several major drug-store chains have cut their hours, seemingly to protest the loss of these fees. Loblaw feels that keeping its pharmacies open longer will help it attract more customers to its stores, especially when competitors are closed. Loblaw is a buy. buy…