Topic: How To Invest

Q: Pat, how do you rate Lassonde Industries as an investment?

Article Excerpt

A: Lassonde Industries Inc. $143.93, symbol LAS.A on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 6.9 million; Market cap: $1.0 billion; www.lassonde.com), makes a wide variety of fruit and vegetable juices and other drinks at 15 plants in Canada and the U.S. It also produces other prepared foods such as chocolate fondues and cranberry and pasta sauces. In addition, the company imports apple ciders and wines. Lassonde’s brands include Oasis, Orange Maison and Rougemont. The company also makes juices and other products under license, including Allen’s, Del Monte, Old South and Tetley, as well as private-label products for major retailers. The company gets 39% of its sales from Canada, 60% from the U.S. and 1% from other countries. In July 2019, it acquired 36.9 million shares of Diamond Estates Wines & Spirits in a private placement at $0.19 a share. The investment gave Lassonde—a maker of wine in addition to juice and other beverage products—a 19.9% stake. Diamond Estates’ brands include 20 Bees, EastDell, Lakeview Cellars, FRESH,…