Topic: How To Invest

Pat: What do you think of Groupe Aeroplan? Is it a buy? Thank you.

Article Excerpt

Groupe Aeroplan Inc., $12.44, symbol AER on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 200 million; Market cap: $2.5 billion), is the largest loyalty marketing company in Canada. Aeroplan has over four million active members. The company mainly makes its money by selling loyalty-marketing services to more than 70 partners, including credit- and charge-card companies, airlines and a variety of other businesses. Together, these partners operate more than 150 brands. Aeroplan gets the majority of its revenue from its credit- and charge-card company partners. The company’s members can redeem their Aeroplan Miles for air travel to more than 850 destinations worldwide, or a variety of other products and services. In the three months ended June 30, 2010, Aeroplan’s revenue rose 44.6%, to $451.9 million from $312.4 million. The gain mainly came from Carlson Marketing, which Aeroplan bought for $286.9 million in December 2009. Carlson helps its clients build brand loyalty by designing special events, such as new-product launches and customer conferences. If you exclude the costs of…