Topic: How To Invest

Pat, What’s your recommendation on North West Co. Fund? Thanks.

Article Excerpt

North West Company Fund, $18.10, symbol NWF.UN on Toronto (Units outstanding: 48.4 million; Market cap: $875.6 million), sells food and everyday products and services through 225 stores, mainly in northern communities across Canada and Alaska. North West also operates stores in remote communities in Hawaii, the South Pacific and the Caribbean. In northern Canada, the company operates the majority of its stores (127) under the Northern banner, followed by Value Centre (30), Giant Tiger (29), Quickstop (14) and NorthMart (7). The fund also owns Crescent MultiFoods, which distributes produce and fresh meat to independent grocery stores in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and northwestern Ontario. North West gets about 63% of its revenue from Canada. In 2002, North West and privately held Giant Tiger signed a 30-year agreement that grants North West the exclusive right to open and operate 72 Giant Tiger stores in western Canada. Ottawa-based Giant Tiger is a 195-store discount chain that sells value-priced clothing, food and seasonal merchandise. In August…