A CN executive has just sold $880,000 worth of shares in the Montreal rail carrier.
Janet Drysdale, senior vice president and head of stakeholder relations, sold a block of 5,500 shares on July 28 at a price of $160 per share.
In addition, a CN director bought nearly $160,000 in shares this week. David Freeman bought 1,000 CN shares on Tuesday. He has been a board member for just over a year.
BCE’s tantalizing 7% dividend yield has TD changing its mind about the Montreal telecommunications giant. Analyst Vince Valentini has been suggesting buying the stock since Friday. If the results presented Thursday by BCE are largely in line with expectations, this expert expects dividend growth of around 5% per year to continue.
National Bank Financial no longer recommends buying Lion stock. Analyst Rupert Merer withdrew his buy suggestion on Thursday after learning about the most recent quarterly performance of the Quebec manufacturer of 100% electric buses and trucks. Its decision to no longer offer the title is mainly related to the surge of about 20% of the action for two months. They are now five out of nine analysts saying to buy.
The Montreal trucking company TFI lost the recommendation of National Bank Financial in the middle of the week. Analyst Cameron Doerksen withdrew his buy suggestion after the release of TFI’s quarterly performance and after seeing that TFI management was lowering its forecast for the year. He also believes that the potential gains from the bankruptcy of US competitor Yellow are already discounted in the title of TFI. They are now 12 analysts out of 18 to propose the purchase.
CN lost support from RBC earlier this week. Analyst Walter Spracklin on Monday withdrew his buy recommendation on the Montreal rail carrier. Several factors are affecting investor sentiment towards CN, according to this expert. For example, he highlights the impact of the forest fires and the strike at the Port of Vancouver on CN’s activities. He also notes the hiring of former CN senior executive Jim Vena at the helm of Union Pacific. This appointment risks, according to him, attracting investors from the sector to Union Pacific to the detriment of CN. They are now 10 analysts out of 29 to propose the purchase of CN stock.
If Laurentian Bank is ultimately sold, a transaction will be at or below book value of the bank at $2.6 billion, or about $59 per share, according to analyst Stephen Bolland of the Raymond James firm. In a note published on Monday, this expert adds that a transaction at a price above book value is possible, but a little less likely. The most likely buyer, he said, is a major Canadian bank.
Up more than 40% since announcing the results of its sizeable takeover bid three weeks ago, Coveo’s stock is still trading at a discount of nearly 30% to its peers, noted in earlier this week TD analyst David Kwan in a note sent to clients. This expert adds, however, that the bar is now raised for the presentation on Tuesday of the financial performance of the beginning of the fiscal year of the Quebec company specializing in artificial intelligence applied to e-commerce. Earnings below expectations and disappointing forecasts or announcements could cause the stock to decline significantly, he warns. On the other hand, good results, favorable comments, an acquisition and the repurchase of other shares are elements that can revive the recent surge in the stock.
Quebec securities of Lassonde, BMTC, TFI, WSP, Cascades, Power Corporation, 5N Plus, SNC-Lavalin, Colabor, Coveo and Groupe ADF all reached a 52-week high this week on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
On the other hand, those of Guru, BCE, Boralex, Innergex, Cogeco, Saputo and Theratechnologies hit a 52-week low this week.
The Toronto Stock Exchange will remain closed on Monday to mark the civic holiday, a public holiday in most Canadian provinces every first Monday in August.
