TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Thursday on the Toronto Stock Exchange:
Toronto Stock Exchange (21,176.33, down 207.31 points.)
Kinross Gold Corp. (TSX:K). Materials. Down seven cents, or 0.9 per cent, to $7.38 on 14.9 million shares.
Osisko Mining Inc. (TSX:OSK). Materials. Down 66 cents, or 13.8 per cent, to $4.13 on 10.3 million shares.
Barrick Gold Corp. (TSX:ABX). Materials. Up $1.32, or 4.7 per cent, to $29.53 on 7.8 million shares.
Suncor Energy Inc. (TSX:SU). Energy. Up 11 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to $37.68 on 7.4 million shares.
Cenovus Energy Inc. (TSX:CVE). Energy. Up 42 cents, or 2.1 per cent, to $20.15 on 7.0 million shares.
Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSX:SLF). Financials. Down 47 cents, or 0.7 per cent, to $68.30 on 6.8 million shares.
Companies in the news:
Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd. (TSX:CTC.A). Up $4.15 or 2.2 per cent to $188.68. Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd. is ordering spring and summer products early and chartering its own cargo ships to import goods as it doubles down on an inventory strategy that's buoyed the retailer through the pandemic. The company's approach has helped it work around bottlenecks at ports and avoid surging spot market shipping rates, keeping store shelves stocked amid shortages elsewhere. The company has also contracted an additional three charter sailings in its current quarter, he said. It's unclear how much added shipping costs could affect the company's gross margins and store prices in 2022. The company topped expectations as it reported a net income attributable to shareholders of $508.5 million or $8.34 per diluted share for the quarter, up from $488.8 million or $7.97 per diluted share a year earlier. Revenue for the 13-week period ended Jan. 1 totalled $5.14 billion, up from $4.87 billion in the 14-week period ended Jan. 2, 2021.
Chorus Aviation Inc. (TSX:CHR). Up one cent to $4.34. The head of Chorus Aviation Inc. says he expects flying activity will move closer to pre-pandemic levels in the second quarter, despite being thrown off course by the Omicron variant over the past two months. CEO Joe Randell said Thursday that use of aircraft on Air Canada regional routes could reach 87 per cent between April and June as demand rises in step with easing travel restrictions and COVID-19 anxieties. Chorus, which provides regional service for the country's largest carrier and leases planes across the globe, said Air Canada plane use is on track to reach 60 per cent of the 2019 level in the current quarter. That's after ending the year at 76 per cent, which sat at the bottom end of the company's guidance in the fall. Chorus eked out a profit in its latest quarter, with net income rising to $10.2 million or six cents per diluted share in the fourth quarter, compared with $9.2 million or six cents per diluted share a year earlier. Operating revenue at the Halifax-based company jumped to $346.5 million in the quarter ended Dec. 31, up from $218.2 million in the last three months of 2020.
MTY Food Group Inc. (TSX:MTY). Down $1.36 or 2.5 per cent, to $54.07. MTY Food Group Inc. swung to a profit last year as fourth-quarter earnings jumped 24 per cent despite government-mandated restaurant closures. The Montreal-based restaurant franchisor and operator says its net income attributable to owners was $85.6 million or $3.46 per diluted share in 2021 on $551.9 million of revenues. That is compared to a net loss of $37.1 million or $1.50 per share on $511.1 million in revenues in 2020. In the three months ended Nov. 30, MTY says it earned $24.9 million or $1 per share, up from $20.1 million or 81 cents per share a year earlier. The company behind more than 80 restaurant brands including Thai Express, Tiki-Ming and Tutti Frutti says revenues were $146.3 million, up 15 per cent from $127.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2020. MTY was expected to earn $23.3 million on $145.4 million of revenues in the quarter, said financial data firm Refinitiv. The company says system sales rose eight per cent to $962.5 million in the fourth quarter. It says 259 locations were closed one or more days during the quarter, representing about 9,500 lost business days.
Canfor Pulp Products Inc. (TSX:CFX). Down 29 cents or 4.4 per cent to $6.30. Canfor Pulp Products Inc. is curtailing production at its Taylor Pulp mill in B.C. for a minimum of six weeks due to transportation problems that have hurt its ability to ship product. The company says inventories at the mill in northeastern B.C. that produces bleached chemi-thermo mechanical pulp (BCTMP) have reached capacity. The curtailment will cut the production by at least 25,000 tonnes. Canfor Pulp chief executive Don Kayne says increasing fibre costs and a weaker longer-term outlook for BCTMP markets combined with the current logistical issues have created a challenging business environment for the mill. The Taylor mill has annual production capacity of 230,000 tonnes of BCTMP. Canfor Pulp also owns and operates three mills in Prince George, B.C., with a total capacity of 1.1 million tonnes of premium reinforcing northern bleached softwood kraft pulp and 140,000 tonnes of kraft paper.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 17, 2022.
The Canadian Press
