TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Thursday on the Toronto Stock Exchange:
Toronto Stock Exchange (15,568.64, down 60.55 points.)
Kinross Gold Corp. (TSX:K). Materials. Up 17 cents, or 1.66 per cent, to $10.43 on 6.9 million shares.
Bombardier Inc. (TSX:BBD.B). Industrials. Down one cent, or 2.3 per cent, to 42.5 cents on 6.2 million shares.
Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (TSX:AQN). Utilities. Down 46 cents, or 2.63 per cent, to $17.06 on 6.1 million shares.
B2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO). Materials. Unchanged at $8.12 on 5.4 million shares.
Hexo Corp. (TSX:HEXO). Health care. Up five cents, or 5.32 per cent, to 99 cents on 5.2 million shares.
Northcliff Resources Ltd. (TSX:NCF). Materials. Up one cent, or 40 per cent, to 3.5 cents on 5.2 million shares.
Companies in the news:
Postmedia Network Canada Corp. (TSX:PNC.A, TSX:PNC.B) — The owner of Canada's largest newspaper chain saw its most recent quarterly revenue slashed by a quarter as advertising revenue decline accelerated amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but said it would stop a pay reduction program one month early thanks to government aid. The company, which owns the National Post and other publications, reported a net loss for the three months ending May 31 of $13.8 million, up from a net loss of $7.7 million in the same quarter the previous year. Revenue totalled $112.4 million, down 28.4 per cent from $157.1 million in the same quarter last year. Print advertising fell $23.7 million or 36.6 per cent to about $41 million in the quarter, while digital revenue dropped $10.7 million or 32.5 per cent to about $22 million. Digital advertising fell 37.7 per cent and print circulation revenue dropped 10.5 per cent. During the quarter, advertising revenue declines "accelerated" as a result of the pandemic, the company said, noting it continues to work to address the current challenging environment.
Torstar Corp. (TSX:TS.B). Up 10 cents or 16.1 per cent to 72 cents. The owner of the Toronto Star says it has received a potentially superior second purchase offer from a private investor group. In response to a request from the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada, Torstar Corp. confirmed it received a non-binding, unsolicited offer for all of the company's Class A shares and Class B non-voting shares. The new offer is conditional on the completion of due diligence, the negotiation of a definitive agreement and the entering into of voting support agreements with trustees of the Torstar voting trust, Torstar directors holding shares and Hamblin Watsa Investment Counsel Ltd., an affiliate of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. The Torstar board of directors is holding talks with the new bidder after determining that its offer "may reasonably be expected to constitute or lead to a 'superior proposal' " under the May 26 agreement with NordStar Capital LP. The board has determined that the NordStar agreement is in the best interest of the company and continued to recommend that shareholders support the transaction at a special meeting scheduled on July 21.
Bombardier Inc. — Bombardier Inc. says it supports Alstom's commitments to sell some of the Canadian transportation company's railway assets to address potential regulatory concerns with Alstom SA's US$8.2-billion acquisition of Bombardier Transportation. Alstom has told the European Commission that it would transfer Bombardier's contribution to the V300 Zefiro very high-speed train platform, sell Bombardier's Talent 3 mainline train platform and production facilities with the Hennigsdorf site in Germany, and provide access to some of Bombardier's signalling and train control management systems. It would also sell Alstom's Coradia Polyvalent mainline train platform and the Reichshoffen production site in France. The moves will be done in consultation with appropriate employee representative bodies. Bombardier also reaffirmed that the sale remains on track to close in the first half of 2021. After selling its commercial aircraft business, the exit from railway operations will leave Bombardier to focus exclusively on business aircraft.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 9, 2020.
The Canadian Press
