Author: Consultant

  • TC Energy beats profit estimates on natural gas and power demand, hikes dividend

    Canadian pipeline operator TC Energy TRP-T +3.51%increase beat analysts’ estimates for fourth-quarter adjusted profit on Friday, helped by record natural gas flows across its North American network and increased demand for natural gas and power.

    Major pipeline operators such as TC Energy are doubling down on expectations of surging natural gas demand as LNG export facilities expand and power-hungry AI systems, cryptocurrency miners and data centers ramp up electricity use.

    TC Energy operates a 58,100 mile-long network of pipelines, supplying more than 30 per cent of the clean-burning fuel consumed daily across North America.

    The company placed $8.3-billion of projects into service in 2025, and expects to place nearly $4-billion of capital into service this year.

    In January, it closed a non-binding open season for 0.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfpd) on its Columbia Gas Transmission system near Columbus, Ohio, attracting 1.5 bcfpd of total bids, three times the proposed project capacity, as power demand from data centers surged.

    The company anticipates full-year capital expenditure to be between $6.0-billion and $6.5-billion.

    Canadian natural gas pipeline deliveries averaged 27.2 bcfpd during the quarter, up 5 per cent from a year earlier, while U.S. pipeline flows rose 9.5 per cent to 29.6 bcfpd.

    Deliveries to LNG facilities jumped 21 per cent to 3.9 bcfpd.

    TC Energy’s adjusted core profit at U.S. natural gas pipelines, its largest segment, rose to $1.39-billion, from $1.2-billion a year ago.

    Adjusted core earnings from Canadian natural gas pipelines rose nearly 13 per cent to $961-million during the quarter.

    On an adjusted basis, the Calgary-based company earned 98 Canadian cents per share, compared with analysts’ average expectations of 92 Canadian cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.

    It raised the quarterly dividend by 3.2 per cent to $0.8775 per share, marking its twenty-sixth straight year of dividend growth. 

  • Magna forecasts steady sales on new Europe contracts for Chinese EVs, shares jump

    Magna International Inc.’s MG-T +18.94%increase share price rose by 18 per cent on Friday after the Aurora, Ont., auto parts maker forecast steady sales for 2026, buoyed by new assembly work for Chinese electric carmakers.

    Magna finance chief Phil Fracassa said global auto production is expected to be flat this year, but new contracts to make electric cars in Europe for China’s Xpeng and GAC will help lift the company’s sales.

    Magna began assembling the EVs for Xpeng and GAC late last year at its Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria, which has produced more than four million vehicles for Mercedes, BMW and other brands. The Chinese companies are increasingly selling EVs in Europe and turned to Magna to produce domestic supplies.

    “Looking ahead, this should continue to represent a growth opportunity for our complete vehicles business,” Mr. Fracassa said.

    In a conference call with analysts on Friday, Mr. Fracassa said Magna is forecasting sales this year of between US$41.9-billion and US$43.5-billion, or nearly flat to a 3.5-per-cent increase over 2025.

    Magna, which has plants around the world, will also benefit from increased vehicle production in Europe and a weaker U.S. dollar, Mr. Fracassa said on the call, held before markets opened to discuss fourth-quarter and full-year results for 2025. Those factors should outweigh an expected slip in production in China and North America, he said, as Magna ends production of the Toyota Supra and BMW Z4 in Graz.

    For 2026, Magna forecasts adjusted profit per share will be between US$6.25 and US$7.25. This is higher than analysts’ estimates of US$5.99, according to LSEG, a financial data company.

    Stock analyst Michael Ward of Citigroup said the guidance points to an earnings before interest, taxes and depreciation margin with a midpoint of 10 per cent, Magna’s best since 2021.

    For 2025, Magna said its profit fell by 20 per cent to US$829-million or US$2.93 a share, compared with US$1-billion (US$3.52) in 2024. Revenue fell by 2 per cent to US$42-billion, compared with 2024.

    For the fourth quarter of 2025, Magna lost US$1-million, down from a profit of US$203-million in the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose by 2 per cent to $10.8-bilion, from the year-ago quarter.

    Magna and other automotive companies have been hit by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs in the past year, causing manufacturers to absorb billions in costs. At the same time, carmakers in North America have taken billions in writeoffs for EV investments as demand has slowed amid U.S. rollbacks of purchase incentives and other regulations.

    Swamy Kotagiri, Magna’s chief executive officer, said the company has offset the impact of almost all the tariffs, recovering them from customers.

    In the European Union, battery-electric and hybrid-electric cars captured 17 per cent and 14 per cent of the market, respectively, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.

  • Enbridge tops fourth-quarter profit estimates, raises dividend

    Enbridge ENB-T beat ​expectations for fourth-quarter profit on ‌Friday, and said it had sanctioned several projects to help meet surging demand for power across North America.

    Pipeline operators are benefiting from a ⁠surge in ​demand for natural gas, driven by liquefied natural gas exports, and soaring power generation tied to increased use of artificial intelligence and data centers.

    Earlier in the day, peer TC Energy ​also beat market expectations for quarterly profit ‌on the back of rising natural gas demand.

    Enbridge said it had C$39 billion (US$28.63 billion) in project backlog, C$8 billion of which is expected to come into service this year.

    The company sanctioned two renewable energy projects ‌in the fourth ​quarter – a $1.2 billion ‌project in Wyoming for a large tech company, and an ​onshore wind project in Texas worth US$400 million ⁠to support Meta Platforms’ data center operations.

    “We continue to ⁠advance over 50 data center opportunities across North America, requiring up to ​10 billion cubic feet per day new takeaway capacity,” CEO Greg Ebel said, adding that the company expects to sanction additional projects in 2026 and beyond.

    Shares of the company rose nearly 3% to an all-time high of C$72.57.

    Enbridge posted an adjusted profit of 88 Canadian cents per share for the fourth-quarter, compared with estimates of 77 Canadian cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.

    UBS analyst Manav Gupta said Enbridge “continues to prioritize balance sheet strength… while still ⁠looking into low-multiple brownfield opportunities and utility-like ​growth.”

    The results come as the North American energy industry braces for ⁠an increase in Venezuelan oil production, which could further pressure Canadian oil prices as ‌the country’s companies sell a similar heavy oil, analysts have said.

    However, Ebel ​said the company does not expect any material impact from the recent geopolitical events involving Venezuela, adding that increased output from the country would be a supplement to Canadian ​heavy crudes, not a replacement.

  • U.S. consumer prices rise less than expected in January

    U.S. consumer prices increased less than expected in January, but underlying inflation firmed as businesses raised prices at the start of the year, which together with a stabilizing labor market could allow the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates unchanged for a while.

    The Consumer Price Index rose 0.2 per cent last month after an unrevised 0.3-per-cent gain in December, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the CPI increasing 0.3 per cent.

    With January’s CPI report, the BLS published recalculated seasonal adjustment factors to reflect 2025 price movements.

    The report was slightly delayed by last week’s three-day shutdown of the federal government. A longer shutdown last year prevented the collection of prices for October, causing volatility in the CPI data. Economists expected the volatility faded in January’s report.

    In the 12 months through January, the CPI increased 2.4 per cent. The slowdown in the year-on-year inflation rate from 2.7 per cent in December mostly reflected last year’s higher readings dropping out of the calculation.

    The U.S. central bank tracks the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Indexes for its 2-per-cent inflation target. Both measures are running well above target. The government reported this week that job growth accelerated in January and the unemployment rate fell to 4.3 per cent from 4.4 per cent in December.

    The Fed last month left its benchmark overnight interest rate in the 3.50 per cent to 3.75 per cent range.

    Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the CPI increased 0.3 per cent after rising by an unrevised 0.2 per cent in December.

    Core CPI numbers have overshot expectations every January, with economists saying the seasonal adjustment factors, the model used by the BLS to strip out seasonal fluctuations from the data, were not fully accounting for the one-off turn-of-the-year price increases.

    Last month’s increase likely reflected the one-off turn-of-the-year price hikes as well as the tariff pass-through from President Donald Trump’s broad tariffs. In the 12 months through January, the so-called core CPI increased 2.5 per cent after advancing 2.6 per cent in December. That also reflected last year’s higher readings dropping out of the calculation.

    Economists expect inflation to pick up for a while this year, citing the pass through from import duties as well as the dollar’s depreciation last year against the currencies of the United States’ main trade partners. The trade-weighted U.S. dollar fell about 7.4 per cent last year.

  • Shopify stock drops despite revenue beat, $2 billion buyback

    • Shopify posted strong fourth-quarter revenue, helped by the key holiday shopping period.
    • The company missed analysts’ expectations for earnings, and it forecast free-cash-flow margins in the first quarter that could be lower than last year.
    • It also announced a $2 billion share repurchase program.

    Shopify on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter results that beat on the top line and gave strong guidance to start the year. The stock slid more than 10%.

    Here’s how the company did, compared with estimates from analysts polled by LSEG:

    • Earnings per share: 48 cents adjusted vs. 51 cents
    • Revenue: $3.67 billion vs. $3.59 billion

    The Canadian e-commerce company said it expects first-quarter revenue to expand at a “low-thirties percentage rate” year over year, which is higher than the 25.1% growth forecast by analysts, according to FactSet.

    Shopify projected its free-cash-flow margin to be in the “low-to-mid teens” in the first quarter, which is slightly lower than a year ago. CFO Jeff Hoffmeister told analysts that it reflects the company’s continued investment in AI tools.

    The company’s board of directors also approved $2 billion in share buybacks.

    Shares of software companies have sold off heavily in recent weeks as investors grew increasingly concerned about the potential threat of artificial intelligence tools.

    Shopify, which sells software to help businesses launch and run their online storefronts, has tried to position itself at the forefront of emerging AI shopping tools. The company was an early partner of OpenAI when it launched its Instant Checkout feature, and it helped Google develop a protocol for AI shopping bots to facilitate transactions across the web.

    Shopify President Harley Finkelstein said in an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Wednesday that the company has “laid the rails” for AI shopping and is poised to benefit from how it disrupts e-commerce.

    Some fears of an AI-driven software wipeout are overblown, Finkelstein said.

    “I think there’s an incredible opportunity coming with AI, but I think you have to look at the companies that are acting as infrastructure, as platforms, vs. ones that are just features,” Finkelstein said. “Shopify is internet infrastructure.”

    The company’s revenues were lifted by the key holiday shopping period, which saw “record” spending in 2025, according to Adobe Analytics. Online spending from Nov. 1 through Dec. 31 increased 6.8% to $257.8 billion, Adobe said, beating its forecast of $253.4 billion.

    Shoppers remained resilient during the holiday shopping season despite a dour economic backdrop dominated by weakening consumer confidence, President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff policies and a slowing job market.

    The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that retail sales in December were flat after increasing 0.6% in November, capping off the year on a downbeat note after a period of otherwise solid shopping activity.

    Shopify’s gross merchandise volume, or the total volume of merchandise sold on the platform, came in higher than expected. GMV surged 29% year over year to $123.8 billion, surpassing analysts’ estimated $121.3 billion, according to FactSet.

  • U.S. payrolls rose by 130,000 in January, more than expected; unemployment down to 4.3%

    • Nonfarm payrolls increased by 130,000 for January, above the Dow Jones consensus estimate for 55,000.
    • The unemployment rate edged lower to 4.3%. A more encompassing measure slipped to 8%, down 0.4 percentage point from December.
    • As has often been the case for the U.S. labor market, health care led job gains in December, adding 82,000 positions. Social assistance also rose, up 42,000, while construction added 33,000.
    • The BLS also released final benchmark revisions for the year prior to March 2025. Those numbers saw the initial counts revised lower by a total 898,000, about in line with expectations.

    https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/11/jobs-report-january-2026-.html

  • Shopify reports US$743M Q4 profit, revenue up 31 per cent from year ago

     Shopify Inc. reported a fourth-quarter profit of US$743 million as its revenue rose 31 per cent compared with a year earlier.

    The e-commerce company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says the profit amounted to 57 cents US per diluted share for quarter ended Dec. 31.

    The result compared with a profit of US$1.29 billion or 99 cents US per diluted share in the last three months of 2024.

    Revenue for the quarter totalled US$3.67 billion, up from US$2.81 billion a year earlier.

    Merchant solutions revenue totalled US$2.90 billion, up from US$2.15 billion a year earlier, while subscription solutions revenue totalled US$777 million, up from US$666 million.

    In its outlook, Shopify says it expects revenue for the first quarter of 2026 to grow at a low-thirties percentage rate on a year-over-year basis, similar to the fourth quarter of 2025.

    This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 11, 2026.

  • TSX closes at its first record high of the month as weak U.S. economic reports send bond yields lower

    Canada’s main stock index rose to a record high on ⁠Tuesday, with ​industrial and metal mining shares among the biggest gainers as investors weighed whether a recent rotation out of technology shares would continue.

    The S&P/TSX composite index ended up 233.51 points, or ​0.7%, at 33,256.83, eclipsing the record ‌closing high it posted on January 28.

    U.S. markets were mixed, with the benchmark S&P 500 ending lower after the release of disappointing U.S. retail sales figures.

    Investors have worried in recent weeks about the amount of ‌money technology ​companies say they must ‌spend to support the artificial-intelligence boom.

    “Whether this rotation continues out ​of tech into other sectors or do ⁠we go back to tech companies depends on ⁠this week’s macro data,” said Michael Dehal, a senior portfolio manager at Dehal ​Investment Partners at Raymond James. “It would be a big catalyst for how the markets kind of play out for the next couple of weeks.”

    The delayed but closely watched U.S. nonfarm payrolls report is due on Wednesday.

    Data on Tuesday showed U.S. retail sales unexpectedly stalled in December as households scaled back spending ‌on vehicles and other big-ticket items, suggesting a slower growth path for consumer spending and the economy heading into the new year. The flat reading compared with economists’ estimates for 0.4% growth.

    A ​separate report from the Labor Department showed the Employment Cost Index (ECI), the broadest measure of labour costs, rose 0.7% in the fourth quarter after advancing 0.8% in the July-September quarter and below the estimate for a 0.8% rise as demand for labour has waned.

    Trader hopes edged up for a more dovish Federal Reserve with the probability of a one-notch April rate cut up to 36.9% from 32.2% on Monday, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool. Markets still expect, however, that the central bank will keep rates on hold until June, when ‌President Donald Trump’s ​Fed chair nominee, Kevin Warsh, would take charge if ‌approved by the U.S. Senate.

    Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott, described the disappointing retail data as “bad news is good ​news,” particularly for rate-sensitive industry indexes such as utilities and real estate, which ⁠were leading the benchmark’s sector gainers.

    Those gains were buoyed by lower bond yields. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury note fell 5.1 basis points to 4.147%, ​its fourth straight day of declines. The yield has dropped more than 13 basis points over that timeframe, its biggest four-day drop since mid-October. Other data from the Labor Department on Tuesday said U.S. import prices were unchanged on a year-on-year basis in December after falling 0.1% in November.

    Gains for railroad shares helped ⁠lift the TSX industrials sector by 1%. The materials group, which includes metal mining shares, was ‌up 0.9% even as gold gave back some recent gains.

    Heavily weighted financials ​added 0.6%, while utilities were up 0.5%.

    Shares of e-commerce company Shopify Inc jumped 7.4%. Still, the technology index ended 0.2% lower.

    Consumer staples also lost ​ground, falling 0.7%.

    On Wall Street, the S&P 500 communication services sector was the market’s weakest sector, weighed down by Alphabet shares, which fell 1.8% after Google’s parent said it sold bonds worth US$20 billion. The announcement played in to investor worries about the amount of money technology companies say they must spend to support the artificial-intelligence boom, with Amazon, Alphabet, Meta and Microsoft collectively set to spend hundreds of billions in 2026 as they ​race for AI dominance.

    The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 52.27 points, or 0.10%, to 50,188.14, after hitting an intraday record high earlier in the day. The S&P 500 lost 23.01 points, or 0.33%, to 6,941.81 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 136.20 points, or 0.59%, to 23,102.47.

    Gains of more than 2% in stocks such as Walt Disney and Home Depot helped push up the blue-chip Dow, countering declines in shares including Coca-Cola, which finished down 1.5% after missing Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter revenue.

    In other individual stocks, Datadog jumped 13.7% and led S&P 500 percentage ⁠gainers on the day after the cloud-based monitoring and analytics platform beat quarterly estimates.

    In the ​consumer discretionary sector, Marriott closed up 8.5% for its biggest daily gain since April after also hitting a record high. The hotel chain projected a 35% jump ⁠in fees from co-branded credit cards, as affluent travelers splurge on luxury vacations.

    Shares of S&P Global slumped 9.7%, making it the biggest loser in the S&P 500 after forecasting 2026 profit ‌below analysts’ estimates. Peers Moody’s and MSCI also fell.

    Spotify shares soared 14.7% after the audio-streaming platform forecast first-quarter earnings above expectations, benefiting from strong user growth ​and price hikes.

    Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.47-to-1 ratio on the NYSE where there were 795 new highs and 65 new lows. On the Nasdaq, 2,276 stocks rose and 2,447 fell as declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.08-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 72 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 105 new highs and 107 new lows.

    On U.S. ​exchanges, 17.89 billion shares changed hands compared with the 20.68 billion-share moving average for the last 20 sessions.

  • China consumer inflation rises less than expected in January as producer price deflation persists

    Key Points

    • Persistent price pressure highlighted weak demand despite meeting last year’s growth target.
    • Policymakers signaled looser monetary policy ahead of key economic meetings.

    https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/11/china-inflation-january-cpi-ppi-deflation.html