Author: Consultant

  • Democrats to maintain control of the United States Senate

    Democrats to maintain control of the United States Senate

    Democrats will have continued control of the Senate, the Fox News Decision Desk can project. 

    Democrats will maintain power in the Senate thanks to Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto being declared the winner in Nevada on Saturday night in her race against Republican challenger Adam Laxalt. 

    Democrats now hold 50 seats compared to the 49 seats held by Republicans with one seat yet to be decided in Georgia where a runoff election will be held between Republican Herschel Walker and Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock on December 6th.

    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/democrats-maintain-control-united-states-senate

  • Economic Calendar: Nov 14 – Nov 18

    Economic Calendar: Nov 14 – Nov 18

    Monday November 14

    Euro zone industrial production

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canadian construction investment for September.

    (8:45 a.m. ET) Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem makes the opening remarks in Ottawa at the Conference on Diversity and Inclusion in Economics, Finance and Central Banking.

    (10:30 a.m. ET) Bank of Canada Senior Loan Officer Survey for Q3.

    Also: Ontario’s fiscal update.

    Earnings include: Africa Oil Corp.; H&R REIT; Ivanhoe Mines Ltd.; K92 Mining Inc.; MAG Silver Corp.; Northwest Healthcare Properties REIT

    Tuesday November 15

    China industrial production, retail sales and fixed asset investment

    Japan real GDP and industrial production

    Euro zone real GDP and trade deficit

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s manufacturing sales and new orders for September. The Street expects month-over-month declines of 0.5 per cent.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s wholesale trade for September. Estimate is a decline of 0.2 per cent from August.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s new motor vehicle sales for September. Estimate is a year-over-year drop of 2.5 per cent.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. PPI Final Demand for October. Consensus is a rise of 0.5 per cent from September and up 8.3 per cent year-over-year

    (9 a.m. ET) Canada’s existing home sales and average prices for October. Estimates are year-over-year declines of 36.5 per cent and 8.5 per cent, respectively.

    (9 a.m. ET) Canada’s MLS Home Price Index for October. Estimate is a drop of 1.0 per cent year-over-year.

    Earnings include: Cresco Labs Inc.; Home Depot Inc.; Stelco Holdings Inc.; Walmart Inc.

    Wednesday November 16

    Japan core machine orders and tertiary industry index

    (8:15 a.m. ET) Canadian housing starts for October. The Street expects an annualized rate decline of 11.7 per cent.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s CPI for October. The Street is forecasting a rise of 0.8 per cent from September and 6.9 per cent year-over-year.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. retail sales for October. Consensus is a rise of 1.0 per cent month-over-month (or 0.3 per cent excluding automobiles and gas).

    (8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. import prices for October. The Street is projecting a decline of 0.5 per cent from September and up 4.0 per cent year-over-year.

    (9:15 a.m. ET) U.S. industrial production for October. Consensus is a month-over-month rise of 0.1 per cent with capacity utilization increasing 0.1 per cent to 80.4 per cent.

    (10 a.m. ET) U.S. NAHB Housing Price Index for November.

    (10 a.m. ET) U.S. business inventories for September.

    Earnings include: Cisco Systems Inc.; Loblaw Companies Ltd.; Lowe’s Companies Inc.; Metro Inc.; Nvidia Corp.; TJX Companies Inc.; Target Corp.

    Thursday November 17

    Japan trade deficit

    Euro zone CPI

    (8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. initial jobless claims for week of Nov. 12. Estimate is 222,000, down 3,000 from the previous week.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. housing starts for October. The Street expects a decline of 1.3 per cent on annualized rate basis.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. building permits for October. Consensus is an annualized rate decline of 2.8 per cent.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. Philadelphia Fed Index for November.

    Earnings include: Applied Materials Inc.; Bellus Health Inc.; Birchcliff Energy Ltd.; Macy’s Inc.; Osisko Mining Corp.; Palo Alto Networks Inc.; Pipestone Energy Corp.

    Friday November 18

    Japan CPI

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canadian industrial product and raw materials price indexes for October. Estimate is month-over-month increases of 0.5 per cent for both.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s international securities transactions for September.

    (8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s household and mortgage credit for September.

    (10 a.m. ET) U.S. quarterly services survey for Q3.

    (10 a.m. ET) U.S. existing home sales for October. The Street is projecting an annualized rate decline of 7.3 per cent.

    (10 a.m. ET) U.S. leading indicator for October. Estimate is a decline of 0.4 per cent.

    Earnings include: Li Auto Inc.

  • Intact Financial Corporation reports Q3-2022 results

    Intact Financial Corporation reports Q3-2022 results

    TORONTO, Nov. 8, 2022 /CNW/ – (TSX: IFC)  

    Highlights

    • Net operating income per share1 decreased 6% to $2.70, reflecting a slight increase in operating combined ratio, offset in part by higher investment and distribution income
    • Operating DPW2 grew 2% as continued solid growth in specialty lines was partially offset by profitability actions, including strategic exits
    • Operating combined ratio1 was robust at 92.6%, with very strong results in commercial lines and Canada personal auto performing as expected
    • EPS increased 26% to $2.02 with solid operating and non-operating performance, while last year’s results were impacted by an impairment charge on an investment
    • OROE1 and ROE1 were strong at 15.0% and 19.1%, respectively, reflecting continued strong performance
    • BVPS was stable year-over-year, as strong earnings were offset by significant mark-to-market losses on investments

    https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/intact-financial-corporation-reports-q3-2022-results-808547396.html

  • Saputo Earnings Up 48 Per Cent In Second Quarter, Revenues Rise 21 Per Cent

    Saputo Earnings Up 48 Per Cent In Second Quarter, Revenues Rise 21 Per Cent

    — Saputo Inc. saw its net earnings rise by 48 per centin its fiscal 2023 second quarter ended Sept. 30.

    The Montreal-based company reported net earnings of $145 million or 35 cents per diluted share, up from $98 million or 24 cents per diluted share in the same quarter last year.

    Revenues rose to $4.46 billion from $3.69 billion a year earlier, an increase of 21 per cent.

    The company says its increased revenue was due to higher prices Saputo implemented across all its sectors, higher average block cheese and butter prices in the U.S., and higher international cheese and dairy ingredient market prices.

    The company says it was able to successfully offset the cost of rising inflation through price increases.

    Adjusted net earnings were $177 million in the second quarter, up from $116 million a year earlier, while the adjusted net earnings margin rose to four per cent from 3.1 per cent.

    This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2022.

    Companies in this story: (TSX:SAP)

  • Brookfield Reports Q3 Profit Down, Revenue And Operating Funds From Operations Up

    Brookfield Reports Q3 Profit Down, Revenue And Operating Funds From Operations Up

     Brookfield reported its third-quarter profit fell compared with a year ago when it benefited from higher valuation and disposition gains.

    The alternative asset manager, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its net income attributable to common shareholders totalled US$423 million or 24 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, down from US$797 million or 47 cents per share a year earlier.

    Revenue for the quarter was US$23.42 billion, up from US$19.25 billion in the same quarter last year.

    Brookfield says operating funds from operations totalled US$1.22 billion or 73 cents per share in its most recent quarter, up from US$934 million or 56 cents per share a year earlier.

    On Wednesday, Brookfield shareholders approved a plan for the company to spin off its asset management business into a separate publicly listed company.

    Brookfield chief financial officer Nick Goodman says the company plans to complete the distribution to shareholders and listing of a 25 per cent interest in its asset management business before the end of the year.

    This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2022.

    Companies in this story: (TSX:BAM.A)

  • Canadian Tire Corporation Reports Third Quarter Results,

    Canadian Tire Corporation Reports Third Quarter Results, Announces 13th Consecutive Year of Annual Dividend Increase and Renewal of Share Repurchase Program

    THIRD QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

    • Consolidated retail sales1 were up 2.8%; consolidated comparable sales (excluding Petroleum)1 were up 0.7%, taking year to date consolidated comparable sales (excluding Petroleum) to 3.8%
      • Canadian Tire Retail (CTR) comparable sales1 were up 0.7% against Q3 of 2021; Seasonal and Gardening and Automotive drove growth in the quarter
      • Mark’s comparable sales1 grew 3.6% against a strong quarter in 2021, as demand for casualwear and industrial apparel remained robust
      • SportChek cycled an exceptional back-to-school quarter in the prior year, with a 1.0% decline in comparable sales1; growth in categories such as cycling and casual clothing partially offset the decline in athletic clothing and footwear
      • Triangle Loyalty member sales outpaced retail sales, driven by an increase in active members and spend per member
    • The Company continued to prioritize organic growth investments and returns to shareholders, as set out in its Better Connected strategy
      • Investments continue to be aimed at delivering a better omnichannel customer experience, with the first two Remarkable Retail stores opened in Ottawa and in the Niagara region (Welland) since the end of the third quarter, and pick-up lockers now rolled out to close to 80% of CTR stores
      • Strengthening the Company’s supply chain fulfillment infrastructure remains a focus. In addition to existing investments in new distribution centres in Calgary and the Greater Toronto Area, the Company has signed a lease on a new 385,000 square foot distribution centre in Richmond, BC, to support longer-term sales growth in Western Canada.
      • The Company increased its annual dividend for the 13th consecutive year to $6.90 per share commencing in March 2023, a cumulative quarterly dividend increase of 33% since last year
      • With the completion of its $400 million share repurchase program, the Company has announced its intention to repurchase an additional $500 million to $700 million Class A Non-Voting shares by the end of 2023
    • Diluted EPS was $3.14; normalized diluted EPS was $3.34, down 20.5%, reflecting lower Retail income before income taxes (IBT), partially offset by a strong performance in Financial Services
      • Retail segment IBT was down $93.5 million in the quarter to $133.0 million; strong Retail segment revenue was at a lower Retail gross margin rate, mainly due to higher freight and product cost inflation. A further $14 million of the IBT variance was attributable to foreign exchange impacts at Helly Hansen.

    https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/canadian-tire-corporation-reports-third-quarter-results-announces-13th-consecutive-year-of-annual-dividend-increase-and-renewal-of-share-repurchase-program-831071326.html

  • Rogers income falls by 24 per cent in first quarter since summer network outage

    Rogers income falls by 24 per cent in first quarter since summer network outage

    Rogers Communications Inc.’s RCI-B-T +1.60%increase July network outage weighed on its third-quarter results, but executives called its impact “isolated” amid a wave of higher demand for wireless and mobile services that is boosting Canada’s telecommunications industry.

    In the first quarterly report from the company to include the effects of the outage, Rogers said its net income fell 24 per cent compared withthe same period last year. It attributed the drop to billing credits it gave customers to compensate them for the outage, and to higher costs of financing its proposed acquisition of Shaw Communications Inc. SJR-B-T -0.11%decrease

    Net income for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was $371-million, down from $490-million last year. Earnings per share were down 24 per cent to $0.71.

    The outage lasted for most of a day and left millions of Rogers customers across the country without wireless, internet and home-phone service. The report says the customer credits amounted to a one-time charge of $150-million, split between $91-million in wireless credits and $59-million in cable credits. The charge was reflected on the company’s income statement as a reduction of revenue.

    Despite the outage, the company’s overall revenue increased 3 per cent compared with last year, to $3.74-billion.

    This was driven by strong growth in Rogers’s wireless division, in line with its peers. The company added 221,000 net mobile-phone subscribers, up 30,000 from last year. Of them, 164,000 were on postpaid plans (which are billed at the end of each month) – down 8.8 per cent from last year. The other 57,000 were prepaid, up 418 per cent.

    Canada’s telecommunications giants all saw increased interest in mobile plans in the quarter. Rogers’s additions to its subscriber base lagged slightly behind Bell Canada, owned by BCE Inc., which added 224,000 new customers in the quarter, but surpassed Telus Communications Inc. T-T +0.07%increase, which added 150,000.

    In an analyst call, Rogers chief executive Anthony Staffieri attributed this growth to increased travel, a widespread return to offices and increased immigration. The boost also came from higher demand for the company’s unlimited data plans, which are more expensive than its other plans. Data usage per user was up, on average, by a third over last year. But Mr. Staffieri warned that growth in revenue from roaming fees could slow next year if a recession curbs international travel.

    Despite the public scrutiny after the outage, churn rates – the proportion of customers who decide to stop doing business with a company – came in lower than some analysts had expected. In an investor note, Canaccord Genuity analyst Aravinda Galappatthige noted that Rogers’s postpaid phone churn came in at 0.97 per cent, “notably higher” than last year, when it was 0.85 per cent. But the figure was still lower than the investment firm’s 1.02-per-cent estimate. Telus’s postpaid churn rate was 0.76 per in the quarter.

    In the analyst call, Mr. Staffieri said that there was “nothing alarming” in the churn rate.

    “In the back half of the quarter, our gross adds and our churn … were back on trends that we had prior to the outage,” Mr. Staffieri said.

    Rogers’s cable business was also affected by the outage. The company reported a 4-per-cent decline in cable revenue, partly as a result of the $59-million in outage cable credits, as well as higher promotional costs. The company faced “very aggressive and opportunistic” cable competition from other telecom companies, Mr. Staffieri said.

    The hit to Rogers’s net income from its Shaw-acquisition debt came in the form of a $139-million payment on its Shaw senior notes, which it issued earlier this year. Rogers is now facing off against Canada’s Competition Commissioner in a four-week-long hearing before the Competition Tribunal over the proposed $26-billion acquisition.

    If the deal doesn’t close by the end of this year, Rogers will be required to pay around $250-million in fees to lenders. It has already paid $520-million in fees to extend the initial Dec. 31 deadline by a year to 2023.

    Revenue from the company’s media business increased 12 per cent in the latest quarter. Rogers owns Toronto’s baseball team, the Blue Jays, and the radio and television broadcasting rights for all of its games. The company said the increase came from its sports facility, the Rogers Centre, reaching full audience capacity after several years of pandemic-related shutdowns and limitations.

  • Manulife core profit hit by declines in wealth & asset management unit

    Manulife core profit hit by declines in wealth & asset management unit

    Manulife Financial Corp MNQFF reported a drop in third-quarter profit on Wednesday, as escalating worries of an economic downturn impaired earnings at its wealth and asset management unit.

    Manulife’s core earnings in global wealth and asset management sank nearly 2 per cent to $345-million in the third quarter, while net inflows dropped 69 per cent to $3-billion as turbulent markets deterred investors.

    A soaring inflation has ravaged the Canadian economy which despite slowing to 6.9 per cent from a peak of 8.1 per cent remains way above the 2 per cent target.

    Last month, the Bank of Canada increased its policy rate by half a percentage point to 3.75 per cent, but warned that economic activity would stall from the fourth quarter of 2022 through the first half of 2023.

    Manulife, Canada’s largest insurer, reported core earnings of $1.32-billion, or 67 cents a share, in the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with $1.52-billion, or 76 cents a share, a year earlier.

    Net income attributed to shareholders was $1.35-billion, or 68 cents per share, compared with $1.59-billion, or 80 cents a share, a year earlier.

  • Here’s a rundown of tech companies that have announced layoffs in 2022

    Here’s a rundown of tech companies that have announced layoffs in 2022

    The job cuts in tech land are piling up, as companies that led the 10-year stock bull market adapt to a new reality.

    Days after Twitter’s new boss Elon Musk slashed half his company’s workforce, Facebook parent Meta announced its most significant round of layoffs ever. Meta said on Wednesday that it’s eliminating 13% of its staff, which amounts to more than 11,000 employees.

    Last month, Meta announced a second straight quarter of declining revenue and forecast another drop in the fourth quarter. Digital advertisers are cutting back on spending as rising inflation curbs consumer spending, and apps like Facebook are suffering from Apple’s iOS privacy update, which limited ad targeting.

    The tech industry broadly has seen a string of layoffs in 2022 in the face of uncertain economic conditions. Here are the big ones that have been announced recently. 

    Meta: about 11,000 jobs cut

    Meta’s disappointing guidance for the fourth quarter wiped out one-fourth of the company’s market cap and pushed the stock to its lowest since 2016.

    The company’s Reality Labs division has lost $9.4 billion so far in this year due to CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s commitment to the metaverse.

    Meta is rightsizing after expanding headcount by about 60% during the pandemic. The business has been hurt by competition from rivals such as TikTok, a broad slowdown in online ad spending and challenges from Apple’s iOS changes.

    In a letter to employees, Zuckerberg said those losing their jobs will receive 16 weeks of pay plus two additional weeks for every year of service. Meta will cover health insurance for six months.

    Twitter: about 3,700 jobs cut

    Shortly after closing his $44 billion purchase of Twitter late last month, Musk cut around 3,700 Twitter employees, according to internal communications viewed by CNBC. That’s about half the staff.

    In a post on Nov. 4, Musk said there was “no choice” but to lay off employees, adding that they were offered three months of severance.

    Musk said the layoffs come as Twitter is losing over $4 million per day. In the second quarter, the last time Twitter reported earnings, revenue fell 1% from a year earlier.

    Lyft: around 700 jobs cut 

    Lyft announced last week that it cut 13% of its staff, or about 700 jobs. In a letter to employees, CEO Logan Green and President John Zimmer pointed to “a probable recession sometime in the next year” and rising rideshare insurance costs.

    For laid-off workers, the ride-hailing company promised 10 weeks of pay, healthcare coverage through the end of April, accelerated equity vesting for the Nov. 20 vesting date and recruiting assistance. Workers who had been there for more than four years will get an extra four weeks of pay, they added.

    Stripe: around 1,100 jobs cut

    Online payments giant Stripe laid off roughly 14% of its staff, which amounts to about 1,100 employees last week. 

    CEO Patrick Collison wrote in a memo to staff that the cuts were necessary amid rising inflation, fears of a looming recession, higher interest rates, energy shocks, tighter investment budgets and sparser startup funding. Taken together, these factors signal “that 2022 represents the beginning of a different economic climate,” he said.

    Stripe said it will pay 14 weeks of severance for all departing employees, and more for those with longer tenure. It will also pay the cash equivalent of six months of existing healthcare premiums or healthcare continuation.

    Stripe was valued at $95 billion last year, and reportedly lowered its internal valuation to $74 billion in July.

    Coinbase: around 1,100 jobs cut

    In June, Coinbase announced it cut 18% of full-time jobs, translating to a reduction of around 1,100 people.

    Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong pointed to a possible recession, a need to manage costs and growing “too quickly” during a bull market. 

    Coinbase, which held its stock market debut, has lost over 80% of its value this year, cratering alongside cryptocurrencies.

    Those laid off received a minimum of 14 weeks of severance plus an additional 2 weeks for every year of employment beyond one year. They also were offered four months of COBRA health insurance in the U.S., and four months of mental health support globally, according to the company’s announcement. 

    Shopify: around 1,000 jobs cut

    In July, Shopify announced it laid off 1,000 workers, which equals 10% of its global employees. 

    In a memo to staff, CEO Tobi Lutke acknowledged he had misjudged how long the pandemic-driven e-commerce boom would last, and said the company is being hit by a broader pullback in online spending. The company’s stock price is down 78% in 2022.

    Shopify said employees who are laid off will receive 16 weeks of severance pay, plus one week for every year of tenure at the company.

    Netflix: around 450 jobs cut

    Netflix announced two rounds of layoffs. In May the streaming service eliminated 150 jobs after Netflix reported its first subscriber loss in a decade. In late June Netflix announced another 300 layoffs. 

    In a statement to employees the company said, “While we continue to invest significantly in the business, we made these adjustments so that our costs are growing in line with our slower revenue growth.” 

    Netflix’s stock is down 58% this year.

    Microsoft: less than 1,000 job cuts reportedly

    In October, Microsoft confirmed that it let go of less than 1% of employees. The cuts impacted fewer than 1,000 people, according to an Axios report which cited an unnamed person. 

    The announcement came after Microsoft called for the slowest revenue growth in more than five years in the quarter that ended Sept. 30.

    Snap: more than 1,000 jobs cut 

    In late August, Snap announced it laid off 20% of its workforce, which equates to over 1,000 employees. 

    Snap CEO Evan Spiegel told employees in a memo that the company needs to restructure its business to deal with its financial challenges. He said the company’s current year-over-year revenue growth rate for the quarter of 8% “is well below what we were expecting earlier this year.”

    Snap has lost 80% of its value this year.

    Robinhood: 31% of its staff

    Retail brokerage firm Robinhood cut 23% of its staff in August, after slashing 9% of its workforce in April. 

    Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev blamed “deterioration of the macro environment, with inflation at 40-year highs accompanied by a broad crypto market crash.”

    The stock is down by more than half in 2022.

    Chime: about 160 jobs cut

    Earlier this month, Fintech company Chime laid off 12% of its workforce, or about 160 employees. 

    A Chime spokesperson told CNBC that the so-called challenger bank – a fintech firm that exclusively offers banking services through websites and smartphone apps – is cutting 12% of its 1,300-person workforce. The company said that while it’s eliminating approximately 160 employees, it’s still hiring for select positions and remains “very well capitalized.”

    Private investors valued Chime at $25 billion just over a year ago.

    Tesla: cutting 10% of salaried employees

    In June, Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote in an email to all employees that the company is cutting 10% of salaried workers.

    “Tesla will be reducing salaried headcount by 10% as we have become overstaffed in many areas,” Musk wrote. “Note this does not apply to anyone actually building cars, battery packs or installing solar. Hourly headcount will increase.”