TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Friday on the Toronto Stock Exchange:
Toronto Stock Exchange (19,527.30, down 15.65 points.)
Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX:MFC). Financials. Down nine cents, or 0.36 per cent, to $24.82 on 10.3 million shares.
Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSX:SLF). Financials. Up 22 cents, or 0.34 per cent, to $65.13 on 8.5 million shares.
NuVista Energy Ltd. (TSX:NVA). Energy. Up 22 cents, or 8.37 per cent, to $2.85 on 5.3 million shares.
Suncor Energy Inc. (TSX:SU). Energy. Up 10 cents, or 0.36 per cent, to $27.91 on 4.9 million shares.
Capstone Mining Corp. (TSX:CS). Materials. Down 29 cents, or 5.11 per cent, to $5.39 on 3.3 million shares.
Cenovus Energy Inc. (TSX:CVE). Energy. Unchanged at $9.43 on 3.3 million shares.
Companies in the news:
West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (TSX:WFG). Down 38 cents to $91.39. A move by the U.S. Commerce Department to increase preliminary tariffs on softwood lumber imports from Canada, if finalized, will raise producer costs and cut into their profits but is unlikely to affect prices to consumers of wood products, analysts say. The department's decision to more than double the "all others" preliminary countervailing and anti-dumping rate to 18.32 per cent from 8.99 per cent on Friday drew criticism from the Canadian industry and applause from the lumber industry south of the border. The increase is unlikely to result in higher lumber prices because they've more than doubled in the past year to all-time record highs, said Kevin Mason, managing director of ERA Forest Products Research. Friday's rates applied to individual companies vary in impact, he said, with West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. up slightly from 9.0 to 11.4 per cent, Canfor Corp. up from 4.6 to 21.0 per cent, Resolute Forest Products Inc. jumping from 20.3 per cent to 30.2 per cent, and J.D. Irving up from 4.2 to 15.8 per cent. Former president Donald Trump's administration imposed a 20 per cent "all others" tariff on Canadian softwood in 2018, before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, but lowered it to about nine per cent late last year after a decision favouring Canada by the World Trade Organization.
Canadian National Railway Co. (TSX:CNR). Down $2.47 or 1.9 per cent to $125.80. Kansas City Southern has formally backed a merger offer from Canadian National Railway Co., but Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. says it will still seek regulatory approval for its rival offer in case the CN deal is unable to proceed. The agreement between CN and the U.S. railways was unanimously approved by the boards of directors at both companies. CN topped CP's bid for KCS with an offer valued at US$325 per share in stock and cash that implied an enterprise value for KCS of US$33.6 billion. CN will also fund the US$700-million break fee owed to CP and will pay US$1 billion to KCS if a key voting trust isn't approved by the U.S. regulator. The agreement still requires approval from KCS shareholders as well as regulatory approval from the U.S. Surface Transportation Board, the Federal Economic Competition Commission (COFECE) and Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT) in Mexico. CN's voting trust, which it wants to use to complete the deal, is expected to close later this year if it secures approval from the STB. At that point, KCS shareholders would receive their payments while CN awaits final regulatory approval for the merger, expected in the second half of 2022.
Onex Corp. (TSX:ONEX). Up 68 cents to $86.77. More than 500 WestJet employees in Vancouver and Calgary have unionized with Unifor, saying a change in workplace culture after the airline’s sale was a big part of the workplace organization efforts. The 531 WestJet workers — which include airport agents such as customer service workers — join more than 7,000 other unionized airline workers with Unifor under carriers like Air Canada and Air Canada Jazz. WestJet, which is owned by Onex Corp., said it has received notice of the union's successful application and will work through the next steps with the national labour board. Unifor organizing director Kellie Scanlan said conversations with WestJet workers had been going on prior to the pandemic, and moved online after COVID-19 hit. She said unionization efforts are continuing at WestJet's bases in Toronto and Edmonton as well. The union said workplace organization has been part of the successful lobbying effort for financial support for the airline industry from the federal government amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 21, 2021.
The Canadian Press
