TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Wednesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange:
Toronto Stock Exchange (21,184.95, up 279.67 points.)
Athabasca Oil Corp. (TSX:ATH). Energy. Down 10 cents, or 3.6 per cent, to $2.66 on 19.1 million shares.
Tamarack Valley Energy Ltd. (TSX:TVE). Energy. Down six cents, or 1.2 per cent, to $5.14 on 11.5 million shares.
Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX:MFC). Financials. Up 30 cents, or 1.2 per cent, to $25.43 on 11.2 million shares.
Cenovus Energy Inc. (TSX:CVE). Energy. Up 85 cents, or 3.4 per cent, to $25.70 on 10.2 million shares.
Argonaut Gold Inc. (TSX:AR). Materials. Down one cent, or 0.5 per cent, to $2.14 on 10.1 million shares.
Suncor Energy Inc. (TSX:SU). Energy. Up six cents, or 0.1 per cent, to $47.59 on 9.8 million shares.
Companies in the news:
Loblaw Companies Ltd. (TSX:L). Down $1.35 or 1.2 per cent to $112.67. Canada’s big three grocers say rising food prices are shaping shopping habits, with Loblaw Companies Ltd. the latest to offer insight into how people are saving money on their grocery bill amid soaring inflation. Consumers are shopping for groceries more often, buying less with each visit and shifting to value-oriented stores as pandemic restrictions loosen and the cost of food increases, Loblaw said Wednesday as it reported its first-quarter results. The grocery and drugstore retailer said its discount division, which includes No Frills and Maxi, posted strong growth in the quarter while demand for its in-house products surged. Revenue for the quarter totalled $12.26 billion, up from $11.87 billion in the same quarter last year. Loblaw reported its profit available to common shareholders totalled $437 million or $1.30 per diluted share for the 12-week period compared with $313 million or 90 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
Iamgold Corp. (TSX:IMG). Down 91 cents or 25.1 per cent to $2.71. Shares in Iamgold Corp. were down more than 25 per cent in afternoon trading after the company warned its Côté Gold project will cost more than expected. The company says the remaining project costs for the mine being built in northern Ontario between Timmins and Sudbury could be between US$1.2 billion and US$1.3 billion. It also withdrew its 2022 and 2023 Côté Gold project costs guidance and said it will provide a detailed update before the end of the second quarter. RBC Capital Markets estimated the price tag to complete the mine is up about US$600 million from the company’s earlier guidance and that it would be delayed by four to five months. Iamgold holds a 64.75 per cent stake in the project, Sumitomo Metal Mining owns 27.75 per cent and 7.5 per cent is held by other investors.
Barrick Gold Corp. (TSX:ABX). Up 74 cents or 2.6 per cent to $29.53. Barrick Gold Corp. reported a first-quarter profit of US$438 million, down from US$538 million in the same quarter last year. The gold miner also says it will pay a quarterly dividend of 20 cents per share including its base payment of 10 cents plus an additional 10 cents related to a performance-based component. Barrick, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 25 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended March 31, compared with 30 cents per diluted share a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter totalled US$2.85 billion, down from $2.96 billion in the first three months of 2021. Gold production in the quarter amounted to 990,000 ounces, down from 1.1 million a year earlier, while copper production totalled 101 million pounds, up from 93 million pounds in the same quarter last year. On an adjusted basis, Barrick says it earned 26 cents per share for the quarter, down from an adjusted profit of 29 cents per share a year ago.
Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSX:MFI). Up 54 cents or two per cent to $27.90. Maple Leaf Foods Inc. reported its first-quarter profit fell compared with a year ago even as its sales rose seven per cent as it dealt with COVID-19 and supply chain disruptions and higher costs. Chief executive Michael McCain says the impact of the Omicron variant, including high levels of absenteeism, inflation and supply chain disruptions, challenged the company in the quarter. Maple Leaf says it earned $13.7 million or 11 cents per share for the quarter ended March 31 compared with a profit of $47.7 million or 39 cents per share a year earlier. Sales totalled $1.13 billion, up from $1.05 billion in the same quarter last year. The increase came as sales in its meat protein group rose to $1.09 billion for the quarter compared with $1.01 billion a year earlier, while sales for its plant protein business climbed to $44.9 million from $42.6 million. On an adjusted basis, Maple Leaf says it earned three cents per share for the quarter, down from an adjusted profit of 27 cents per share a year ago.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 4, 2022.