Our roundup of Canadian small-caps of between $100-million and $2.5-billion in market capitalization making news and on the move today.
MTY Food Group Inc. (MTY-T) announced it’s buying Papa Murphy’s Holdings, Inc. (FRSH-Q) for US$6.45 per share, representing total transaction value of approximately US$190-million, including Papa Murphy’s net debt outstanding.
The purchase implies a premium of 31.9 per cent to the Papa Murphy's closing price on April 10 and 46.3 per cent from Nov. 7, before Papa Murphy's announced a process to explore and evaluate strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value, the company stated.
"This is an important transaction for MTY as we add a brand with a differentiated position in pizza to our existing U.S. portfolio," stated Eric Lefebvre, CEO of MTY said. "Papa Murphy's is a unique concept with over a 35-year history of providing a superior quality product made with fresh ingredients. We believe the pizza segment is highly attractive due to its size, fragmented nature and growth potential."
MTY also reported first-quarter revenue increased 42 per cent from $75.5-million to $107.3-million, "mainly driven by the acquisitions of Imvescor Restaurant Group and Casa Grecque." Net income attributable to shareholders decreased to $14.7-million, or 58 cents per share compared to $44.3-million or $2.07 per share for the same period last year. "The results were impacted unfavorably by an adjustment in the prospective income tax rate for the U.S. used to calculate the deferred income taxes in the first quarter of 2018," the company stated. Excluding the impact of this non-recurring adjustment, net income attributable to owners would have been $8.8-million in 2018 or 41 cents per share, the company stated.
Analysts were expecting revenue of $96.2-million and earnings of 58 cents per share.
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Crombie Real Estate Investment Trust (CRR.UN-T) announced an agreement to sell an 89-per-cent non-managing interest in a 26 property portfolio for a total of $161.6-million to a U.S. private equity group. The REIT said it will retain an 11-per-cent ownership interest and will continue to manage and operate the properties.
"This transaction is another example of our team's solid execution against strategy," said Don Clow, CEO. "Such partial dispositions at pricing in line with IFRS fair values highlight the quality and value of our portfolio and demonstrate our attractiveness as a strong managing partner."
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Savaria Corp. (SIS-T) announced a $70.75-million bought-deal financing. It has an agreement with a syndicate of underwriters led by Desjardins Capital Markets to sell 5 million common shares at a price of $14.15 each.
Savaria also announced its preliminary results for the first quarter, including revenue that's expected to be approximately $84-million and adjusted EBITDA to be slightly over $10-million, an increase of 48 per cent and 26 per cent, respectively, over the comparable period in 2018. Analysts are expecting revenue of $88.2-million and EBITDA of $11.1-million for the first quarter of 2019.
Savaria is also reaffirming its full fiscal year 2019 forecast with respect to revenue of $385-million to $400-million and adjusted EBITDA in a range of $55-million to $60-million.
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Knight Therapeutics Inc. (GUD-T) issued a statement to thank “a rapidly growing list of shareholders and the analyst community for overwhelming support” ahead of its May 9 shareholder meeting.
"All analysts who cover Knight have issued reports that have been supportive of Knight’s disciplined strategy for profitable growth while rejecting activist shareholder Meir Jakobsohn’s flawed and self-serving analysis and risky plan," the company stated.
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The North West Company Inc. (NWC-T) said its fourth-quarter consolidated sales increased 7.1 per cent to $532.5-million. Net earnings decreased $2.4-million or 14.8 per cent to $13.9-million. Net earnings attributable to shareholders were $13-million and diluted earnings per share were 27 cents per share compared to 31 cents per share a year earlier, the company stated. Analysts were expecting revenue of $534.4-million and earnings of 45 cents per share.
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Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (TRUL-C) said its fourth-quarter revenue grew 172 per cent to US$35.9-million versus the same quarter a year earlier. Analysts were expecting revenue of US$33.4-million. Adjusted EBITDA increased to US$15.2-million from US$2.2-million a year earlier.
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AgJunction Inc. (AJX-T) announced the closing of its facilities in Fremont, Cali. and Brisbane, Australia, “as the company continues its consolidation strategy into the existing corporate headquarters in Scottsdale, Arizona.” It said the closures will result in an approximate 25-per-cent reduction in its workforce by year-end.
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Westleaf Inc. (WL-X) announced a $12-million bought deal financing. It has an agreement with a syndicate of underwriters led by Canaccord Genuity Corp., which has agreed to purchase 12,000 convertible debenture units at a price of $1,000 each. The company said the net proceeds will be used “for working capital requirements and general corporate purposes.”
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Heritage Cannabis Holdings Corp. (CANN-C) announced a $10-million bought-deal offering. It has an agreement with a syndicate of investment dealers led by Cormark Securities Inc., which has agreed to purchase 18.9 million units of the company at a price of 53 cents each. The company said the net proceeds will be used “for working capital and general corporate purposes.”
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Badger Daylighting Ltd. (BAD-T) announced the appointment of Darren Yaworsky as its vice president finance and chief financial officer, effective June 3.
Mr. Yaworsky will join the company from Wajax Corp. (WJX-T), where he is senior vice president, finance and CFO. He succeeds Gerald (Jerry) Schiefelbein who announced his retirement in December. Wajax announced Mr. Yaworsky’s resignation, saying he will remain with the corporation until the release of its first-quarter results.