Topic: Growth Stocks

BMTC GROUP $14.45 – Toronto symbol GBT.A

BMTC GROUP $14.45 (Toronto symbol GBT.A; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (514-648-5757; No website; Shares outstanding: 45.5 million; Market cap: $654.7 million; Dividend yield: 1.7%) is one of Quebec’s biggest retailers of furniture, electronics and appliances, with 33 outlets. It mainly sells these products through its two affiliates: Brault & Martineau and Ameublements Tanguay.

In March 2012, BMTC introduced a new banner, EconoMax, which offers lower-priced products. The company rebranded four outlets that had operated as Brault & Martineau liquidation centres.

It opened four more EconoMax stores in 2013, including in Ste-Eustache and Laval in the latest quarter. In the three months ended September 30, 2013, the company’s sales fell 4.2%, to $187.3 million from $195.6 million a year earlier. It earned $0.34 a share in the latest quarter, down 12.8% from $0.39 a share a year ago.

In the first three quarters of 2013, BMTC bought back 3.5% of its shares. In 2012, it repurchased 2.4%. It plans to continue these buybacks. Repurchases cut the number of shares outstanding, which means pershare earnings rise because net income is divided by fewer shares. That helps boost stock prices.

Even so, the company’s outlook is uncertain, and the stock trades at 15.7 times BMTC’s latest 12 months of earnings. That’s high for a retailer with limited near-term growth prospects.

BMTC Group is a hold.

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