Metro ups value for investors

Article Excerpt

METRO INC., $60.68, is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol MRU; Shares o/s: 244.1 million; Market cap: $14.9 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 1.7%; www.metro.ca) operates 950 grocery stores and 650 drugstores (mainly under the Jean Coutu banner), in Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick. The stock held up well during the pandemic as governments designated its supermarkets and drugstores essential services for consumers. In fact, it hit a new all-time high of $65.85 on August 3, 2021. That jump is partly due to Metro’s share buybacks. It recently added 1.5 million shares to its current authorization after repurchasing the maximum of 7.0 million shares (for a total of $403.7 million) under the initial plan. This new authorization expires November 24, 2021. Metro Inc. remains a buy. buy…