Sale shores up SNC’s balance sheet

Article Excerpt

SNC-LAVALIN GROUP INC. $19 (Toronto symbol SNC; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares o/s: 175.6 million; Market cap: $3.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.4; Dividend yield: 0.4%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.snclavalin.com) has completed the sale of a 10.01% stake in Highway 407, a toll highway in southern Ontario, to the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB). As a result, the CPPIB now owns 50.01% of the highway. Spain’s Ferrovial S.A. owns 43.23%, and SNC holds the remaining 6.76%. The company received $3.0 billion in cash from the sale. Depending on the highway’s future performance, SNC will receive additional payments of up to $250 million over the next 10 years. It plans to apply the proceeds to its debt, which totalled $4.0 billion on June 30, 2019. SNC-Lavalin is still a hold. hold. …