Updating CARFINCO FINANCIAL GROUP, GOODYEAR TIRE & RUBBER CO. and TIM HORTONS

Article Excerpt

CARFINCO FINANCIAL GROUP $10.10 (Toronto symbol CFN; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-888- 486-4356; www.carfinco.com; Shares outstanding: 26.4 million; Market cap: $266.6 million; Dividend yield: 4.8%) has now expanded into the U.S. through its $9.5-million purchase of Persian Acceptance Corp., an automotive lender that also caters to less affluent borrowers. Persian operates in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Connecticut and Vermont. It works with about 362 car dealers who use the company to get loans for their customers. Persian currently has $42.7 million U.S. in outstanding loans. To put that in perspective, Carfinco has $195.0 million of loans. Growth by acquisition, especially into the U.S., adds risk. However, Carfinco is cutting that risk by keeping key members of Persian’s management in place, including Peter Miller, its founder and president. Miller sold the company to Carfinco and can receive an additional $2 million on the purchase price if Persian reaches certain performance targets over the next two years. Carfinco is still a buy for…