Topic: How To Invest

Hi, Pat: I want to get your opinion on Liquor Stores N.A. Thanks.

Article Excerpt

A: Liquor Stores N.A. Ltd., $15.04, symbol LIQ on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 27.3 million; Market cap: $408.4 million; www.liquorstoresna.ca), is North America’s largest private liquor store operator, with 244 outlets. Of that total, 173 are in Alberta, 35 are in B.C., 23 are in Alaska and 13 are in Kentucky. Liquor Stores’ banners include Liquor Depot, Liquor Barn and Brown Jug. Alberta privatized retail liquor sales in 1993, prompting Irv Kipnes to found Liquor Depot and Henry Bereznicki to start Liquor World that year. Kipnes and Bereznicki, both Edmonton-based real estate developers, merged their companies and founded Liquor Stores Income Fund in 2004. The fund first sold units to the public at $10 each and began trading on Toronto in September 2004. Liquor Stores Income Fund converted to a corporation on December 31, 2010, in response to Ottawa’s income trust tax. The company’s strategy is to offer…