Topic: How To Invest

Pat: Can I have your recommendation on Liquor Stores N.A.? Thank you.

Article Excerpt

Liquor Stores N.A. Ltd., $17.17, symbol LIQ on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 22.6 million; Market cap: $388.0 million; www.liquorstoresna.com), is Canada’s largest private liquor store operator, with 238 outlets. Of that total, 174 are in Alberta, 35 are in B.C., 20 are in Alaska and nine 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 and began trading on Toronto in September 2004. Liquor Stores Income Fund converted to a regular corporation on December 31, 2010, in response to Ottawa’s income trust tax. The company’s strategy is to offer customers more choice—typically two to three times more products than its competitors. Liquor Stores lets each store juggle its…