Good quarter for Leon’s

Article Excerpt

LEON’S FURNITURE LTD. $22 is a buy for aggressive investors. The retailer (Toronto symbol LNF; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 68.0 million; Market cap: $1.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.6; Dividend yield: 3.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.leons.ca) sells furniture and appliances through 302 stores, mainly under the Leon’s and The Brick banners. In the first quarter of 2024, Leon’s sales rose 9.6%, to $562.3 million from $513.0 million a year earlier. Revenues were higher due to strong furniture and appliance sales. Same-store sales gained 9.0% in the quarter, its second consecutive quarter of growth. Excluding one-time items, earnings in the quarter jumped 27.1%, to $16.4 million from $12.9 million. Per-share earnings rose 26.3%, to $0.24 from $0.19, on fewer shares outstanding. Leon’s will probably earn $1.95 a share in 2024, and the stock trades at 11.3 times that estimate. The $0.72 dividend yields a solid 3.3%. Leon’s is a buy for aggressive investors. investors…