Here’s our Pick of the Month

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INTACT FINANCIAL $96.47 (Toronto symbol IFC; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (416-341-1464; www.intactfc.com; Shares outstanding: 139.2 million; Market cap: $13.4 billion; Dividend yield: 2.9%) is Canada’s largest provider of property and casualty insurance. The company insures more than five million individuals and businesses. Its major brands are Intact Insurance, Canada BrokerLink and belairdirect. For the three months ended December 31, 2017, the insurer’s revenue rose 17.0%, to $2.29 billion from $1.96 billion a year earlier. Earnings per share in the quarter rose just 3.2%, to $1.63 from $1.58. Higher weather-related claims slowed profits for both Intact’s personal auto and personal property lines. In the latest quarter, the insurer reported a 92.6% combined ratio (the claims paid out divided by the premiums taken in—the lower, the better). That’s slightly above the 92.5% it reported a year earlier. Intact should continue to benefit from its September 2017 acquisition of OneBeacon Insurance for $1.7 billion U.S. OneBeacon is a Minnesota-based insurance holding company; its property-casualty insurance businesses provide a range of…