Sears Canada posted a net loss of $91.6-million, or 90 cents per share, for the second quarter ended July 30, compared with a profit of $13.5-million, or 13 cents per share, a year earlier.The Canadian Press
Our roundup of Canadian small-caps of between $100-million and $2.5-billion in market capitalization making news and on the move today.
GMP Capital Inc. (GMP-T) responded to a Globe and Mail article on Tuesday regarding a possible transaction involving Richardson GMP Limited.
"As previously disclosed by GMP, the Richardson GMP shareholders agreement contains a shareholder liquidity mechanism which could result in a transaction," the company said in a statement, which it said was at the request of the TSX's market surveillance.
"GMP, in co-operation with its fellow shareholders of Richardson GMP, continuously evaluates potential alternatives for its interest in Richardson GMP. Neither GMP's management nor its Board of Directors has made any decision regarding a transaction involving Richardson GMP or the timing thereof," the company said.
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Department store operator Sears Canada Inc. (SCC-T) reported a quarterly loss, compared with a year-earlier profit, hurt by a 15.6 per cent fall in sales.
The company said same-store sales fell 5.5 per cent as traffic for big-ticket items such as major appliances fell due to termination of a credit card agreement and lower-than-expected sales of new merchandise launched in spring.
Bank of Nova Scotia said in October it would buy JPMorgan & Chase Co.'s Canadian credit card portfolio associated with Sears Canada.
Sears Canada, hit by increasing competition from U.S. retail giants such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc., has been shutting down stores and cutting jobs.
The company said it cut $128-million in costs for the first half of this year and said it was planning cost cuts at the higher end of its previously announced $127-million to $155-million forecast.
Sears Canada posted a net loss of $91.6-million or 90 cents per share, for the second quarter ended July 30, compared with a profit of $13.5-million, or 13 cents per share, a year earlier.
The year-earlier quarter included a gain of $67.2-million as a result of sale-and-leaseback transactions.
Revenue fell to $648.5-million from $768.8-million.
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Bear Creek Mining Corp. (BCM-X) says hearings regarding its Santa Ana arbitration claim started on Wednesday at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes headquarters in Washington, D.C.
It said a decision on the outcome of Bear Creek's case is expected in the second half of 2017.
"Bear Creek and its legal counsel remain very confident in the merits of the company's claim that the Santa Ana project was treated unfairly by the Republic of Peru and ultimately expropriated in June 2011 through Peru's issuance of Supreme Decree 032 that revoked, without notice or an opportunity to be heard, the company's rights to advance the Santa Ana project," it said in a release.
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Evertz Technologies Ltd. (ET-T) reported first-quarter revenue of $87-million, up three per cent from the same quarter a year ago.
Analysts were expecting revenue of $91.7-million.
Net earnings were flat at $18.6-million for the quarter or 25 cents per share.
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Major Drilling Group International Inc. (MDI-T) reported first-quarter revenue of $69.1-million, down 18 per cent $83.9-million recorded for the same quarter last year. Analysts were looking for revenue of $65.3-million in the most recent quarter.
Its net loss was $9.8-million or 12 cents per share for the quarter, compared to a net loss of $11.2-million or 14 cents per share for the prior year quarter.
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Calian Group Ltd. (CGY-T) says it has "re-won" two long-term DND contracts for a combined value of $29-million with the Military Personnel Generation (MilPersGen) and the Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (RCEME) Schools.
"Customer retention is the first pillar of Calian's growth strategy. The re-win of these two contracts is yet another example of our long-standing relationship with the Canadian Army and we appreciate the continued trust in our ability to support their training needs," stated CEO Kevin Ford in a release.
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Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc. (IRG-T) reported third quarter revenue of $13.1-million, up 19 per cent from $11-million a year earlier. Net earnings were $3.1-million or 5 cents per share, versus net earnings of $2.5-million or four cents a year earlier.
Analysts were expecting revenue of $9.1-million and earnings of 4 cents per share.
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ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc. (ATA-T) says it has received an order booking, valued at $40-million, from an unnamed leading North American-based medical device company for the automated manufacturing of their innovative drug delivery device.
"This order booking further reflects ATS's growth strategy of providing comprehensive, value-based enterprise manufacturing systems for customers built on differentiating technological solutions and global capabilities," stated CEO Anthony Caputo in a release. "We appreciate the trust this new customer has placed with ATS and look forward to a long-term relationship with a market leader."
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Aralez Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ARZ-T;ARLZ-Q) has acquired the U.S. and Canadian rights to a drug called Zontivity, used to help patients with a history of heart attack or with narrowing of leg arteries.
It said the asset purchase agreement included an initial upfront payment of $25-million, paid from cash on hand.
"The transaction also includes graduated royalties and potential added future consideration in the form of payments for achieving certain aggregate annual sales-based milestones," the company said.
Merck will continue to distribute the product on behalf of Aralez for up to 12 months while the product rights, packaging and labelling and other responsibilities are transferred to Aralez Pharmaceuticals Trading DAC, the company said in a release.