Pinkberry
Our roundup of Canadian small-caps of between $100-million and $2.5-billion in market capitalization making news and on the move today.
MTY Food Group Inc. (MTY-T) says it's buying Kahala Brands, Ltd., the restaurant franchise that includes Pinkberry, TacoTime and Cold Stone Creamery, for $300-million (U.S.) in cash and shares.
"This is one of the most important days in the history of MTY, being able to acquire a great portfolio of brands managed by among the very best people in the industry," stated MTY CEO Stanley Ma. "MTY had been searching for the right foundation for its US expansion for the last three years, and it has finally found the perfect match. The combination of the two companies' portfolio and expertise will produce tremendous opportunities in Canada, in the United States and worldwide."
Kahala's network, which franchises and operates approximately 2,800 stores worldwide, under 18 brands in 25 countries, generates annual system sales of over $950 million (Canadian).
The purchase will be paid by issuing 2.3 million shares of MTY and $240-million (U.S.) in cash.
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Gibson Energy Inc. (GEI-T) says it plans to raise $300-million in two financings.
The first part is a bought deal co-led by BMO Capital Markets and RBC Capital Markets that includes 12.95 million shares at $15.45 each to raise $200 million. The second part is $100-million of unsecured subordinated convertible debentures at a price of $1,000 each.
"The net proceeds of the offering will be used to initially repay bank indebtedness, fund the company's previously announced 2016 and 2017 growth capital program, and the potential expansion thereof, and for general corporate purposes," it said in a release.
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Altus Group Ltd (AIF-T) says its CEO Robert Courteau is taking over leadership of its Altus Analytics Solutions division.
It said the most recent president, Robert Ruggles, "is no longer with Altus Group."
"The company wishes Mr. Ruggles well in his future endeavors," it said in a statement.
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Balmoral Resources Ltd. (BAR-T) says it plans to sell its interest in the Discovery Zone Property, a 10.5 square kilometre subdivision of its larger Fenelon Property, to Wallbridge Mining Co. Ltd (WM-T) in deal that includes both cash and shares.
Balmoral said it will receive an immediate payment of 2.4 million common shares of Wallbridge, cash payments of about $3.5-million and wll retain a one per cent net smelter return royalty on all future production from the property.
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Redknee Solutions Inc. (RKN-T) says it has a new multi-year services agreement with Ukranian mobile operator lifecell.
"The contract strengthens Redknee's partnership with lifecell, allowing the operator to leverage Redknee's monetization and subscriber management platform to quickly launch new and innovative products and services while improving and standardizing service levels across multiple geographic locations," the company said.
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Argonaut Gold Inc. (AR-T) said it has raised $4.5-million in a private placement of flow-through common shares.
The company said it has issued 1.28 million flow-through common shares at $3.55 each, representing a 24.5-per-cent premium from the date of pricing on May 9.
It said the proceeds will be used to fund Canadian exploration expenses.
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Héroux-Devtek Inc. (HRX-T) said fourth-quarter sales were $117.5-million, a 10.8-per-cent increase from a year earlier.
That beat analyst expectations of $114.9-million, according to Thomson Reuters.
The company said the increase "reflects higher sales to the defence aerospace market, while year-over-year fluctuations in the value of the Canadian currency versus foreign currencies increased fourth-quarter sales by $9.8-million"
Adjusted net income was $9.1-million, or 25 cents per share versus $7.5-million, or 21 cents per share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015.