A for sale sign reading "sold."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.
Home Capital Group Inc. (HCG-T) commented on the Ontario Securities Commission's allegations against the company and three individuals.
Home Capital Group Inc. and three of its current or former executives are being accused of making false and misleading statements to the public about the reasons the alternative mortgage lender had begun to extend fewer loans.
The Ontario Securities Commission is alleging disclosures Home Capital made in 2015 breached Ontario securities laws, have caused "significant investor harm" and eventually led to a nearly 19-per-cent drop in Home Capital's stock price once the information was released in July, 2015, wiping roughly $600-million in the company's market value the following day.
The company is one of Canada's largest alternative mortgage lenders through its subsidiary, Home Trust.
In a statement late Wednesday, Home Capital said that it has carefully considered its disclosure obligations.
"The company believes that its disclosure satisfied applicable disclosure requirements, and the allegations are without merit," Home Capital said in a news release. "The allegations will be vigorously defended."
The OSC's allegations have not yet been proven. The executives, who are all named by the commission, couldn't be reached immediately for comment on Wednesday night.
-- Christina Pellegrini
**
Aphria Inc. (APH-T) is raising $100-million in debt and equity.
The medical cannabis company said the financing includes $75-million bought deal and $25-million in debt financing through a five-year term loan.
"This is the first time Aphria has raised both debt and equity simultaneously," it said in a release.
It said half of the proceeds will be allocated to the unfunded portion of its expansion project, and the rest for "working capital necessary to support the company" once the expansion is complete "and strategic investments."
"This fund raising is a testament to the confidence of the investment community in Aphria's success to date and our vision for the future," stated CEO Vic Neufeld,
**
TransAlta Corp. (TA-T; TAX-N) says its board has approved a strategy to "accelerate the transition of the company to gas and renewables generation."
The strategy includes:
- retirement of Sundance Unit 1 effective Jan. 1, 2018;
- mothballing of Sundance Unit 2 effective Jan. 1, 2018, for a period of up to two years;
- conversion of Sundance Units 3 to 6 and Keephills Units 1 and 2 from coal-fired generation to gas-fired generation in the 2021 to 2023 timeframe, thereby extending the useful life of these units until the mid-2030s; and
- effective immediately, taking steps to secure the gas supply required for the converted units (expected to be up to 700 million cubic feet of gas per day at peak levels of demand), including the construction of the required pipeline.
"The company is taking steps today that will position us as a leader in clean power generation and improve our competitive position as we consider a future where carbon is a high cost input to power generation," said CEO Dawn Farrell.
**
MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. (MDA-T) has signed a contract for approximately $5-million with Airbus Defence and Space to provide four communication antenna subsystems and control electronics.
"MDA's proven and patented control electronics allows antenna movement in very fine increments which increases the flexibility and performance of the satellite," the company said.
**
Mullen Group Ltd. (MTL-T) reported first-quarter revenue of $284.9-million, up 5 per cent as compared to $271.7-million for the same period in 2016.
Net income was $14.5-million or 14 cents per share compared to net income of $21.4-million or 23 cents per share a year earlier.
Analysts were expecting revenue of $295.7-million and earning of 14 cents.
"After two years of reporting declining revenues we are finally starting to experience some growth. The $285-million generated in the first quarter of 2017 remains well below prior peak levels but the results are 4.9 per cent above last year, representing that some early stage stability is returning to the battered oil and natural gas service industry as well as reinforcing our acquisition strategy," said CEO Murray K. Mullen.
The company also increased its 2017 capital budget by $25-million "in anticipation of a recovery in the energy sector.
**
Slate Office REIT (SOT.UN-T) says it's buying a suburban office complex in Etobicoke, Ont. for $95-million.
"The acquisition of Commerce West provides significant synergies with our recently announced acquisition of West Metro Corporate Centre," said CEO Scott Antoniak.
The asset is being sold by Dream Office REIT (D.UN-T) and Dream Hard Asset Alternative Trust (DRA.UN-T).
**
Lumina Gold Corp. (LUM-X) has been granted 13 new concessions by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Mining, covering 40,647 hectares.
It said the concessions are in addition to the ones that were announced late last year.
"The concessions Lumina has added since November have made it the second largest concession holder in Ecuador, and one of the leading gold explorers in the region," said Diego Benalcazar, Lumina's senior vice-president.
**
Supremex Inc. (SXP-T) appointed Bertrand Jolicoeur as chief financial officer and corporate secretary effective April 24.
Mr. Jolicoeur has more than 30 years of experience as a senior financial executive and corporate controller, most recently at private company Sanimax Industries Inc.
Interim vice-president of finance Lyne Bégin will return to her role as corporate controller.
**
Aurora Cannabis Inc. (ACB-X) says it has started sales of a new product line of ingestible cannabis oils called Aurora Drops.
The company says its newest offerings include three distinct product types all priced equally at a standard flat rate of $115 per bottle, or $80 per bottle for clients approved for Aurora's compassionate pricing program:
"The launch of our first ingestible oil products represents a major milestone, which promises to add significantly to Aurora's top and bottom line results," said Neil Belot, the company's chief global business development officer. "We have produced a sizeable inventory of Aurora Drops for our domestic medical client base, and will be continuing to ramp up production in order to address the strong demand we anticipate for high-quality, high-margin derivative products, manufactured under the rigorous Aurora Standards regarding processes, testing, and transparency."
**
CanniMed Therapeutics Inc. (CMED-T) says its directors have approved the start of a capital project to increase its current cannabinoid oils processing capacity by building a new facility on the company's Saskatchewan campus.
The planned facility will have the initial capacity to supply the equivalent of 12 million 60 ml bottles of oil per year, once complete. The initial cost estimate for the facility is $10.5-million over a 20-month schedule to commissioning, the company said.
"Saskatchewan's heritage of pioneering and innovation in Canadian healthcare has helped lead to the creation of cornerstones such as the advent of cobalt therapy in cancer treatment," said Premier Brad Wall in a release put out by the company. "CanniMed is now part of the ongoing legacy that embodies this spirit of creative thinking and diversification so inherent in our province. We welcome this kind of significant investment in Saskatchewan."
The project is estimated to employ 85 full-time employees during the construction phase and will create 25 new permanent full-time positions.
**