Here are five things you need to know this morning:
Markets bear no resemblance to last Monday: Indeed, after the tumult of last week, the S&P 500 managed to escape the week with only a 0.04 per cent decline. The TSX finished higher last week and is up six of the last seven weeks. This week’s test will come in the form of inflation south of the border. Producer prices Tuesday and consumer prices Wednesday. With the markets betting on a 50-basis-point rate cut in September, inflation better play along. Ahead of that, we’ve got earnings. Barrick and Sunlife are notable on the TSX while retailers like Wal-Mart and Home Depot are due out later this week. In the mean time, investment bankers have been busy this summer. Today is all about deals.
Scotiabank dipping its toe into the U.S. markets: Bank of Nova Scotia announced plans today to buy a 14.9 per cent stake in KeyCorp south of the border. They are doing the deal at a 17 per cent premium to where Keycorp closed on Friday, working out to about US$2.8 billion for Scotia – their largest deal since buying Tangerine (ING) back in 2012. While it is a nice premium for KeyCorp shareholders, it is still below where it traded before the Silicon Valley Bank collapse. Investors seem okay about this for Scotia, with the stock down only about two per cent on the deal.
Market Call favourite Osisko Mining will be taken out at a 67% premium thanks to a deal from Gold Fields: The $4.90/share offer is a pretty penny above where it traded yesterday and over the last 10 years is generally where the stock has peaked out. For Gold Fields, it represents an expansion opportunity in Quebec after losing out on their bid for Yamana in 2022.
Bay Street darling Tourmaline has announced a $1.3 billion deal for rival Crew Energy: It’s an all-stock deal and Tourmaline says its works out to a 72 per cent premium for Crew shareholders. Tourmaline shareholders appear on board despite the share dilution, with the stock popping one per cent at the open. It will also boost its dividend by a penny. It’s interesting to see natural gas deals at a time when prices have languished. The deal could prove to be timely if natural gas prices move higher any time soon.
Investors are taking a shining to Barrick Gold this morning: The stock is popping after earnings, sales and free cash beat expectations. Gold moving higher is also helpful in this environment. CEO Mark Bristow was on BNN Bloomberg this morning and you can find his insights on the website.