Loblaw Companies Ltd L

Morningstar Rating
CAD 172.91 −2.14 (1.22%)
View Full Chart

Company Report

Although Loblaw Strives to Elevate Its Brand Through Prudent Investments, a Moat Remains Elusive

As the largest retailer in Canada, Loblaw boasts well-recognized grocery and drugstore banners and a sizable loyalty program that drives strong consumer engagement. However, we think the firm has not carved out an economic moat based on either intangible assets or cost advantage, given its sales concentration in commoditized food retail, where low prices reign as the major point of differentiation.

Price vs Fair Value

L is trading at a 652% premium.
Price
CAD 172.91
Fair Value
CAD 994.00
Uncertainty
Low
1-Star Price
CAD 775.46
5-Star Price
CAD 838.00
Economic Moat
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Capital Allocation
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Bulls Say, Bears Say

Bulls

As the largest retailer in Canada, Loblaw is in a strong position to meet shoppers’ needs by leveraging an extensive retail footprint and well-established grocery and pharmacy banners.

Bears

Given the bargaining clout of its unionized store and warehouse employees, Loblaw will likely continue to face persistent labor cost pressure in the coming years.

News

Trading Information

Previous Close Price
CAD 175.05
Day Range
CAD 172.83176.77
52-Week Range
CAD 110.52182.19
Bid/Ask
CAD 172.33 / CAD 175.99
Market Cap
CAD 52.81 Bil
Volume/Avg
257,975 / 327,003

Key Statistics

Price/Earnings (Normalized)
26.16
Price/Sales
0.90
Dividend Yield (Trailing)
1.11%
Dividend Yield (Forward)
1.19%
Total Yield
4.33%

Company Profile

Loblaw is Canada’s largest retailer, operating 2,460 food retail and pharmacy stores across the country. Its main grocery banners include Loblaw, No Frills, and Maxi, and its pharmacy stores are mostly under the Shoppers Drug Mart banner, which it acquired in 2014. In addition to brand-name offerings, Loblaw offers private-label products under the President’s Choice and No Name brands. Beyond retail, Loblaw runs the PC Optimum loyalty program and also offers credit cards and insurance brokerage, which are collectively referred to as financial services. George Weston is Loblaw’s controlling shareholder with a 53% stake.
Sector
Consumer Defensive
Industry
Grocery Stores
Stock Style Box
Large Core
Total Number of Employees
220,000

Competitors

Valuation

Metric
L
MRU
WMT
Price/Earnings (Normalized)
26.1619.3234.02
Price/Book Value
4.792.747.70
Price/Sales
0.900.890.99
Price/Cash Flow
10.8912.2018.68
Price/Earnings
L
MRU
WMT

Financial Strength

Metric
L
MRU
WMT
Quick Ratio
0.700.400.18
Current Ratio
1.361.100.80
Interest Coverage
4.388.178.64
Quick Ratio
L
MRU
WMT

Profitability

Metric
L
MRU
WMT
Return on Assets (Normalized)
5.71%6.87%6.41%
Return on Equity (Normalized)
19.78%14.02%19.99%
Return on Invested Capital (Normalized)
9.50%9.46%11.82%
Return on Assets
L
MRU
WMT

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