(November 19 – 10:45 ET) –
The insurance brokerage business
continues to be a tough slog.
Canada Brokerlink Inc. is
reporting a 1¢ per share net loss
for the third quarter ended
September 30, compared to 1¢
profit in the period a year ago.
The firm would have made a
profit of 2¢ in the period if not
for a special non-recurring charge
for executive terminations.
Revenues were up by about 32%
from the third quarter 1998 to Q3
1999. Operating margins have
expanded slightly to 11.2%.
The firm has also announced a
normal course issuer bid for 5% of
its own shares, noting that it is
undervalued. The firm says it
trades at about 1.1 times trailing
12-month revenues, while
acquisitions typically cost 1.5
to 1.6 times revenues. It has so
far completed about a third of the
proposed buyback.
The firm says that discussions
concerning a proposed merger with
Vector Intermediaries Inc. have
been “held up by complexities that
have developed,” although
discussions continue.
-IE Staff
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