Toronto, Ontario — In this week’s Tuesday Ticker, we cover Uni-Select’s new acquisition, a rumoured merger between Quebec-based Lion Electric and Northern Genesis Acquisition Corp., and Ford’s unexpected Q3 earnings report.
Picking up the Pièces
Uni-Select has completed the acquisition of Pièces d’Auto St-Jean Inc. with two locations on the south shore of Montréal., Que.
Pièces d’Auto St-Jean is a distributor of automotive aftermarket parts and paints and a member of the Uni-Select network for over 20 years.
Pièces d’Auto St-Jean team of 40 automotive aftermarket professionals noted for taking great pride in providing excellent service to its customers.
“This expands Uni-Select’s corporate store footprint in the Montréal south shore region and this will complement our strong network of independent jobber customers. We are thankful for the opportunity to continue the great legacy of this business,” stated Brent Windom, President and Chief Executive Officer of Uni-Select Inc.
“We are convinced that joining the Uni-Select Corporate Store group is what is best for our employees and the future of Pièces d’Auto St-Jean Inc.,” added Daniel Dulac, former co-owner in partnership with Eric Brissette. “We are extremely proud of our team and believe that combining our local market knowledge with Uni-Select’s resources and store managing expertise will provide superior results for the benefit of our existing and new customers.”
The Lion’s den
The Lion Electric Company is in talks to go public with a merger with blank-cheque firm Northern Genesis Acquisition Corp.
Northern Genesis has begun discussions with prospective investors about raising a targeted $500 million U.S., in new equity to support a merger with Lion Electric, according to an anonymous source, who asked for anonymity due to the privacy of the talks.
The merged entity is set to be valued at $2 billion U.S. or more; as with all deals that aren’t finalized, its possible terms could change and talks could collapse.
Northern Genesis aims to acquire one or more business and assets, via a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchases, and reorganization.
Lion Electric is a Quebec-based company and is the maker of electric vehicles such as yellow school buses., and in September stated they would deliver 10 electric trucks to Amazon.com Inc., a move that will help the e-commerce giant to reduce its carbon emissions.
Power Sustainable Capital, a subsidiary of Power Corp. of Canada, is Lion’s largest shareholder.
Battery-makers and other companies in the electric vehicle space have flocked toward SPACs for capital. At least five have agreed to go public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company, including Nikola Corp. and Fisker Inc.
Northern Genesis raised 300 million U.S. in an initial public offering in August.
Ford’s fuelled financials
Ford shocked Wall Street last week alongside the company’s North American. financial earnings for the third quarter of 2020.
Fueled by strong sales of pricey pickups, Ford posted adjusted earnings per share of 65 cents, well above the 19 cents analyst consensus forecast.
Big profits in North America offset weakness overseas, allowing the company to revise its full-year forecast. It now expects to stay in the black this year, a reversal from an earlier outlook for its first annual loss in a decade.
Ford’s stock rose as much as 7.8 percent in postmarket trading after closing Wednesday, Oct. 28 at US$7.70. The automaker’s shares are down about 17 percent this year.
The long-suffering automaker is enjoying a surge in sentiment since industry veteran Jim Farley became chief executive officer Oct. 1, replacing retiring Jim Hackett, to whom Wall Street never warmed. Intense and demanding, Farley is expected to jumpstart a turnaround that has been sputtering for years. The latest quarterly results help position the company to put the worst behind it.
Ford said adjusted earnings before interest and taxes came to $3.6 billion in the quarter compared with $1.8 billion a year ago. Revenue in the quarter was $37.5 billion, above the $33.98 billion analysts anticipated.
