Much of the news of the day surrounding Canadian convenience store giant Alimentation Couche-Tard (TSE:ATD) has focused on its acquisition of 7-Eleven. But there is more going on here than just that purchase, as Couche-Tard recently brought out its earnings report. The news was good, though not especially so to shareholders. In fact, those shareholders gave Couche-Tard a fractional boost in Thursday morning’s trading.
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Couche-Tard reported earnings of $442.3 million in its fourth quarter, which was a bit of a drop against the $454.5 million from the fourth quarter of 2024. Net earnings attributable to shareholders were similarly down, hitting $439.4 million against the previous fourth quarter’s $453 million. Earnings per share, meanwhile, came in at $0.46 against $0.47 in the previous year.
While the numbers were down slightly, they were only down slightly, which proved to be good enough news for most. President and CEO Alex Miller applauded the “…resilience of our business…” and “…the award-winning engagement of our team members.” Miller also pointed out that conditions economically throughout both the United States and Canada—both places where Couche-Tard operates—saw increasingly difficult conditions. In fact, a reduction in fuel consumption in the United States was cited as the primary reason Couche-Tard lost ground for the quarter.
Because We Couldn’t Not Talk About That
You may have noticed there has not been a lot of news about the Couche-Tard / 7 & i deal of late. New reports out suggest that that silence will be brief, as there is a good chance the talks between the two will wrap up soon. In fact, noted Alex Miller, the duo believe they have “…a clear path to U.S. regulatory approval.”
There is even something like a timeline for this deal to finally wrap up, though as is the case with any forward-looking statement, this could ultimately fall apart down the line. The timeline in question, though, is sufficiently vague that it should work out. Miller looks for the deal to come through on a “…shorter rather than longer” basis.
Is Alimentation Couche-Tard Stock a Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on TSE:ATD stock based on 12 Buys assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After an 11.21% loss in its share price over the past year, the average TSE:ATD price target of C$83.33 per share implies 20.63% upside potential.
