What will happen to Canadian retailing if Wal-Mart were to make an offer for Bay?? book Value is $28.00..... $40 per share sounds good to me.
The Financial Post reports in its Tuesday edition that Wal-Mart Canada continued to grab market share among Canadian department stores in 1999, a year that saw major changes in the industry, including the demise of T. Eaton Co. Reporter Zena Olijnyk says that while discounter Wal-Mart stayed well on top of its main rival, Zellers, Sears Canada prolonged its impressive growth rate in the traditional department store sector. It managed to increase sales in 1999 by more than double the rate of its main rival, the Bay chain, owned by Hudson's Bay. In addition, according to figures compiled by CIBC World Markets retail analyst David Brodie, the current leaders in the department store market will continue to outperform their rivals this year. "Clearly, those retailers who have been at the front are staying there," he says. Mr. Brodie says there is no question that the Bay and Zellers have a challenge ahead of them. Mr. Brodie's figures indicate that Wal-Mart, with 166 stores, saw sales jump to $6.2-billion, about $1-billion more than it did in 1998. |
