O.K. folks, It is time that somebody kept this post alive. CIBC is trading at a multiple of less than 12X 1999 estimated earnings. Considering that there will be minimal Oppenheimer charges in 1999 and that the majority of the year 2000 spending will be over in the next 3-4 quarters, 1999 is looking pretty good. By the way, the new President's Choice Financial is doing pretty good, drawing 80% of its customers from other banks.
Now, considering that the National Bank is trading at similar multiples to CIBC, and it is still a predominantly Quebec based bank, I think that CIBC is undervalued.
By the way, CIBC will not be fighting the merger battle through the financial press, so you will see a very biased press in Canada in regards to bank mergers.
Canadian banks are still the place to be, as it is the only sector in Canada giving double digit earnings growth. |
