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The Megastars for 2026 Our new Megastar ranking of Canada’s largest publicly traded companies evaluates each major stock on the Toronto Stock Exchange and awards two star ratings - one for the stock’s appeal to value investors and the other for its allure to momentum investors. We then focused on the 20 stocks with the best blend of value and momentum characteristics, which form our Megastar team. Those marked with an * are returning members from last year’s team. Altius Minerals (ALS) is a royalty company with interests in potash, high-purity iron ore, renewable energy, base metals and gold. Based in St. John’s, it trades at 6.3 times earnings and pays a 1.0 per cent dividend yield after doubling its quarterly dividend per share over the past five years. Andean Precious Metals (APM) has mines in the United States and Bolivia. The Toronto-based company is the top prior-performer on the team, with returns of 554 per cent over the past year. Yet it is also the smallest member with a market capitalization of $1.4-billion. Athabasca Oil (ATH) owns thermal and light oil assets in Alberta and is based in Calgary. The company cut its share count by 8.3 per cent over the past four quarters and its shares surged 52 per cent over the past year. It now trades at 14.5 times forward 12-month earnings estimates. Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) trades at 1.6 times book value, which is next to the lowest of the Big Six banks. Yet its dividend yield of 4.4 per cent is the highest. The bank grew its quarterly dividend per share by 3.8 per cent over the past year and by an average of 4.1 per cent annually over the past five years. Barrick Mining (ABX) is the largest gold miner on the team, with a market capitalization of $97-billion. The company is based in Toronto but has operations and projects in 18 countries. After climbing 143 per cent over the past year, Barrick trades at 12.1 times forward 12-month earnings estimates and pays a 1.7-per-cent dividend yield. Centerra Gold (CG) has mining projects in Canada, the U.S. and Turkey. It also wants to build up its molybdenum business. The Toronto-based company cut its share count by 4.8 per cent over the past four quarters and it trades at 10.4 times forward 12-month earnings estimates. * CES Energy Solutions (CEU) is based in Calgary and provides consumable chemicals to the oil patch. The company trades at 13.4 times forward 12-month earnings estimates and cut its share count by 6.0 per cent over the past four quarters. * Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM) is the fifth-largest of the Big Six banks and sports the lowest price-to-earnings ratio at 14.7. The bank pays a 3.4-per-cent dividend yield and boosted its quarterly dividend per share by an average of 7.9 per cent annually over the past five years, including 10.3 per cent recently. Endeavour Mining (EDV) is a gold miner with assets in West Africa, including Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso. The company is based in London, pays a 2.6-per-cent dividend yield and trades at 8.2 times forward 12-month earnings estimates. Enerflex (EFX) is a natural gas equipment and services company based in Calgary with operations primarily in the U.S., Canada, Oman, Bahrain, Argentina, Mexico and Brazil. It recently boosted its quarterly dividend per share by 13.3 per cent to push its yield up to a still-modest 0.8 per cent. Finning International (FTT) is a Caterpillar dealer based in Surrey, B.C., with operations in Canada, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Britain and Ireland. Its shares surged 99 per cent over the past 12 months and it trades at 16.5 times forward 12-month earnings estimates. It also cut its share count by 4.7 per cent over the past four quarters. Great-West Lifeco (GWO) is a Winnipeg-based life and health insurer. It pays a dividend yield of 3.7 per cent after growing its dividend per share by an average of 6.8 per cent annually over the past five years. Great-West is a subsidiary of Power Corp. of Canada (POW), which is also on the this year’s team. * IGM Financial (IGM) is a Winnipeg-based wealth and asset manager with $311-billion in assets under management at the end of November. It pays a dividend yield of 3.8 per cent and trades at 13.7 times earnings. The company is a subsidiary of Power Corp. of Canada (POW), which is also a member of the Megastar team. Imperial Metals (III) is a Vancouver-based copper and gold miner that focuses on projects in British Columbia. The company’s shares jumped 310 per cent over the past 12 months and trade at 7.4 times earnings. OceanaGold (OGC) produces gold and copper at mines in the U.S., New Zealand and the Philippines. The Vancouver-based company’s stock shot up 180 per cent over the past year, but it trades at 6.7 times forward 12-month earnings estimates. * Power Corp. of Canada (POW) is a conglomerate based in Montreal that focuses on financial services in North America, Europe and Asia. It owns 69 per cent of Great-West Lifeco (GWO) and 63 per cent of IGM Financial (IGM), which are also on this year’s Megastar team. Power trades at 12.3 times forward 12-month earnings estimates and just above its adjusted net asset value, which includes quarter-end market values of its publicly traded subsidiaries. Quebecor (QBR.B) is a communications company based in Montreal with telecommunications, media, and sports and entertainment businesses. It pays a modest 2.8-per-cent dividend yield. Quebecor boosted its dividend per share by 7.7 per cent over the past year and by an average of 11.8 per cent annually over the past five years. Royal Bank (RY) is Canada’s largest bank and the largest stock on the TSX, with a market capitalization of $319-billion. It’s hard for huge companies in mature sectors to grow rapidly, but the bank grew its quarterly dividend per share by 8.7 per cent a year over the past five years, including a recent boost of 6.5 per cent. Mind you, it pays a relatively modest 2.9-per-cent yield. Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) is the second-largest Big Six bank and sports the strongest momentum, with returns of 75 per cent over the past year. The bank pays a yield of 3.4 per cent and it grew its quarterly dividend per share by an average of 6.5 per cent annually over the past five years including a recent boost of 2.9 per cent. * Transcontinental (TCL.A) is a printing and packaging company based in Montreal with operations primarily in the U.S., Canada and Latin America. The company recently agreed to sell its packaging business in a deal worth about $2.2-billion. Some proceeds will be distributed to shareholders (about $20 per share), who should remember the possible tax consequences. Main Article: The Globe 250 Spreadsheet: The Top 250 Value and Momentum Star Rankings [.xls] First published in the Globe and Mail, December 20, 2025. |
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