Canadian equities trended higher for the fourth straight day before going into the long Labour Day weekend, as mixed economic data and firm commodity prices kept investor sentiment cautiously positive. The S&P/TSX Composite Index climbed by 130 points, or 0.5%, on Friday to settle at 28,564 — pushing the benchmark to yet another record close.
Despite minor weakness in some technology and industrial stocks, solid intraday gains in most other key sectors, including healthcare, mining, and consumer discretionary, helped the broader market maintain its upward momentum.
With this, the TSX Composite benchmark ended August with a 4.8% gain, marking its fourth consecutive monthly advance and its strongest performance in three months.
Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks
Shares of BRP (TSX: DOO) surged by 9.4% to $86.43 apiece, making it the top-performing TSX stock for the day. This rally in BRP stock came after the powersports maker’s July quarter earnings crushed Bay Street analysts’ expectations. The company’s quarterly revenue rose 4.3% year over year to $1.89 billion, even with an 11% decline in its North American retail sales.
Favourable pricing and product mix, coupled with forex tailwinds, drove BRP’s earnings to $0.92 per share, beating analysts’ estimates of $0.48 per share by a huge margin. Its strong results and upbeat full-year guidance boosted optimism, leading to a buying spree in its stock. On a year-to-date basis, BRP stock is now up 18%.
Endeavour Silver, NexGen Energy, and Seabridge Gold were also among the top gainers on the Toronto Stock Exchange, with each inching up by at least 5.6%.
Celestica, Laurentian Bank of Canada, Brookfield Business Partners, and TransAlta dived by at least 2.7% each, making them the session’s worst-performing TSX stocks.
Suncor Energy, Cenovus Energy, Canadian Natural Resources, TD Bank, and Great-West Lifeco were the five most active stocks on the exchange.
TSX today
Commodity prices across the board jumped sharply in early trading on Tuesday, setting a strong tone for the TSX’s return from the long weekend today.
While no major domestic economic releases are due, Canadian investors may want to keep an eye on the latest U.S. manufacturing data, along with new developments in global trade.
On the corporate events front, the TSX-listed Alimentation Couche-Tard will release its latest quarterly earnings report today after the market closing bell. Street analysts expect the convenience store firm to post earnings of $0.76 per share for the July quarter with $17.9 billion in revenue.
Market movers on the TSX today
