The Mawer New Canada Fund (Trades, Portfolio) began its operations on Jan. 8, 1988. The fund is currently managed by Jeff Mo and Martin Ferguson. In December 2015, the fund sold out their holdings in Lassonde Industries Inc. (TSX:LAS.A, Financial).
The company was originally founded by Aristide Lassonde in 1918, who began his first vegetable canning factory in Rougemont, Quebec. After more than 40 years in the vegetable canning business, Lassonde Industries shifted their focus to producing apple juice. The company went public in 1987 listing their shares on the Montreal Stock Exchange.
Since 1987, the company has been expanding, acquiring Orange Maison, Allen’s famous juice brand, as well as making production and marketing deals with the popular juice brand Sunkist. In 2011 Lassonde Industries purchased Clement Pappas and Company, the second largest U.S producer of store brand fruit juices and one of the largest producers of cranberry-based juices, drinks and sauces.
Lassonde Industries has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.69, an enterprise value of $1.56 billion and a dividend yield of 0.99.
Below is a Peter Lynch chart for Lassonde Industries Inc.
Lassonde Industries has a vigilant leader with president and CEO Jean Gattuso. Gattuso has done a phenomenal job since joining Lassonde Industries in 1987. The price of Lassonde Industries has gone up an average of 11% annually since Gattuso was hired.
Gattuso was recently honoured at the 2015 Golden Pencil Awards ceremony held in Toronto on Nov. 23, 2015. The award is the highest honour granted by the Canadian food industry; the award is presented to individuals who, through career dedication, have made a significant and worthwhile contribution to the Canadian food industry.
Lassonde Industries has a vigilant leader, a 5-star GuruFocus predictability rating and a strong median forward rate of return. The company also has a differentation advantage, having nearly a century of experience in the fruit and vegetable juice drink industry. I believe that the Mawer New Canada Fund made a mistake by selling out their holdings in Lassonde Industries.
Cheers to your investment success.
