Loblaws Inc.

1

ECON 3800 Group Research Report

Guidelines

Marks: 20 % Due: December 4, 2018, in class

A late submission is subject to a 25% deduction of the total marks per day.

Research Team: The research project should be undertaken by a research team of no

more than three students. The instructor will help if some students could not find

partners to form a research team. With the instructor’s permission, a research team may

consist of more than three students. In 2018, the focus of equity research is on Canadian

major grocery chains such as Loblaw, Metro, and Empire. As soon as the research team is

formed, each team should decide which grocery chain is to be studied and send this

information and the names and email addresses of the team members to [email protected]

no later than September 18, 2018.

The research team should plan its research activities and divide its workload fairly among

its members. It is advisable for each team to select a team leader who can coordinate

research activities that are scheduled weekly. Please write down those important

deadlines and organize research with reference to those important deadlines.

Research Aim: The research should provide the necessary information for a reasoned

investment decision with reference to a selected company. The basic aim of this research

is to evaluate whether the underlying business represents a good investment in the long

term (say three-year and beyond) and whether the stock price is fairly valued at this time

so that an investment recommendation (buy, hold, or sell) can be made.

Source of Information for Research: (1) hard copy or online annual reports of public

traded companies; (2) online statistics (finance.yaoo.com, www.globeinvestor.com,

moneycentral.msn.com, www.google.com, and other sites); (3) ABI database; (4) CBCA

database; (5) Thomson ONE database; (6) Mergent Online; (7) Marketline; (8)

http://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml (Edgar, US Security and Exchange Commission Filing

System); and (9) http://www.sedar.com (Canadian version of Edgar). Dalhousie Library

also provides a special guide for this course at

https://dal.ca.libguides.com/economics/ECON3800FinancialEconomics

2

Structure of Analysis: The research should include detailed analysis of

1. economic conditions; 2. sector and market structure; 3. products/services; 4. the corporation’s profile, management and business strategies, and relative

comparative advantages over its peers;

5. historical and financial information; 6. earnings forecast and firm value; 7. risk and potential problems; and 8. investment recommendations.

The team should use economic, financial, accounting, and quantitative approaches to

analyze the above issues.

References: The research report should cite, and give references to, all sources used for

the research project. Plagiarism is a severe academic offense and should be avoided

conscientiously.

Support: The instructor will provide the detailed guidance on research during the

lecturing time and will post relevant readings and sample projects at Brightspace.