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TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Wednesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange:

Toronto Stock Exchange (20,689.58, up 106.64 points.)

Bombardier Inc. (TSX:BBD.B). Industrials. Up 11 cents, or 5.98 per cent, to $1.95 on 12.9 million shares.

Suncor Energy Inc. (TSX:SU). Energy. Down 28 cents, or 1.19 per cent, to $23.28 on 12.6 million shares. 

Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSX:GWO). Financials. Down 85 cents, or 2.18 per cent, to $38.18 on 9.8 million shares.

Hydro One Ltd. (TSX:H). Utilities. Up 41 cents, or 1.31 per cent, to $31.81 on 7.7 million shares.

Canadian Natural Resources (TSX:CNQ). Energy. Up 26 cents, or 0.62 per cent, to $42.01 on 7.4 million shares. 

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. (TSX:CP). Industrials. Up $4.46, or 5.15 per cent, to $91.15 on six million shares.

Companies in the news: 

Laurentian Bank Financial Group. (TSX:LB). Up 66 cents or 1.6 per cent to $43.15. Laurentian Bank Financial Group is focused on reducing complexity as it works to modernize and attract new business, chief executive Rania Llewellyn said Wednesday. Retail customers currently see different layouts depending on where their account is hosted, Llewellyn said as an example. The bank's mortgage application and digital sign-up for new customers are also overly complex, she added. As part of the updated mortgage operations, the bank has created a dedicated unit in personal banking for residential lending, started to integrate digital signatures through DocuSign, and automated valuations for properties. However, given the complexity of the business, a full transformation will take time, Llewellyn said. The bank is also working on filling in some key gaps in its technology offerings, including adding a banking app and a tap function on debit cards. The bank reported earnings of $62.1 million or $1.32 per diluted share for the quarter ending July 31, compared with $36.2 million or 77 cents per diluted share a year earlier. Revenue totalled $254.9 million for the quarter, up from $248.6 million for the third quarter of 2020.

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. — Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. has approached the Kansas City Â鶹ÊÓƵern board to reaffirm its interest in taking over the railway after U.S. regulators rejected a key part of Canadian National Railway Co.'s bid. CP Rail has maintained that its offer, worth about US$31 billion including debt, is superior to CN's bid, worth about US$33.6 billion including debt, because it carries less regulatory risk. Calgary-based CP Rail has given a deadline of Sept. 12 for KCS to consider its offer, said chief executive Keith Creel. The KCS board said Wednesday that it would evaluate CP’s proposal in accordance with the terms of KCS’s merger agreement with CN and respond in due course. KCS and CN both said they were disappointed by the U.S. regulator's decision and were evaluating options. KCS also said it would adjourn a meeting it had scheduled for shareholders to vote on CN's bid. Montreal-based CN said it remains confident its offer to buy the U.S. railway is in the public interest. CN's proposed acquisition of KCS would be the first to test stricter merger criteria in the rail industry that would evaluate whether a merger would enhance competition. 

Saputo Inc. (TSX:SAP). Up 19 cents to $35.68. Saputo Inc. has acquired two food manufacturing facilities in North Carolina for US$118 million. The Montreal-based dairy giant says Carolina Aseptic and Carolina Dairy will join Saputo’s U.S. dairy division. Carolina Aseptic makes shelf-stable food products and beverages in a facility in Troy, N.C., while Biscoe, N.C.-based Carolina Dairy makes refrigerated yogurt in spouted pouches. Together, the facilities employ about 230 workers. Lino Saputo, CEO and board chairman of Saputo, says the acquisitions complement the company's organic growth while strengthening its presence in the rapidly growing aseptic beverage and food categories and nutritional snacks space. Saputo is one of the world's largest dairy processors with major operations in Canada, Australia, Argentina, the United States and the United Kingdom.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2021.

The Canadian Press