News
TORONTO, Dec. 21, 2021 /CNW/ - Equitable Group Inc. ("Equitable" or the "Company") (TSX: EQB) (TSX: EQB.PRC) announced today that it has filed, and the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") has approved, notice of Equitable's intention to renew its normal course issuer bid (the "NCIB") for Common Shares (the "Common Shares") and its Non-Cumulative 5-Year Rate Reset Preferred Shares, Series 3 (the "Preferred Shares" together with the Common Shares, the ("Shares")).
Pursuant to the terms of the NCIB, Equitable may repurchase for cancellation up to 2,325,951 of its Common Shares and 289,340 of its Preferred Shares, representing, respectively, approximately 10% of its public float of each class of shares. The Company intends to only purchase a maximum of 1,150,000 Common Shares under the terms of the NCIB (approximately 5% of Equitable's public float).
As at December 10, 2021, there were 34,070,810 Common Shares issued and outstanding with a public float of 23,259,508 Common Shares and 2,919,400 Preferred Shares issued and outstanding with a public float of 2,893,400 Preferred Shares.
Purchases under the renewed NCIB may commence on December 23, 2021 and continue until December 22, 2022, when the NCIB expires, or on such earlier date as the NCIB is complete. The actual number of Shares purchased under the NCIB and the timing of any such purchases will be at the Company's discretion. Subject to the TSX's block purchase exception, on any trading day purchases under the NCIB will not exceed 6,290 Common Shares and 1,000 Preferred Shares, based on an average daily trading volume of the Common Shares and Preferred Shares from June 1, 2021 to November 30, 2021 of 25,161 and 698 shares respectively (rounding down and determined in accordance with TSX polices).
The purchases made by Equitable will be implemented through the facilities of the TSX, and through alternative Canadian trading systems, in accordance with TSX rules. Any Shares purchased by the Company will be cancelled.
The Company's board of directors has authorized the NCIB because it believes that, from time to time, the market price of Shares may be such that their purchase may be an attractive and appropriate use of corporate funds. The NCIB will provide the Company with additional flexibility to manage capital and generate value for shareholders. Decisions regarding the timing of future purchases of Shares will be based on market conditions, share price and other factors. Although Equitable has a present intention to acquire its Shares pursuant to the NCIB, Equitable will not be obligated to make any purchases and purchases may be suspended at any time.
In connection with the NCIB, the Company has entered into a share purchase plan (the "Plan") to facilitate the purchase of Preferred Shares pursuant to the bid and under which its broker may purchase Shares according to a prearranged set of criteria. If implemented, the Plan will enable the purchase of Shares at any time, including when the Company would not ordinarily be active in the market because of internal trading blackout periods, insider trading rules or otherwise.
Under its existing NCIB, the Company repurchased 80,600 Preferred Shares through the facilities of the TSX and alternative Canadian trading systems at a weighted-average price of approximately $26.01 per Preferred Share for total cash consideration of $2,096,201 (including commission). No Common Shares were repurchased under the previous NCIB.
ABOUT EQUITABLE
Equitable Group Inc. trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: EQB and EQB.PR.C) and serves nearly three hundred thousand Canadians through Equitable Bank, Canada's Challenger Bank™. Equitable Bank has grown to become the country's eighth largest independent Schedule I bank with a clear mandate to drive real change in Canadian banking to enrich people's lives. Founded over 50 years ago, Equitable Bank provides diversified personal and commercial banking and through its EQ Bank platform (eqbank.ca) has been named #1 Bank in Canada on the Forbes World's Best Banks 2021 list. Please visit equitablebank.ca for details.
Forward-looking Statements
Information provided by Equitable from time to time, including this release, contains or may contain forward-looking statements concerning anticipated financial events, results, circumstances, economic performance or expectations with respect to Equitable and its subsidiaries, including, without limitation, statements regarding its business operations, business strategy, and financial condition. Forward-looking statements can be identified because they generally contain the words "expect", "intend", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "project", "plan" or "objective" or other similar expressions or the negative thereof. Forward-looking statements reflect management's beliefs and assumptions and are based on information currently available, and Equitable assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, except as required by applicable securities laws. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements of Equitable to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on Equitable's forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, level of activity, closing of transactions, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements including but not limited to risks related to capital markets and additional funding requirements, fluctuating interest rates and general economic conditions including, without limitation, impacts as a result of COVID-19, legislative and regulatory developments, changes in accounting standards, the nature of our customers, rates of default, the number of Shares ultimately available to be purchased by the Company pursuant to the NCIB and the intention of the directors and officers of the Company to sell Shares pursuant to the NCIB.
Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to: the commencement of the NCIB by the Company; the number of Shares ultimately available to be purchased by the Company pursuant to the NCIB and the purchase price of such Shares; the Company's entrance into the Plan; and the intention of the directors and officers of the Company to sell Shares pursuant to the NCIB. Such forward-looking statements are based on a number of material factors and assumptions, including, but not limited to: that the Company will purchase Shares pursuant to the NCIB; assumptions in respect of the price of the Company's Shares; that the directors and officers of the Company will not sell Shares pursuant to the NCIB; general economic conditions; and that there is no material adverse change in the price of gold or other metals. Further information can be found in the disclosure documents filed by Equitable with the securities regulatory authorities, available at www.sedar.com and on Equitable's website at www.equitablebank.com.
SOURCE Equitable Group Inc.
