Engine Capital said on Wednesday that Parkland (OTCPK:PKIUF) should explore strategic alternatives, including a tax-free sale or spin-off of non-core assets “to become a more focused fuel and convenience retailer.”
In a letter to the company’s board, Engine Capital said Parkland (OTCPK:PKIUF) is currently trading at a significant discount to its retail peers and intrinsic value, noting that the company has amassed a range of assets not typically owned by pure fuel and convenience operators, detracting from the underlying valuation of Parkland and leads investors to view the company as a conglomerate with disparate assets, rather than a pure convenience retailer.
“We are particularly concerned by Parkland’s staggering underperformance compared to Canadian convenience retail champion Alimentation Couche-Tard,” said Engine Capital, which owns ~2% of Parkland’s (OTCPK:PKIUF) outstanding shares.
Last week Couche-Tard agreed to buy almost 2K petrol stations in Europe from TotalEnergies for €3.1bn.
