MONTREAL - The head of Quebecor Inc. says he is exploring a possible acquisition of Montreal-based tour operator Transat A.T., but another prospective buyer is already a step ahead. Quebecor says it earned $189.0 million or 74 cents per share in the first quarter of 2019, up from $57.1 million or 24 cents per share a year earlier. The media and telecommunications company said Thursday it will now pay a quarterly dividend of 11.25 cents per share, up from 5.5 cents. On an adjusted basis, Montreal-based company said it earned 44 cents per share from continuing activities compared with 38 cents per share a year ago. Analysts on average had expected a profit of 44 cents per share and revenue of $1.03 billion, according to Thomson Reuters Eikon.

Source: thestar May 09, 2019 11:26 UTC