The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, Sept. 5, edition that Stifel analyst Martin Landry has reaffirmed his "buy" recommendation for Alimentation Couche-Tard. The Globe's David Leeder writes that Mr. Landry elevated his share target to $85 from $81. Analysts on average target the shares at $84.72. Mr. Landry says in a note: "Acquisitions remains an important growth driver for Couche-Tard and with a strong balance sheet we believe that the company will continue to create value for shareholders with its M&A strategy. We view an investment in Couche-Tard has having a low-risk profile due to: (1) the company's strong cash flow generation, (2) the recession-resilient and on-line-resistant nature of the convenience industry, (3) Couche-Tard's healthy balance sheet and (4) the impressive track record. Couche-Tard's shares trade at about 16 times forward earnings, roughly in-line with the 10-year average, while Canadian peers, such as grocers and dollar stores trade at a premium to their historical averages. Couche-Tard has a better balance sheet than historically with a leverage of two times debt/EBITDA, which provides flexibility to make further M&A transactions or return capital to shareholders."