The U.S. tariff policy toward Canada has changed repeatedly in recent years, with deadlines, pauses, court rulings, and higher duties arriving one after another.
Most recently, in the July 20 announcement, the U.S. added a 50% tariff on selected Canadian goods and removed the trade-agreement protection for those products. That uncertainty could punish companies heavily reliant on cross-border demand and trade.
Nevertheless, the Toronto Stock Exchange still has many stocks that are built differently and could continue to thrive even if trade tensions remain elevated. One such TSX stock is George Weston (TSX:WN). Its exposure comes from Loblaw’s grocery and pharmacy network and Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust’s necessity-focused real estate portfolio.
In this article, I’ll spotlight why this top TSX stock could be a solid holding when trade headlines refuse to settle down.
A defensive business mix
Simply put, George Weston operates through Loblaw and Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust. Loblaw sells groceries, pharmacy products, healthcare services, apparel, and general merchandise. And the real estate investment trust (REIT) Choice Properties owns and manages commercial and residential properties across Canada, with many tenants serving everyday needs.
Despite broader market volatility, WN stock has risen nearly 18% over the last 12 months to currently trade at $103.62 per share. It has a market capitalization of $38.9 billion and an annualized dividend yield of roughly 1.2%. The recent rally in George Weston stock reflects the solid performance of its underlying businesses.
Growth backed by essential spending
While the company is yet to release its second-quarter earnings report (due on July 31), George Weston’s revenue rose 4.2% year-over-year (YoY) in the first quarter to $14.6 billion. Its adjusted quarterly EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) climbed 6.2% YoY to $1.7 billion, while the adjusted EBITDA margin improved to 11.7% from 11.4%.
More importantly, the company’s net earnings for the quarter available to common shareholders climbed 27.7% to $106 million. That solid jump was mainly helped by lower amortization related to intangible assets from Loblaw’s 2014 Shoppers Drug Mart acquisition.
In the latest quarter, Loblaw acted as the main growth engine as its revenue rose 4.2% YoY to $14.5 billion. Food same-store sales inched up by 2.4%, while drug retail same-store sales increased 4.1%. Higher customer traffic, larger baskets, prescription growth, beauty sales, e-commerce demand, and new store openings all contributed.
Meanwhile, Choice Properties REIT also added stability to George Weston’s results. Choice’s revenue climbed 4% YoY to $361 million in the latest quarter, while funds from operations rose 2.6% to $196 million. New leasing, higher rental rates, acquisitions, completed developments, and lease surrender revenue backed the gain.
Why George Weston’s long-term outlook remains strong
George Weston’s subsidiary Loblaw plans about $2.4 billion in gross capital spending during 2026, focused on stores and distribution centres. It also expects retail earnings to grow faster than sales and adjusted earnings per share to rise at a high-single-digit rate.
Meanwhile, George Weston has committed $600 million to support Choice Properties’ planned acquisition of about $5 billion in First Capital REIT’s retail assets. The deal would expand Choice Properties’ urban retail platform, while George Weston expects distributions from the added units to more than cover related financing costs.
More importantly for income investors, George Weston recently raised its quarterly common-share dividend by 8%, marking a fifteenth straight annual increase.
These essential businesses, improving earnings, growing dividends, and expansion prospects make George Weston look like an attractive TSX stock for investors seeking resilience when tariff headlines keep changing the market mood.
