Q: Dear 5i team:
Your software indicates our family’s investments are too Canadian-focused. However, I prefer our “home bias”, for three reasons:
(a) most of our assets are non-registered, and the dividend tax credit is especially favourable for Canadian source dividends in a province such as ours (Ontario);
(b) I like supporting the companies that I invest in (e.g., we buy Peller family wines, since we own their shares);
(c) but most important, many of the “Canadian” businesses we own are surprisingly international; among our top 20 equity holdings are:
Alimentation couche-tarde (Circle K is world-wide);
Brookfield Asset Management (globally focused company that invests wherever the opportunities are);
CGI Group (revenues are 84% outside Canada per 2019 annual report);
CP Rail (significant U.S. revenues);
Fortis (65% of earning are in U.S.);
Manulife (growing Asian revenues);
Restaurant Brands International (most of Burger King and Popeye’s restaurants are outside of Canada);
Shopify (not sure, but suspect international revenues are growing faster than Canadian revenues);
TC Energy (dropped “Canada” from its name to reflect its growing U.S. presence);
TD bank (substantial and growing U.S. presence);
Anyways, the above-listed 10 stocks represent about one-third of our overall equity holdings (in absolute $ terms), but I would not consider these companies as being “100% Canadian”. I wonder whether your software could be rejigged to reflect the relative percent earnings (or revenue) contributions, broken down per Canada, U.S., Europe, Asia, and so forth. I suspect our home “bias” is not nearly as substantial as it appears.
Ted

Q: I'm looking to start a new position in one of the above. They are both trading very close to each other in valuation. CN is bigger with more reach so I was leaning that way but wanted your take. Why would you go with one over the other? This would be in my TFSA.

(I feel like I have enough spicy growth names in my TFSA and am looking for something I can let sit for 20 years and not think about.)

Thanks

Q: Hi guys,

Wondering your thoughts on truck based shippers like tfi and ups as compared to railways? With a 5+ year time horizon, what has a likely higher rate of return overall and success probability with the economy ahead?
Thoughts on whether to invest now at all versus waiting 1 to 3 months for more earning to sink in?
Thanks
Peter