Investment Q&A

Q: Often, you have people like Richard this morning, writing to you about advice they've received from their brokers that doesn't make sense. One must bear in mind that the people answering the calls are at a call-centre, and some are more knowledgeable than others. When I get a response that sounds iffy or doesn't make sense, I call back a bit later, get someone else on the phone, repeat my question, and more often than not I get a totally different answer.

Q: I bought recently shares of ITP and BPY.UN on the TSE(both companies pay their dividends in US dollars). and naturally paid for the shares in CAD. this morning I asked my broker to journal these shares to the US dollar side of my cash account in order to collect the dividends in US funds he said since the shares were bought on the TSE all future dividends would first be received in Canadian dollars and would then have to be converted to US dollars each time they were paid regardless of the fact the shares were to be held on the US dollar side of my cash acct he said the only way I could have avoided the exchange cost was to have bought these 2 companies on a US exchange! am I getting the correct advice from this large national brokerage firm?

Q: to invest
Good morning
My son has recently opened an rrsp acct where he is putting a small amount every month $400 per month he is ensure how to proceed. i feel that an etf would be the way to go but how does someone get around the trading fees? Are you aware of any financial institutions that would have a program or programs that would work for individuals such as him who would like to get started but have only limited funds?
Thks
Marce

Q: just some back of the napkin calculations... assuming operating income hits the midpoint of SHOP's guidance ($32 million) and the number of shares outstanding is 113.14 million (according to scotia), wouldn't that give us an eps of 28 cents a share?

Yesterday, Thompson Reuters had a 2019 consensus of 68 cents a share and 96 cents for 2020.

Does the above jive with the info you have at your disposal / calculations?

Thanks.

John

Q: hi guys when a fund manager shorts a stock how long would they typically hold it for and what would they be looking for in their entry and exit points

Q: Could you please explain "after hours trading".
It doesn't seem like a very equitable concept.
Thanks
Phil

Q: It has been suggested to me that over the long term, the the average investor like myself is better off buying the indexes VFV with a dividend of 1.64% and XIU with a dividend of 3.61% rather than buying a portfolio of individual stocks. Would appreciate 5I's observation of this comment. Thanks, Bill

Q: I recently came across this website (nickldown.com) which tracks all BNN market call recommendations by analyst.

Congratulations Peter, you've received an A- with 19 of your 36 picks being winners.

Ryan, you've had more winners than Peter, but with less return, thus your score is a bit lower.

Hope others find this interesting, if not useful.

Q: Most Canadian dividend stocks seem to be floundering, of late, particularly REITS, Utilities, and Telcos (though pipelines aren't doing much either). Is there a particular reason given rates are low and unlikely to rise any time soon?

Q: I am considering an account with interactive brokers and i see they have a securities lending program where you loan the shares for shorting purposes and receive a collateral cash amount on which interest is paid. Is there a risk to this? You can sell the shares any time. Do you know if there is a CIPF protection for the shares loaned to interactive brokers?
I know you do not recommend brokerages, but I would appreciate if you can point out any disadvantage (advantage) as compared to self directed brokerage with a Canadian bank.
Regards

Q: If you purchase a stock on its ex-dividend date or after, you will not receive the next dividend payment. Instead, the seller gets the dividend. If you purchase before the ex-dividend date, you get the dividend. Am I correct here? In that case when is actual ownership transferred? Trade date or settlement date?

For example, if the ex-dividend date is 9/17, the trade date is 9/16 (so it's supposedly bought before the ex-dividend date) and settlement date is 9/18, will I get the dividend? Please clarify and thanks for your help.

Q: 1. The Globe just published a list of Canadian companies CEO salaries and bonuses. Sorry for the odd question but I am find it very hard to understand how the CEO of Barrick deserves a salary of $3.2M and a bonus of $12.6M. I am hoping that you could help me understand a bit.
2. How does the CEO of CSU make money with a Salary and bonus of zero? Stock?

Q: I want to get more defensive going fwd I suspect Utilities + consumer staples should be increased are ETFs or individual stocks the way to go?. What other sectors/ stocks should be favored thanks

Q: Will you be posting a 2020 watch list
Thanks for the excellent help

Q: Wondering what your picks for "popular" stocks that might get hammered the most by tax-loss selling this year , a few that I have in my portfolio for suggestions but hoping not of course .. NFI , ERF , VET ?

Thanks ,
Chris

Q: Hello team,

Is there a time of year where mergers and acquisitions are more likely to happen, or is based more on market conditions?

Q: Is tiny odd lot trades making it difficult to understand if money managers are buying or selling.
Clayton

Q: Hi guys,
Thanks for the great service.
It looks like Canadian Insider is no longer providing a free email service for insider reporting (as of Oct 31). Do you know of any other services (preferably free) where it is possible to receive email alerts on insider filings?
Thanks

Q: Reading the first question of the day, you mention Twitter as being cheap at 15X earnings. I am dating myself, but when I began investing 10X was average. What has prompted the change to the present 17X earnings.

Q: Can you suggest solid companies that may have their prices depressed by tax loss selling and might be good buys this year?