Investment Q&A

Q: Given the recent patent infringement issues on top of difficulty in China, what is your take on QCOM? It has a very dominant position in mobile chips, but this seems to be the source of many of its problems. I remember when this happened to Microsoft in the late 1990's. The stock lanuished for years before recovering. MSFT was at a much higher P/E then compared with QCOM today, however. What are the chances of recovery? Would you recommend holding QCOM or taking the hit and selling to look for better opportunities? Any suggestions in the technology space?
Thanks,

Q: I would like to add something I have learned since I have been with 5i for a couple of years now. I have learned an awful lot and no lesson has been more important than the need to diversify. Unfortunately, at first that simply meant to me holding companies in different sectors without enough regard for exactly where those companies earn their money. So when oil and commodities collapsed, not only did my purer plays (Tck, G, Sgy) drop but "associated" companies in other sectors declined as well (Rus, Bdi, Qst) so I realized I wasn't as diversified as I thought. Lesson learned.

All in all, I have been happy with my total returns over these past few short years. But I seemed to have achieved those returns by having some 2,3, and even 4 baggers while having lots of losers. Is this a "normal" situation or just a current sign of the times and the makeup of my porfolio? Is there a percentage of winners one should expect in a portfolio (assuming moderate risk)? Or will the losers often/usually outnumber the winners?

Appreciate your insight.

Paul F.

Q: hi again;what would be todays reset rate be if it was now and not on june 1 2017 5yr usg yld+3.05% thanks again brian

Q: would you sell or hold

Q: In your opinion, is Valeant an outright "sell" at this time? It's going nowhere fast.

In your comment to Gary, on November 6th, you stated:

"The problem is that VRX is no longer trading on fundamentals, but on emotion and rumours. ... it is likely worth (worst case) $100 US. This is not our number, but from a good report from Mizuho Securities looking at worst case scenarios."

Given that the $100 US target price is not your number on the stock, would you nonetheless concur, or would you assess it higher/lower? (I know you don't believe in target prices, but at some point there is the essential value of the company that speaks out, and affirms its fundamental worth.)

For someone with a one-year time frame on this particular stock, do you think it's worth hanging on? I have a 28% loss and it is only 2% of my portfolio. I would like to recover that loss and move on, whether through Valeant or some other means.

(I have other, longer time frames on other parts of the portfolio, but was using this as my "Mad Money Corner".)

With everybody piling on Valeant, including lawsuits, shorters, staff desertions, things are looking pretty grim, and it's no longer possible to assess what is real and what is not.

Would this be a good time to take the "mad money" and run? You have lots of good choices in your growth portfolio, and I was considering turning to one of those.

Thanks, as always, for your great service!

Q: hi all. just sold 4400 shares this a.m. lost over 8000$ Won,t be the last loss for me anyway.. Thaks for the great service, The last two years have been a great education. I will sign up for another two years before Dec, even though my programme doesn,t end till Aug, Got a good suggestion for a measily 5000$, Thanks for all your efforts.Regards Cliff

Q: I am happy with the dividend but would be much happier with less dividend and at least some growth Any suggestions or should i just sit tight

Q: Where can I find your recent article on "Call Options"?

Q: What do you think of PLI at this level. It has been going up a lot recently. Also, can you also provide your views on NLN after their recent earnings and contract negotiations. Thanks

Q: all the big companies laying off workers. t.d. enb and now teck! What is this telling us regards the future?

Q: The other day you mentioned that comdev had been sold out of the model portfolio, but that you recommend members hold to the closing. Can you elaborate further on the reasons for this. Thanks as ever

Q: Hello,
Is it time to get back into this name? Is the dividend safe?
From their web site:
today declared a dividend of $0.05 per share to be paid on December 15, 2015 to shareholders of record on November 30, 2015. The ex-dividend date is November 26, 2015.

So, if I buy know I get the dividend?

Thanks
Marios

Q: Hello Peter & Co,
I will join the chorus of voices favouring the portfolio approach. As a case in point, I own all the stocks in the 5i balanced equity portfolio except AYA,G,SIS,SYZ and WSP and the total return in 2015 (up to Nov 15) is 14.5%; that's a great performance considering the tough year we're having.
I salute you all,
Antoine

Q: Thank you for your recent article on Call Options.
1. Would you be willing to share with us which online trading platform you use to execute your call option trades?
2. Could you briefly explain if and how the call option premium income would affect the T1153 filings each year?
3. You mention that because of 5i no-conflict rules, you only invest in non-Canadian securities. Will this method work as well on Canadian stocks and would you be able to provide some good safe Canadian names for a beginner start with? If so, would you still use the same online trading platform for Canadian trades?

Thank you again,

Q: Hi Peter,
I purchased stocks in the growth portfolio under your recommendation with the understanding it could entail very large volatility and risk... but was OK with that given that these would all be mid to long-term holds. Taking Guestlogix as an example - I bought right after the Growth portfolio was released and to date I am down about 75.0%. Although I don't like this, I was OK with this volatility given it was going to be a long-term hold and there are still expectations of growth, but now you have recommended a complete sell only 8 months later so I am confused. What should an investor do in my position?

Q: Hello team,

Could you please shed more light on Amaya's $3 billion prospectus. Is this why Amaya fell and hence is it not already priced in? How is this going to affect the stock price in the next couple of years? Do you think they issue more debt or common shares? Is it prudent to wait and buy when shares are cheaper or is it better to just proceed and ignore the short term price gyrations? And finally what do you think of the article in Financial Post: http://business.financialpost.com/financial-post-magazine/high-school-dropout-has-turned-amaya-into-a-gaming-and-publicly-traded-powerhouse
Who is Andy Holloway? Is he credible? Would you buy what his glowing assessment?
I already own Amaya and after the market meltdown and its own fall my position has been reduced to 2% and I wonder if I should add now and wait for better times? I want to believe in the company and the growing online gaming industry but not foolishly or excessively?

And for what is worth, like other members I too have lost money on many of the stocks suggested by 5i, but I have no regrets and know very well that I would have lost much much more without your informed guidance. So, keep up the excellent job you are doing on our behalf and don't be discouraged by the negative comments you hear every now and then. For everyone of those you have at least 9 happy members who don't say much. Stock market is not made for the faint of hearts and we all know that you are on our side all the time, good and bad. It is not your fault that the market is not doing as well as it used to in the past few years. Thank you for everything!

Q: 7:57 AM 11/18/2015
Hello 5i
I am concerned about PrairieSky Royalties.
Will the income from the drillers and producers leasing their properties slow down if production decreases or do they have long term fixed contracts and take-or-pay deals?
Is their income tied to the actual price of oil/gas or are royalties fixed to production volumes?
Do you forsee any problems sustaining the dividends looking ahead a few years?
PSK is my only actual oil/gas holding and is 1% of my portfolio.
Would I be better off selling PSK and adding 1% to either my EMA[currently a 4% position] or to PPL[currently a 2% position]?
I can sell at no loss if I choose, so what would you advise.
Thank you.......... Paul K

Q: how do the numbers look?

Q: Hello Peter/Ryan,

My RIF has one annual payment due mid Dec. I have narrowed the source of funds to either XHY, of which there is a large holding, or MRG.UN which also is a fairly large holding. The overall REIT holdings across five accts is 4.7%. The overall holdings of XHY and other high yield bonds is about 6%. Either choice will still leave a fairly large holding (dollar value) of the selected stock/ETF in the RIF

I am inclined to make the withdrawal from XHY as perhaps MRG.UN will provide a bit better return in the year(s) ahead. Do you agree with selling some XHY or would you recommend I sell some of each?

Separate point: Would it be possible to put the Model and Income portfolio stock listings in alphabetical order for next publication (either by symbol or by name).

Many thanks. Bob

Q: Just wanted to thank you for your service. Its impossible to find this level of service outside. I think you made a good call removing Win from the portfolio. I think the overall portfolio approach works..most people complaining are buying individual stocks and picking and choosing one or 2 out of 20 or so stocks in the portfolio. I think people should pick one or two of the portfolios and buy a % of all stocks in that portfolio. I think you have given good thought to setting up each portfolio. I think it will be a good thing to have a write up/guidance about setting up a portfolio for new investors. cheers, Shyam