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Investment Q&A

Not investment advice or solicitation to buy/sell securities. Do your own due diligence and/or consult an advisor.

Q: Hi 5i,
I wonder if the market is (and will continue) reacting quite negatively to the new federal cabinet, out of a belief that economic growth, national self sufficiency and real prosperity for Canadians is not currently high on the list of government priorities. Nothing can hinder economic health like obstructionist government policy and I sure see lots of that in Canada these days. I'm feeling like I should concentrate hard on moving as much as I can into US and international names.
Would you say I'm overreacting to what the next 18 months to 2 years (the usual life span of a minority government) might bring to Canadian business? Are there sectors that are likely to thrive during that period, other than maybe the banks, do you think?
Thanks for any insight you can offer.
Peter
Read Answer Asked by Peter on October 28, 2021
Q: Could you provide the names of some companies that have declared their first dividend over the past several months. Canadian or U.S., any size market cap. Thanks.
Read Answer Asked by Rob on October 22, 2021
Q: Hi 5i Team - Are there any Canadian companies in the semi-conductor space that would be of interest to you, including start-up companies, suppliers of materials, and any potential companies on the horizon. I sold my shares in Photon Control some time ago and am looking for some kind of replacement on the Canadian side. If the U.S. is the only way to go in this field could you please suggest a couple of top picks. l already have Nvidia. Thanks.
Read Answer Asked by Rob on October 21, 2021
Q: Hello Peter & Team,

As per Bob Dylan... "The times they are a changin"

I have some new money to deploy and I am a little confused right now regarding where I should put it and how much cash I should leave out!

With what's going on in China, supply chain issues combined with pent up demand and lots of cash on hand, increasing energy costs, and the shortage of labor, I think everyone can agree we are about to/are in and inflationary period which could last for a few years.

I don't think it's a bad thing. And I don't think the markets are going to be (long term) adversely effected. But I do think there are companies/sectors which will do better than others in an inflationary environment. As an example... financials should do well. Inevitable rate hikes plus their ability to pass along added costs to the customer makes sense for them to be able to continue generating good cash flow.

My questions
1. We have all done very well in tech thanks to your guidance. How do you see this sector performing over the coming 1 - 3 years? It would be a shame for the 5i family to see all the capital gains we've recently enjoyed be depleted.
2. Which sectors and specifically which companies do you think will do well in this environment moving forward?
3. With respect to the 5i portfolios which many of us follow closely, what plans/changes are you considering keeping in mind the increasing cost-of-business landscape?

Thanks for all you do.

gm
Read Answer Asked by Gord on October 20, 2021
Q: I am a Canadian citizen who resides full-time in the U.S.
Just recently, my Canadian bank (CIBC) restricted my Canadian-domiciled RRSP to only sells, rendering it virtually useless.
I am under the impression trading a non-registered account is not illegal.
I understand this is not in your wheelhouse, but do you know of any financial institutions which allow foreign residents to trade their RRSPs?
You can post this on the public portion of the Q&A in the hopes it helps others in my situation.
Thanks, I really hope you can offer some assistance.
Read Answer Asked by Kyle on October 18, 2021
Q: Hi!

I'm sitting on some large gains in the energy sector. Given the cyclicality of the sector how should we go about trimming our holdings? Should we just maintain our sector allocation and trim if and when it gets too big? Its taken a long time for energy to come back since 2014 so I don't want to sell too early, but any unforeseen event can hurt prices quickly. Do you think we are still in the early stages of the energy/commodity bull market? I read they tend to run in 5 year cycles.

Thanks,
Jason
Read Answer Asked by Jason on October 08, 2021
Q: Hi,

Are there any recent studies that you would recommend regarding optimal diversification (not CAPM)?

It seems these days that in bad markets everything falls regardless of sector, region, size etc. So I am trying to figure out if it’s worthwhile holding “safe” securities that return a fraction of what higher growth names would-since these safe plays still fall significantly in down markets, albeit much less than the high fliers.
Specifically, I am interested to see if someone (reputable) has proven that in the long run (10+years) it is worth holding ANY slow growth stocks returning say 5% per year and “only” fall 25% in down market versus having an aggressive portfolio of high growth stocks returning 20+% per year but fall 50% in a down market. I would think the compounding of high growth portfolio would more than offset the larger loss in a down market-but looking to see if this has been proven.

thanks!
Brad
Read Answer Asked by Brad on October 04, 2021
Q: I am trying to understand the impact of a 75% Capital Gains inclusion rate. Today with a 50% inclusion rate, assuming a 50% personal tax rate, you keep 75% of any taxable gain. With a 75% inclusion rate you would keep 62.5%, or 16.7% less. Is my math correct?

In a 75% inclusion rate, can 75% of the loss be used against gains? ie. a $100 gain would be offset by $100 loss meaning no tax would be due just as it is today?

If this is true, you may be best to lock in gains and save 16.7% if its a holding you plan on selling in the next year or two anyways. You can always buy it back immediately after locking in the gain. 16,7% seems significant

On the LOSS side, it seems more black and white. Today you can claim 50% of the loss and if there is a change to 75% inclusion rate, you can claim 75% of the loss next year. If there is no change to the inclusion rate a 50% loss claimed this year or next year is marginally better to claim now but if the inclusion rate changes from 50% to 75% it will be worth 50% more next year. It seems to me you are better off waiting until next year to claim any losses.

Is this a valid analysis or am I missing something.

Many Thanks
Scott
Read Answer Asked by Scott on September 27, 2021
Q: Just to be clear. If I journal a company from my CDN to US account, then the dividends are still subject to the Canadian dividend tax credit, even though they are paid in US funds.

The internet says: "
Since U.S. dividends are not paid from Canadian corporations, U.S. dividends do not qualify for the preferential Canadian dividend tax treatment. Foreign dividends, including U.S. dividends, are subject to tax at your marginal tax rate like interest income."
Read Answer Asked by Lucy on September 24, 2021
Q: Hi team,

I know you are fundamental analysts, but you mention technicals from time to time. I am curious on your thoughts of the RSI as an entry or exit indicator on a stock. I look at it, not so much to see if a stock is overbought or oversold, but more so to judge how a stock is holding up in a bad market. Do you use it in your analysis and do you have a preferred website where RSI data is readily available?

Thanks again.
Read Answer Asked by Dave on September 22, 2021
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