Investment Q&A

Q: Many of the questions asked by 5i members pertain to Canadian oil and gas companies. That being said, I'm increasingly hesitant to consider buying stocks in them even when you rank some of them very highly.

It appears that the US is fast approaching the point where it will be energy self-sufficient given its ever-increasing domestic oil and gas output. I may be missing something but I suspect that American buyers will soon be cutting back on their purchases of Canadian oil and gas products. Making matters worse for these same Canadian companies is the fact that the infrastructure in Canada is not yet in place for exporting their production abroad.

Based on my limited understanding of energy market dynamics, the near future for even the best Canadian oil and gas companies seems very bleak and, perhaps, now is not the time to buy their shares.

Is my reasonning correct or am I missing something?

Q: Hi Peter and gang
Thanks for the great service. I have a small postion in Largo and writing to ask your opinion. Is this stock ready for prime time?
GUY

Q: for some reason you guys do not seem to want to do a growth portfolio,you keep saying you might do one in the future,i think a great many of your subscribers are under 50 and would appreciate a growth portfolio, since a growth portfolio will probably be much more volatile than your model and income portfolio and would give the younger people a lot more time to overcome the dips a growth portfolio might, I repeat might bring.
having said this could you please give me your top 5 picks for growth in the next year. thanks. dave

Q: i have the following financial companies in my portfolio DFS.us, HCG and BNS all at 2.5%. I would like to increase two of them to 5%, which ones? Or do you have another one in mind?

thanks again

Q: Hi Team What is your take on drg.un & rmm.un at this time

Thanks Mike B

Q: Is there enough of a body of information about Trupanion (trup) or similar companies to make a reasonable investment,people seem to be willing to spend unlimited amounts on pet care,Thank You.

Q: I hold 6.25% TD.PRK-T preferred shares which will mature on July 31. I have the option of converting them into Series L, non-cumulative, floating rate issue 4.33% + the average previous 90 days T-Bill rate. Can you please advise me if this is a good choice assuming that interest rates may begin to rise in the next 1,2,3 years. Under what market circumstances would the shares drop below the $25.00 PAR value, and would this be a major concern given that inflation is now hovering above 2% and that interest rates will remain at their current levels this year and potentially be on the rise starting sometime in 2015. For a preferred share, can you suggest a better alternative that would provide similar returns but offer a lower risk.

Also is it too speculative to buy ECI now that a takeover offer has been made and even assuming that the takeover does not take place.

Thank you for your advise,

Joseph

Q: hi peter; what is your opinion on rmm.----thanks brian

Q: Good Morning... I have a considerable investment in GTAT.US ... for some reason I am under water despite the good press and the prospect of Sapphire Glass taking over Gorilla Glasses throne . Will this just be a bouncy ride or can you see a crash ?

Q: I have owned GEI for 2 years and I am up %50 plus the dividend. I see that the payout ratio is at %127. Is this a concern? If so could you suggest another company in this sector. Thanks.

Q: What is your opinion of anglo-pacific (APY)?

Q: regarding the CVD and XHY: (1) i have zero exposure to bonds and was planning to divide funds between the CVD and XHY in the model portfolio. Should i favour one over the other?

(2) i notice the monthly distributions vary from month to month. what dictates the variations in monthly payouts?

(3) i noticed in May and June, according to the ishares webpage, CVD and XHY did not pay their distributions. is this correct and if so any idea why and whats the likelihood of nonpayments happening again?

Thanks again.

Q: I would appreciate any comments on ruf.un Thank you

Q: I bought SJ in April when you commented positively on this company . I paid $ 32.30 and now its selling at $ 29.00 . What causes the weakness in the stock. Should I sell,hold or buy more. Thank you

Q: Hello 5i team,
To complement her RRSP portfolio, my wife has opened a TFSA; her time horizon is 5+ years. I chose for her stocks with some yield and some growth: BLX, DH, ET, FRU and WSP. Your income portfolio holds 3 of those; do you have any major issue with the other 2?
Thanks,
Tony

Q: Just to help with Shyam's question: I have been living outside Canada for a few years now and investing in stocks through Canadian brokers. The biggest issue is whether you are officially becoming a tax non-resident. If so, some brokers won't want to deal with you, some are ok. They should start withholding tax on Canadian dividends and again, some will and some will not. As an example, TD Discount will do withholding but will only allow a basic cash account (no margin, Canada & US only), Interactive Brokers does not allow non-residents. Registered accounts are not affected by this. I'm not qualified to give any tax advice but this was my experience. Absolutely doable but can be a pain if you actually switch tax residency.

Q: Has there been any indication what AVO plans to do with the money it raised from its stock offering a few months ago? I believe you indicated that if this money was not put to work within a reasonable period it might affect your view of the company. Has it? Thanks.

Q: Hello 5i,

I presently see myself having to leave the country at some point for a year or two to take care of ageing parents. How would I be able to manage a self directed investment portfolio if I have to leave the country at some point? Thanks very much. Cheers, Shyam

Q: Could you please update your opinion of ORV,PRU, and TME Thanx

Q: Peter and Team: I understand and agree with your decision to avoid target prices for stocks, but, having said that, I feel quite frustrated that I am unable to assess the risk-reward profile for a stock. I can only look at the chart and try to extrapolate.

Can you give me a sense of the risk-reward profile for two companies: Evertz Technologies (ET) and Sylogist (SYZ). Yahoo Finance shows 5-6 analysts covering Evertz. The low price target is $28 and the high target is $37. The stock is currently trading around $17. Are those realistic targets? Can you help me make sense of those targets (or provide one)? Yahoo shows no analyst coverage for SYZ. Can you give me a sense of its risk-reward, perhaps by comparing the two stocks? Thank you for continued great service.