Investment Q&A

Q: Greetings 5i,

I currently hold positions (slightly more than a half position each) in both TD and BNS (TD for their American exposure and BNS for their international exposure). In your opinion, is it necessary to own two Canadian banks? Do they complement each other well, or is there too much redundancy? If the latter, would you recommend one over the other?

I have a long term horizon (I am 35), am fairly conservative, and prefer long-term holds. In the Canadian financial sector, I also hold SLF and BAM.A.

Thank you.

Q: Dear 5i
I look at the chart of the TSX and see that its been trending downward over the last 6 months or so while the S&P and DOW have been trending upwards over the same time period . My thought is that it might be a good time to invest in the TSX now as that downward trend is most likely to start to reverse upward and not invest in the DOW or S&P as that trend is likely to reverse downward . On the other hand 5i generally advocates investing into strength meaning investing the opposite to what i`m suggesting . The other thought of course is to invest equally amongst them all so diversified across the board . I know predicting the market is impossible but i still like to invest to some degree on probabilities .
Appreciate your thoughts .
Thanks
Bill C.

Q: What Cdn oil company would you purchase strictly for growth that would benefit the most if and when oil turns around? Thanks

Q: Can you comment on the Aimia and Diversified deal?

Thanks

Q: to invest in Emerging mkts, what is difference between VEE and VWO and which would you prefer? Or could you name 2 or 3 EM stocks that you prefer instead. thx. Helen

Q: Can I have your opinion and comparisons on these 3 international ETF for a long term core holding, to compliment VIG in an RRSP, which is best and why. No international exposure at the moment. I understand that XEF and ZEA both track the same index however I'm not sure why XEF would hold its own ETF for a 7% holding.

Q: Hello Team, what impact would an ~1 trillion US$ infrastructure program have on ITP, assuming the new President gets a big infrastructure plan passed by Congress?

Q: I've recently read that FAANG stocks should be avoided because they make up a large portion of the Dow Jones Industrial Index and the S&P 500 Index, meaning every ETF owns them. What you usually end up
with is a reversion to the mean. The more shares that must be bought with each investor purchase of an index fund, the more the performance tends to follow an “average” return. I would appreciate your thoughts on this statement, thank you.

Q: Re: Aug.25/17 comment from Bob on SIS big volume. This is where Technical Analysis/Stock Charts may play a role looking forward & backward combining the fundamentals. The stock has corrected roughly 30% from a high of 17.55 to its current low of 12.04. Simple charting platforms such as Moving Averages-Bollinger Bands-Relative Strength Index-MACD might of helped to find a bottom & choose an entry point.Could you tell us the size of the block trade & the price.
This could tell you where institutions are prepared to take a stand. The stock looks somewhat clean now & may return to its upward momentum. Regards: Ken

Q: I want to re-balance my portfolio across sectors but I found that a few holdings can fit more than one sector for all practical purposes.

CCL.B is classified as materials, but can we also consider it as consumer goods given its labeling and container products directly serve the retail market? If so would that be c. cyclical or non-cyclical?

MG is classified as c. cyclical, but can we also consider it as industrial?

I have a hard time with FSV which is classified as financial, but to me consumer non-cyclical (recurrent residential residential/condo maintenance fees, property services) is a better fit.

Finally, how about MDA? Can it be considered either technology or telecommunications?

Thank you for validating the above, it will be useful to explore my options.

Q: SCL or BAD - Which is a better buy ? Thank you

Q: Hi Peter and Team,
I am holding two gold stocks, AEM and KL, and thinking to buy one silver stock.

In the past you did like FVI Funtuna Silver, do you still like it, or would you prefer WPM
Wheaton Precious Metal Group instead?

Thanks for your advice.

Q: Mr. Hodson, this is still about GUD. Considering your recent report, the rating of A- granted, its recent value of $8.31, I hope it goes well, which is not the case currently. Do you still have confidence in it ?

Q: Hi 5i: I've been holding Amazon for a while and have done quite well, but I'm getting nervous. I am thinking of selling and switching into Microsoft. This way I still have some "cloud" exposure and lower risk. What do you think of this move?

Q: On august 17 in answer to an ALA question, you said that a regulatory agency (?) had recommended AGAINST approval of the US acquisition. I have head nothing about this anywhere else. Can you please elaborate, tell us how important this may be for ultimate approval, and provide a link to this? I was quite surprised to hear this, given the Q2 conference call said progress on the acquisition was ahead of schedule and they expected final approval by the end of Q2.

Q: If I wanted to buy some Amazon stock, in which account should I purchase it ?

Q: I would appreciate your analysis of their Q1 results that were released late yesterday. It looks like a revenue beat of $14.2 million vs estimates of $13.6 million. Onward and upward? Many thanks.

Q: With the halt in ARE and possible sale, what is your recommendation for this stock? I hold shares purchased at $13.
thanks, Paul

Q: Hi Team,
Would you kindly comment on Fairfax's announced sale of Singaporean insurer First Capital Insurance Ltd. for US $1.6B and it's ongoing strategic alliance with Japan’s Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Do you have any thoughts about how significant this deal is and how it will improve Fairfax's prospects for the future?
Thank you, Michael

Q: I look forward to your investment updates emails, enjoy reading them and find them useful. However, I find the timing and frequency of them rather unpredictable. Is there a rough guideline as to when or how often you try to get them out? Is timing mainly driven by when you have made decisions to proceed or not with model portfolio updates?