Investment Q&A

Q: Hello Peter & Co,
Judy asked on Nov 27 about withdrawals from a RRIF. I am 71 and I understand that in a RRIF any withdrawal from any type of security is considered as retirement income; it is treated as cash and therefore taxed as such. In a tax sheltered account, there is no such thing as capital gains or dividend tax credits; when an income is withdrawn the whole amount is taxed as cash income. The reason is that all contributions one has made to an RRSP (within the prescribed limits) were tax deductible. The taxes one has not paid then will have to be paid later but, in counterpart, all the gains made were free of taxes thus boosting the compounding effect.
Regards,
Tony

Q: Hi,

I was listening to an expert on BNN say that our railroads growth are " in their final innings"? Do you believe that and why?

Also, are their any us railways you recommend or an ETF?

Q: Hi : your analysis of the latest results - growth looks good but payout of 104% seems high. Is debt of 56% not pretty conservative for a REIT? 96% occupancy seems very impressive.

Q: I would like your opinion on Bonavista.
tks
bob

Q: Both these companies came down sharply in today's market, apparently due to the drop in oil prices. This surprised me as I thought the companies relatively immune to the price of oil. Could you explain the relationship here and how you see the share prices reacting if oil stays at the current level or continues to drop lower? Thanks.

Q: Can you please list 5 oil stocks that have no debt and that are worth buying during this selloff? Someone on BNN mentioned that RMP has no debt, is this true? Thanks

Q: Titan Logics' Q4 looked good to me. They again added to their large relative cash position (35% of current marketcap). What is your opinion on the company and their Q4 release? I own some shares at lower levels but I am considering doubling my position.

Q: The energy sector got "kill"today without the US market,which will open tomorrow.Is this good time to enter a new position in SU & VET.Really appreciate your usual great advices & services

Q: Hi Peter. LAB has made a conservable acquisition. Do you see this as another Amaya success story?
Thanks.
Cam

Q: curious as to why you wouldn't recommend to sell surge at the start of this week when it looked like opec wouldn't cut. and then to buy in at a lower price. the stock is down about 25% in the last 4 days alone.

Q: I'm considering purchasing more BAD on given the current weakness and am thinking it may even go down further with tax loss selling. What holding period should I be looking at (I saw you say to another question that six months is too short due to the volatility of the sector).
I purchased at a much higher price but don't want to end up throwing "good money" after "bad" --lol -- no pun intended

Q: I hold Crescent Point Energy, Inter Pipeline, and Parkland Fuel. With the volatility in oil prices the past few weeks all three are generally moving relative to movements in the oil price. This makes sense for CPG and IPL as they will be directly affected by lower oil prices and related volumes. However I'm not sure why PKI would be so closely tied to oil prices as they are a distributor and presumably lower fuel prices may actually cause an increase in consumption. Do you have any thoughts?

Q: Now that this bond has recovered, would you advise continuing to hold it or sell it. My portfolio is based on your growth model, and it represents about half my assets. I also have a pension that I live on as a retired person. Many thanks, Peter and 5i team!
Ellen

Q: Good morning,

My portfolio is pretty well diversified and do not keep more than 5% in each of my holdings. I have money right now that I would like to invest.
One of the sector that I do not have any investment is in the health area. Would have a company or an etf to recommend?

Thanks

Paul

Q: Hello Peter and Staff;
Is there any downside to purchasing an ETF in December, in terms of distribution of units. I know in the past when I have held mutual funds, I have taken a hit early in the new year which pertained to a fund timing purchase in the last couple of months of the previous year. ?any similarity in operation of etfs and mutual funds in this regard?. Thank you very much

Q: Regarding the question on RIF withdrawals,I try not to withdraw dividend stocks in kind - I leave them in my RIF and withdraw the dividend income in cash. If I withdraw dividend stocks in kind, the dividend gross up on top of the taxable amount of the withdrawal, cpp and oas, gets my taxable income too high (despite the dividend tax credit). So, for my required RIF withdrawal, I take the cash from dividends and top up the amount required with an in kind transfer of a non dividend stock such as GIL. I will pay capital gains in the future obviously. Do any of your members who have to make RIF withdrawals have any other ideas? It is a bit of a difficult transition to go from accumulating retirement funds, to then having to use them to fund retirement - something I should have been thinking about 10 years before retirement! My advice to anyone who has to live off their investments is to top up their TFSA's and to think about how to position your portfolio between RSP's and investment accounts well before retirement.

Q: Hi guys,

With the latest news from OPEC and the steep declines in oil prices, can you provide a few names that you think will benefit most from lower oil prices that we should have exposure to?

Also, I know natural gas stocks and oil stocks get lumped together and that sentiment is very bad right now, but some natural gas stocks are getting hammered with gas over $4. Doesn't seem reasonable.

Q: Hi Guys
Now that oil is so low, I am sure the analysts will start to reduce the future expectations of all the oil companies. Do you think there will be another sell off in the sector when the feeble minded, lemming-like Canadian money managers see the reduced expectation?
Thanks for the opinion.
Regards
John

Q: I have no intention of turning an excellent and straightforward service, such as the one you provide, into a hand-holding event, but you have lived through many meltdowns with a better handle on what is going on that most if not all of us. Do you see some type of bottom in the energy space? I have an urge to load up on Surge, Spartan and Whitecap for a five year hold. I am also thinking of adding to a small position in Elkwater because they have little or no debt but I don't really know their cost per barrel metrics.
Presently, I have about a half-position in energy and am not down too much as the purchases have been recent.
Am I looking for trouble?
Thanks.

Q: Peter; The last time I saw charts like this, i.e oil stocks, was the morning after the income trust fiasco. And it was a buying opportunity for long term investors. Publish if you wish. Thanks.Rod