Investment Q&A

Q: I have held XLP for sometime and thought it may be better to hold a few consumer defensive stocks instead for better overall performance. Also, XLP has a high percentage of tobacco companies that would prefer not to hold.

Would you be able to provide a 2 or 3 suggestions. I would prefer US or international companies.

Thank you

Q: Hi,
I read with interest your latest Market Update. I am curious, given your interest rate and market analysis, does the Russell 2000's performance (e.g., IWO) this year indicate anything to you about the possible future direction of markets and the economy? Thanks, Michael

Q: I believe the sale of NVEI has gone through. Is that correct? Should I just sell my existing stocks now or wait til the sale goes through. Do you know when that would be? - thanks.

Q: Which would you recommend as a buy right now, and why: MFC or SLF?

Q: Hello, looking for some insights into Academy Sports and Outdoors?

Q: Hi Peter, Can you provide me your updated thoughts on Olympia. The growth has been outstanding and it pays a 7% yield. Do you think they can grow the dividend. Also any comments on the management would be appreciated - I haven't heard much about them but they keep delivering.

Thanks

Q: I have been holding RCH for a long time. Going forward, which one RCH or ADEN would you choose for a long-term hold? Which one has more potential ?

Q: How do the last 4 Q's results of NWC look to your analytical eyes? Can you give me your views on the bull/bear case going forward?

Many thanks for your help.

Q: For the average person with a long time horizon and want to invest in stocks in the form of ETFs, what do you think is the optimal distribution of US, Canada Europe China etc? S&P 500 seem to have done better historically than other markets. But does that mean I should only invest in vfv?
And what do you think of the weighting of VEQT?

Q: Hello ,
Is there a reason why well health is ticking higher and Propel keeps moving downwards to the lower 20s range? Thank you and much appreciated.

Q: We have accounts in RRIF and TFSA. We like to keep approx 6 months of cash in case of economic downturn. Is this too long a period or keep 3 months and invest the rest to produce income. I thought maybe because of interest rates starting to come down it maybe would change economics to positive. Will elections play a role with all the gov't calling elections in the future. we have pensions and dividends that keep us happy .We live within our means.Thanks 5i

Q: BB is in a downtrend, but why 10% and 5% in the last 2 days? Anything on the proposed split? Thanks.

Q: With approx 17% of their revenue coming from one customer (Apple), would you consider that too much single customer concentration risk for Broadcom? Thank you

Q: Hi Team,
I had to trim some Nvda today to manage weighting size in my portfolio. What are some of your best idea “forever holds” today that are standing out as strong buys at current levels ? Either cnd or US. Or is it recommended to hold some cash for a while if it looks like the market is due for a pullback??

Thanks,
Shane

Q: Hello 5i Team

I currently own shares of Canadian Western Bank (CWB) and National Bank (NA) in my TFSA.

The yield on the shares of CWB are approximately 1 % higher than yield on NA

The announced takeover of CWB by NA is at at a share ratio of 0.45 shares NA per 1 share CWB.

NA announced an public offering of NA shares at $112.30 concurrently with the takeover. This implies a price of 0.45 x $112.30 = $50.54 for shares of CWB.

This morning share of NA are trading below the offering price (~$110.40) and the share price of CWB are trading around $42.35 which implies an exchange ratio of 0.39.

Is there an opportunity to acquire shares of CWB at a small discount to the takeover premium (with the risk of the deal not being approved by the government) in the anticipation of the takeover and exchange for shares of NA or should I just let the deal close in 18 months (end of 2025)?

I would receive marginally more dividend income from the share of CWB while waiting for the deal to close.

I also think there will be selling pressure on CWB for the next two weeks as investors may be inclined to sell CWB in anticipation of the June 25 change in capital gains inclusion rates.

Thank you

Q: Hi 5i, for better growth over the next 3-5 years would a switch from to TD to CWB, so as to take advantage of discount, make sense? I'm worried about TD being put in the penalty box for any new US acquisitions.

Thx

Q: Hello

I recently submitted a question on TD, expressing concerns about possible lingering ill effects due to the money laundering episode. In a nutshell, 5Is position was that there was little concern on their part about TDs future and that most banks are subjected to the same money laundering threats. Just received this presser:

"Toronto-Dominion Bank's anti-money laundering program will take longer to cure and could have a greater and more damaging impact on the bank's franchise and earnings power. After confirming TD Bank's AA credit rating in May, additional shortcomings in the program, controls and operational risk-management practices have surfaced. Morningstar expects additional investment in risk and control infrastructure and expected monetary and non-monetary penalties, as well as the ongoing attention of leadership on remediation efforts, will act as earnings headwinds. There also is a risk regulators conducting investigations will reveal other related and/or unrelated issues, it says."

Still little concern on your part?

I did sell a third of my TD holdings after receiving your input. It was my largest holding.

Carl

Q: Am I correct in thinking it is highly unlikely that ROKU goes to zero? Would you currently consider it a buy, sell or hold? Thanks.

Q: I recently read an interview with Jensen Huang from back in 2017 where he went on record stating that AI will eat the software industry. It's a bold statement, but it appears many are expecting this thesis to play out. So my question is 2 fold.... do you see the larger upside within Tech on the chips side (picks and shovels) vs software going forward? And, is the acquisition and vertical software integration model with CSU the safer play within the software industry and more immune to declining margins like we recently saw with large enterprise software companies like CRM. Thank you!

Q: Hi,

The last question asked in 5i about this company was by me nearly a year ago. Since then they have purchased a few companies some of which are loss making and that they seem to have overpaid for, They blew most of the $541 million they had and the companies they purchased are in India/Italy where they can't use their tax losses. Admin. expenses have skyroccketed. Now there's a proxy fight. I'm thinking I should vote my shares with the minority (26%) shareholder to replace the management of the company. It seems like they are a bloated, self serving group of directors/managers that should be booted. They still have around $100 million that they haven't blown yet. What do you think?

Dave