Investment Q&A

Q: Do you think that the dust has settled with CRH yet ?

Would you say that it is still over-valued ? under-valued ?
or priced appropriately ?

Q: Dear 5i, I've read some good questions lately on REITs and return of capital, dividends, business income, and the adjusted cost base for these securities.
I just wanted to follow up and ask if my understanding of the different tax treatments is correct.
1. RRSP: all monies paid to the RRSP is basically exempt and no need to keep track of ROC, dividends, etc.
2. TFSA same as RRSP
3. Cash Account, monies paid to the account must be kept track of and the ACB will be reduced each time ROC is paid back to the investor.
Please confirm this means over a very long period of time the ACB could be reduced to zero or even negative? Is the ROC, Box 42 on a T3, the only amount I have to keep track of?
and another question, on BYD.UN, Why is BYD.UN allowed to operate under .UN status and in your opinion will they eventually be required to convert to a Corp.?

Q: i have a large position in veresen - 10000 shares, mainly for the dividend and jordan cove potential, and then todays announced takeover of veresen at 18.65 a shares cash or pempina shares.i have owned veresen since 11.00 dollars
my question is should i sell my shares, could there be a better offer, i am not a believer in waiting for the deal to close to get an extra 50-75 cents
depending where veresen opens. dave

Q: Ryan,
Can you please provide a couple choices of best in class ETFs that would give best exposure to Europe?
Thx

Q: Hi 5i - I have a well balanced portfolio with good performance thanks to you good folks at 5i. I'd like to put a little bit of 'mad money' into two or three high risk, high reward names, fully understanding the risk of losing it all. Are there any names in the Canadian or US markets that come to mind?

Q: Does it make sense to hold a dividend ETF when you do not require the income?
I will likely not require these funds for 10 years or more without the requirement for income. Does it make sense to focus on growth instead?
I am specifically looking at this ETF as its concentrated to holding only 40 companies.

Q: Which Emerging Markets ETF with growth and some dividend for a long term hold in TFSA and/or RESP account would you recommend? THX

Q: I am holding XEG in my RRSP, it's down 28% for me since I bought it. Paying just over 0.6% mer for a losing position. It is currently 4% of my holdings. Wanted to know if I should sell and buy 2-3 positions that pays a dividend and has some growth potential. I also hold ZDV(20% holding) and VIG(3.5% holding) so not sure if I should sell and add to ZDV, VIG, or add individual names. My only other energy name is HWO (small position 1.5%). I'm also open to USA securities and ETF's, your thoughts and recommendations will be appreciated.

Q: New member here, would like your opinion on TGF.UN for a diversification into global real estate. Are there better alternatives?
Thank you!
Michael

Q: Just reading your response today to Brad re his BCE query and your thoughts on analysts recommendations. Could you please provide any additional comments on this as we tend to view these summaries of analysts as a reasonable guide in our thinking when buying or selling, but I'm not not sure how totally prescriptive these are. How much faith should we place in these summaries?

Q: Hello,

How do you feel about EQB.PR.C? It had been pretty stable around $25. Do you feel like it will drift back to that price over the next 1-2 years?

Regards

Q: Just reading your response today to Brad re his BCE query and your thoughts on analysts recommendations. Could you please provide any additional comments on this as we tend to view these summaries of analysts as a reasonable guide in our thinking when buying or selling, but I'm not not sure how totally prescriptive these are. How much faith should we place in these summaries?
Thx

Q: Looking for reassurance and Not a question per se, I am seeing many small amounts of shares being traded. No big blocks more than a few thousand which indicates that my fellow retail investors are leaving. Reminds me of when PHM was going to the dogs. I hope CRH isn't another medical shell game. Down 18 plus %.

Q: What would your suggestion(s) be if one wanted to have the safest portfolio possible which generated a 4%-5% return? Would the 5i income portfolio be considered the lowest risk, lowest volatility option to get the desired return?

Q: Can you comment on Winpak's (WPK-ca) earnings, their cash position and speculate on how large they can grow their cash position before management begins to consider a special dividend?

Q: What is your assesment on this company for a staple growth company? Any specific problem you would see?Is it to expensive? They will be using coca cola's network for expansion.Not very good at beating estimates.Or would an industrial company you could suggest at this time be better ?
Thank you much portfolio on track for very good gains so far.

Q: The first baby boomers aged 71-72 (~1945-65) will begin cashing out their RRSP's or converting them into RRIF's or purchasing an annuity, this year. As will all the major boomer shifts, it is exciting to look at and predict the impact their money will have on government (tax revenues), financial institutions, personal wealth etc. What sectors will benefit; insurance companies like (SLF), banks (BNS), brokerage/ investment firms (FSZ), other. Where will the bulk of this money flow to: fixed income (bonds, debs, gic's, savings acc's) or (pref's and dividend stocks, common stock) or annuities. I welcome your thoughts and predictions on this interesting matter.

Q: My average annual return based on 5i guidance is 13.3% over 8 years. Can't argue with that. Thank you.

Question: XWD, for example, is a global ETF which invests in 5000 companies around the planet, which has returned a very steady (almost a straight line) 13.09% since inception.

So why not sell my 40 stocks and simply buy a combination of:
- XWD (growth)
- CBO (fixed income + security)
- XGD (security)
and call it a day? This would have returned say 11% - 12%.
Pretty close...

Maybe this should be addressed on your ETF site, but I thought it was worth asking here.

As usual, thank you for your sound advice.

Q: I am assuming the North West announcement that they are pulling their business and becoming self-sufficient through an acquisition, is the reason for the steep decline lately. Should one conclude that the impact is now baked into the SP?

Carl

Q: What is your view on the announcement by EIF regarding the loss of North West as a client? The announcement said the effect on the bottom line is only about $1 million, which is so immaterial.

Also, is this piece of business development what the shorts are basing their recent incessant attack of the EIF SP? If so, can we expect a much appreciated short squeeze on Monday?

You insight is much appreciated as always.