Investment Q&A

Q: are you at all suspicious of the complex interconnectedness of the Brookfield group of companies? All seems well but like the predecessor Hees-Edper group of companies, would a slowdown cause a tumbling of dominoes?

Forgive me for thinking 'thrice bitten - always shy' but it seems many are on the Brookfield boat.
Thanks

Q: what about getting exposure to Cineplex via the recent convertible bond issues by the company?

Q: Can you tell me your top two or three choices for Canadian industrial reits, thanks Bill

Q: Hi group thinking of going to 20% gold and silver Presently am at 8% GLD a

Q: In a Smith Maneuver portfolio, is it advisable to allocate a percentage in gold? If so, could you please provide some top picks?

Thanks

Q: I would like your thoughts on duke energy
For a 3 to 5 year pick
Thanks
Sam

Q: top 3 american, top 3 canadian, banks to invest in ?, and a reasonable projection and why, or do you not recommend banks at this time?

thanks

Q: Hi 5I team,

If I have to pick one among the 3 above, which one would you recommend and why?

thanks,

Q: Would you please rank these companies in descending order of their dividend reliability.
Thanks.

Q: Looking at the top ten holdings of the TAN solar etf...can you comment on some of them based on your 5iresearch criteria....sedg, enph, fslr, run, Dq, csiq

Q: I need some advice on this fund and industry sector as a whole. I was intrigued to hear there was indeed a fund or a strategy around egaming. Frankly I had not given it any consideration other than it drives me crazy how much my kid plays and the explosion of online egaming. Its gotten to the level that this industry can sell-out Madison Square Gardens for a competition or the launch of a new game. NCAA colleges have progressively moved into this sector as well where faculties are being built around the theme. So its becoming hard to ignore.

What do you see as a strategy to be exposed to this market? Is the above ETF a good start or do I look elsewhere? What sector would you assign the eGaming industry too? Consumer Discretionary?

Q: Dear 5i team:
Your software indicates our family’s investments are too Canadian-focused. However, I prefer our “home bias”, for three reasons:
(a) most of our assets are non-registered, and the dividend tax credit is especially favourable for Canadian source dividends in a province such as ours (Ontario);
(b) I like supporting the companies that I invest in (e.g., we buy Peller family wines, since we own their shares);
(c) but most important, many of the “Canadian” businesses we own are surprisingly international; among our top 20 equity holdings are:
Alimentation couche-tarde (Circle K is world-wide);
Brookfield Asset Management (globally focused company that invests wherever the opportunities are);
CGI Group (revenues are 84% outside Canada per 2019 annual report);
CP Rail (significant U.S. revenues);
Fortis (65% of earning are in U.S.);
Manulife (growing Asian revenues);
Restaurant Brands International (most of Burger King and Popeye’s restaurants are outside of Canada);
Shopify (not sure, but suspect international revenues are growing faster than Canadian revenues);
TC Energy (dropped “Canada” from its name to reflect its growing U.S. presence);
TD bank (substantial and growing U.S. presence);
Anyways, the above-listed 10 stocks represent about one-third of our overall equity holdings (in absolute $ terms), but I would not consider these companies as being “100% Canadian”. I wonder whether your software could be rejigged to reflect the relative percent earnings (or revenue) contributions, broken down per Canada, U.S., Europe, Asia, and so forth. I suspect our home “bias” is not nearly as substantial as it appears.
Ted

Q: I assume that the share price fall has resulted from the short seller claims, and that the law suits could go against the short seller if those allegations are false. I further assume that the short sell attack is opportunistic rather than a valid critique of the company. But
I do not know the project history. Do you know if there is substantial validity to the short seller claims, or if there are substantial impediments to the projects success?

Q: Is MPT:CA worth an investment? It looks interesting.

Q: Hi,
As a complement to your answer about why DND's IPO is not available in Quebec, by provincial law, companies that have IPOs in Quebec must translate the accompanying documents in french. It costs money and as you mention may slow down the process. Consequently, some companies just do not bother.

Keep up the good work

Q: Hi,
In my TFSA ..Im holding ECN ,PKI , REAL , SIS , XBC
I have some cash to buy 2 more cie ,, can you recommend what I should add.

Thanks

Q: Can you comment on the speculation of the stamps takeover by Shopify? Do you see any other moves making sense or more likely?

Q: While it is difficult to pull away from my tech holdings, to diversify some US holdings I am considering purchases of Treehouse and Northrop Grumann. Even though these are USA stocks, if possible, would you please give your analysis of whether these companies are good investments at this time...are they a buy or not, and why? Thank you for your excellent service.

Q: I hold XQQ in my RRSP. I read it is better to receive US dollar dividends via a NYSE ETF. ( tax free treatment ). Can you suggest a similar ETF to replace XQQ ?

Q: I am considering buying LIFE, or maybe HHL. I understand the "withholding tax" issue is best handled by having these ETFs being held within ones RRSP.

A clarification question = If the foreign country withholds income taxes, is this reconciled at the time of filing ones income tax? I thought there was a tax agreement or tax treaty that ensured there was no double taxation. So if one paid taxes to the USA on a certain investment, then you didn't have to pay taxes also in Canada...in other words...no double jeopardy. Or...is my understanding incorrect?

The reason I ask is I like the way my portfolio is constructed and have the funds available to purchase either of these ETFs from within my Cash account.

Thanks for your help...much appreciated...Steve