Investment Q&A

Q: What would be your pick right now for a tech stock for the long-term in a RRSP (3+ years)? Can you provide a few names in order of preference?

Q: Celestica- I added a half position last week at $90.10. It’s run back up to $139.50 making it a 3/4 position.. great timing so thank you for the additional insights. My question.. let the winner run seems obvious but do you top it up here or wait for a consolidation. If wait, do you think adding to CRM today makes sense - 1/4 position currently.

Thanks

Q: Hi 5i,

I have some USD cash available, which stocks would you consider buying today for balanced/growth portfolio?

If holding longer on cash, where would you park it? Something equivalent to CSAV on US side maybe.

Thank you,

Q: Good morning 5i,

I'm expecting some turbulence coming for sure. I doubt all is priced in with the tariff battle. Of course nobody knows. But opportunity may be knocking.

I refreshed myself on Peter's cover call write up from years past. I'd love a new take on selling covered calls to enhance your income and some strategies relating to it. ie, OTM, time frame etc.

And some top stocks in your view for writing on. Excluding NVDA, already sell OTC cc on my position.

Thank you very much.

Q: As one of 5i’s early subscribers, I find it a useful thought experiment to give my answer to a question before clicking on the 5i answer. I have found over the years our answers converge and so I rarely send in questions and comments. However my sense is that DeepSeek is a significant change.

On one level it is a clear lesson in the reality that, as Keynes said many decades ago, it’s real resources that matter, not money.

The American approach to AI development was that if you don’t have a $1billion you're not in the game. The Chinese have shown that if you have the pool of talent, amazing things can be done with relatively little money. The prevailing narrative that the Chinese are just copy cats was also blown out of the water. DeepSeek not only upends every assumption underlying the American approach to AI, it shows that the Chinese can out Silicon Silicon Valley and that means that, unlike in the past, China’s most talented minds will want to work for Chinese companies not American ones.

How will the Americans respond? Having staked political capital on the $500 billion Stargate, Trump and his entourage of billionaires have no choice, they will double down. We are hearing the narrative already, they are now saying that $500 million invested in DeepSeek’s advancements will produce even more amazing advancements in AI.

At a moment in history, as America consumes itself, China has taken a leap forward. Not only have they bloodied Trump, they have shaken the world in ways Napoleon could never have foreseen.

There are actually lessons to be learned in how Canada might deal with Trump but the political bobble heads and corporate Canada have actually come to believe the myths of neo-liberalism they started purveying in the 80’s, and are now incapable of rising above their paralysing fear.

Every investor has to ask, what are the implications of DeepSeek for their investments? Doubling down by the Americans will keep the party going for a while but it seems reasonable to expect a reckoning. Where would 5i look for alternatives to AI investments? Please suggest 5 US and 5 Cdn stocks that have strong balance sheets and reasonable growth prospects (without stretched valuations) that would benefit from using much less expensive AI? Also, please suggest a couple of ETF’s for Europe and China that would benefit should those markets surprise to the upside?
Mike

Q: Do you prefer CRM or NOW. It seems CRM is down in sympathy with NOW results. Were they really that bad? CRM trailing PE is almost 30 but NOW is much higher I believe. I have sold half my NVDA with the idea to move it into the next phase of AI adoption, software. Am thinking one of these and perhaps PLTR. You have much posted on it, any information you could add regarding buying it, would be helpful. Any other software companies you would consider? Thank you so much.

Q: Good Morning 5i Team,

IESC went to the moon last week with the Stargate announcement, then got torpedoed by Deepseek on Monday. Still worth holding for the new data centres electrical build-out theme, or swap for NBIS or FRSH?

Thank you.

Brad

Q: While picking up the pieces from the Deep Think carnage on my tech stocks, it occurs to ask which stocks will benefit from the possible reduction in the cost of AI......can you provide a short list 5 - 10 of potential beneficiaries of that? Many thanks for your excellent service.

Q: I have the above tech stocks sitting at just over 30% weighting in portfolio. Could you please rank them as to which you might sell first. I sadly sold Crowdstrike last summer when they had their issues and I am thinking I need a cybersecurity stock. Would you buy Crowdstrike or Palo Alto or half of both. Also, What do you think about Saleforce? With the thought of cheaper AI, is that one that would possibly benefit and how where would it rank within my aboce tech stocks? Thanks for all your help. With all your advice, last year was awesome and still up this year following yesterday’s falloff.

Q: I own small (2-3%) positions in Snowflake, MongoDB, and Datadog. Would you currently hold these stocks or sell them? If sold, what are some possible replacements in the tech sector?

If I were only to sell one, which holding would you let go of first and why?

Thanks.

Q: Could you please rank the following in terms of 2 year growth prospects, irregardless of risk? (first most growth, on down the road....) Thank you!

TD, SHOP, VIU, BN, RTX, ROAD, UBER, GLXY, CRM, TRI, ATZ

Q: It’s now 2025, new Canadian leadership coming and reduced regulations/government in the US. You suggested on a reply today how a 50% US - 40% CAN - 10% Global portfolio mix might be right for today’s environment. Based on this, what is YOUR best ideas for a brand new $1M+ portfolio? Assume average investor, 15 year investment horizon with reasonable risk tolerance and loves when stocks go on sale..aka buy the correction attitude. As always.. you guys rock! Thanks. Don

Q: I'm interested in investing in some U.S. companies by using CDR's. As the years go by it seems the list is getting longer. Based on current conditions and valuations which 8 CDR's have the greatest chance for capital appreciation in 2025? Please rank them from greatest potential to least potential.

Q: Hi there,

I’ve done ok with these stocks but I want to raise some cash for diversification - in what order would you reduce/sell?

Ok thanks!

Q: Happy New Year 5i team,

I have been holding this name TEAM for several years. It has been underwater for a long period of time until 3 months ago (November of 2024). What is your outlook for this name? If replace it with a better Growth one, what would be your recommendation? Thanks.

Q: I understand CRM, a software company, is getting into AI via software. Does 5iR know any other S&P 500 software companies doing the same thing???.....Happy New Year ......Tom

Q: Hi there
Could you please rank the noted stocks in order of "buy now" preference? (CN, AVGO, CRM, KSI, APP, BEP.UN, DOL, TTD).
Thanks so much! Appreciated.

Q: Happy New Year to 5i and members, wishing all a prosperous investing year ahead.

It's time to make my annual TFSA contribution. I own AAPL, ADBE CRM, GOOG, NVDA, PYPL, QCOM, and TOL in my TFSA.

I would like to add to one position, which do you recommend? I am overweight NVDA so do not wish to add to that one.

Does 5i consider any of these positions in the 'do not need to own' category? If so, please recommend a replacement (not LLY, MDT, IBM, or MSFT; I own full positions of these in another account). The focus of this account is US equities with a risk profile somewhere between that of the 5i Balanced and Growth portfolios, and the objective is long-term capital appreciation.

Thank you very much.

Q: Peter, our one true source of help in this investment purgatory, thank you for your response to David yesterday regarding covered calls. Moving forward, could you please provide us with some companies that you use in this endeavor?

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Q: Hi, in your estimate, which of these three stocks would give the most bang for your buck over the next three years? Please rank them. Thank you for the service .