Investment Q&A

Q: I bought AGT in order to diversify into the Agricultural space (this is the only investment I have in the Agri sector.) Since I bought the shares AGT kept loosing its value. What is your recommendation? "Sell", "Hold" or Buy more. My inclination was to sell due to its high debt, however when Prem Watsa invested in the company I thought there was some value to be gained. What are your thoughts?

Q: Can u please comment on recent earnings.

Q: Please comment on these , compare growth potential near term for gold exposure- thanks

Q: A two part question so do dock me two credits:

1. GUD: just about of patience with this stock which is down 18% this year. I know Goodman's reputation, and they have plenty of cash, and it took Paladin a long time to pay off, but sales are minimal, and more significantly, there doesn't appear to be much going on. Can you give me a plausible reason to hang in?

2. Other than the REITS - csh, exe, nwh - and your fave SIS, is there anything worth considering in this sector in Canada, or should I turn to the U.S.? Tecsys is technically in the Tech sector but could you reasonably consider it a healthcare stock?

Thanks!

Q: I hold this in my TFSA and currently down approximately $2,000. Should I just accept my loss and sell or hope that it will recover

Dave

Q: When selling a covered call option with an expiry date for Jan. 2018 does the gain become taxable in 2017 or 2018. Thanks. H.

Q: Interested in placing direct investments in China, Japan & possibly India. Trading market must be US. Primary interest is Technology & Space.
This will be completely separate from our current traditional investments as reviewed occasionally with you over the years. Aside from established players in the above markets, I would consider vertically specialized ETFs that have a strong Bloomberg rating. Please deduct accordingly. Thank you.

Q: Recently came into inheritance of ~£100,000 and looking to purchase a basket of 5 - 10 global ETF's (minus Canada) on the LSE with the proceeds. Currently well diversified within Canada through RRSP, TFSA accounts etc. Seeking growth and income and mindful of MER's, would very much value your recommendations.

Thank you

Q: Hello team,

A couple of years ago you advised that your 'ideal sector classification' would be as followed:

Consumer Cyclical
Consumer Staples
Retail
Financials
Real Estate
Health Care (CDN)
Health Care (US)
Capital Goods / Industrials
Transportation
Information Technology
Internet / Software
Telecommunication Services
Energy
Gold / Silver
Materials
Utilities

I ask this question every 6-9 months when I am doing sector re-balancing. Given today's market conditions, what would be your ideal weighting for each of these for an investor who has a long time horizon and is a 7/8 out of 10 on the risk scale?

My current weighting breakdown is:

Consumer Cyclical - 12%
Consumer Staples - 9%
Retail - 2%
Financials - 9%
Real Estate - 1%
Health Care (CDN) - 3%
Health Care (US) - 2%
Capital Goods / Industrials - 14%
Transportation - 3%
Information Technology - 8%
Internet / Software - 15%
Telecommunication Services - 4%
Energy - 3%
Gold / Silver - 2%
Materials - 8%
Utilities - 4%

I find myself usually becoming overweight in Consumer Discretionary and Info Tech / Software as most of your top picks are in those categories. Any thoughts on where I should be scaling back / adding to?

Please deduct multiple question credits. Thank you.

Q: Hi there, I currently have no exposure outside of the TSX and the Canadian market. I know ETFs are often recommended as good ways to get exposure outside of Canada but I was doing research into mutual funds and the new Fidelity Insights fund managed by Will Danoff seems like it is performing well. In addition, it sounds like his Fidelity Contra Fund in the US seems to perform quite well over time. What are your thoughts on him as a fund manager and the Fidelity Insights fund for outside of Canada exposure? Also, there is the standard version and a currency neutral version - which I presume implies hedged and unhedged. If this will be a longterm position, which would be preferred between the two? Thanks for your guidance!

Q: Would appreciate your comment on this ETF. For example, is the thesis sound to you and are there similar ETFs? Thank you.

Q: Hello I am looking for a "one stop" etf that covers everything but US and Canada, which I am adequately invested in. I have checked the Vanguard Canada products such as VI/VIU but they seem to have a heavy concentration of investments in Japan (21-23% of holdings). Are you aware of another etf that may be appropriate? In the alternative should I consider one covering Europe and one covering emerging markets? Your thoughts would be most helpful. Thank you, Bill.

Q: The recent issue of the ETF & Mutual Fund Update discussed two ETF’s in the U.S. Technology Sector, ZQQ and XQQ. In your opinion would BST:US be as good as or better than the above mentioned?
Thank you for considering my question.

Q: 5i Team,

I notice that you have IWO tagged as a financial stock in the growth portfolio, however, when I check the sector break down for it (here: https://www.ishares.com/us/products/239709/ishares-russell-2000-growth-etf), financials are only stated as 6%. The 4 major sectors (Info tech, Health Care, Industrials & Consumer Discretionary) make up 80% of the ETF.

Any specific reason for that classification in the growth portfolio? Should I be tagging IWO as a financial in my portfolio? Thanks.

Q: the Company seems cheap especially when you consider it holds approx. $600M of marketable securities (approx. 1/2 being BMO shares). When i factor this out of the market cap (value) of the company and then just look at the fund management business, this is valued at a very low value and does not seem to be given credit in the market cap. Am i missing something or is the business just not doing very well.

thanks Ken

Q: Taking a pessimistic view, if Nafta talks fail, and Trump abandons the agreement, then which Canadian based companies are likely to be hit hardest? i.e. can you provide a short list of companies that get very significant export revenue from the U.S. ?
Thanks,
Philip

Q: I note from the financial section of Financial Post that most of the 52 week highs are being posted by preferreds. I thought they were supposed to decline in periods of rising interest rates. Can you explasin why this trend?
Thanks

Q: In your model portfolios you hold 20-25 stocks. I am selling a home and expect to have about $750K to add to my existing $500K. I have always had a preference for keeping my holdings in a particular company smaller and thus having more diversity than that. In my new plan I would hold about 40 to 45 stocks. I am retired and a fairly conservative investor and focus on income but would add some growth in the new plan. Am I trying to diversify too much?

Q: TSGI's earnings are to be announced in about a month - I believe the estimate is .47 vs .42 same time last year. Any sense of what to expect ?
I will be trimming my TSGI position at some point and was considering putting those funds into GC. Do you feel a 10% total allocation between these 2 gambling stocks (roughly 5%/5%) is too much in an otherwise diversifed portfolio ? Thanks, as always.

Q: Peter,
RESP first needed in 3 years with ~equal amounts of BNS, GUD, OTEX, PHO & T;
with cash for 2 more positions. What would you add or change at this time ? Thank you.