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Investment Q&A

Not investment advice or solicitation to buy/sell securities. Do your own due diligence and/or consult an advisor.

Q: Hi. Since joining your service I have slowly sold my mutual funds and built up the portfolio listed. I have an equal percentage of these listed except M at 16% AVO at 1.6% and SGY at .6 %. I have a mutual fund left at 6% that I would like to sell. For a balanced portfolio today what would you recommend I purchase? 3 - 5 year timeframe. Please deduct appropriate credits for the long question. Thanks.
Read Answer Asked by John on March 15, 2017
Q: Just comment so please do not deduct credit.Re TD,agreed with 5I that the some $6b drop on 3/10 is excessive,& if TD is found guilty,the fine will likely be not material, plus no move now is the best move.So far this are just allegations,which have to be proven.TD stated that employees must abide by Code of conduct & ethics,i.e. act ethically & place interests of customers first.OSFI is always monitoring the financial institutions.As a retired employee of one of the other big Can.Banks,I can attest that we are closely supervised by management,plus many checks in place to ensure correctness. As a matter of fact,there was a booklet,Code of conduct & ethics on top of my table so that it is visible.We need to review it periodically with the supervisor.
Read Answer Asked by Peter on March 13, 2017
Q: (1) ALL Canadian Banks seem to be teetering now . Should we simply ignore this - trim, or are there still some gains to be had in staying the course ?
(2) Do you feel that a switch to TD from BNS would be a good move with the damage to TD's price ?
(3) I have done so well with Banks and fairly well on Insurance , but my REITS and Financial "Others" ( like CXI ) have reversed ... After the TD over-reaction, should we be expecting a mass exit from the financials on the slightest hint of bad news ?

Thanks for rescuing me from my fear-driven-frequent-trader past .
Read Answer Asked by Thomas on March 12, 2017
Q: Please accept my apologies for what could be a request for a long-winded answer. You welcome to debit my 5i bankroll for 5 question credits in effort to better compensate you for your time.
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If possible, please provide your opinion on something I wish to term "Peak Credit" in Canada. We are all aware that Canadians are spending themselves into a life-long love affair with mortgages, lines of credit and credit cards. With Canadian interest rates at 35 year lows, the availability of loans and credit climb while region-specific real estate prices inflate to valuations that seem to defy logic. Young families in their 30's commonly have mortgage debt over $500k and barely earn the income to cover payments at today's rates.

In general, what is the mix of insured/un-insured mortgage debt on the books of Canadian banks? If wages are not keeping pace with inflation and the cost of living, how are Canadians ever going to own their own home? Are we doomed to a life of the English, where the concept of home ownership is more of a dream than it is a reality?

Do you feel banks in Canada are prepared for higher rates in the next 3yrs?

Is Canada showing the early signs of a credit bubble?

Do bank common stock investors have anything for fear?

Am I a coyote howling at the credit moon?


Thank you for your guidance. This topic should be on the minds of many Canadians.
Read Answer Asked by malcolm on March 08, 2017
Q: Can you rank these Banks for me. Thank you
Read Answer Asked by Bruce on March 06, 2017
Q: TD represents 6% BNS 4% and CM 2% of my portfolio with no other banks.
I am considering switching BNS and CM to RY or should I go with ZBK for direct exposure to the US. Objective is growth. Should i increase my financial exposure? Add insurance Co or stick with banks?
Read Answer Asked by JR on March 01, 2017
Q: Financials are currently at about 18% of my equity portfolio i.e., about 3% above target. I am thinking of trimming back on one of TD, RY or POW. Would you agree with a slight trim and which one would you suggest?
Thanks for your great service!
Read Answer Asked by Danny-boy on February 13, 2017
Q: Hello 5i team. My question is in regards to taxation. I have an investment account at a CDN discount brokerage in US dollars. If I was to buy a cdn company say TD bank that trades on the US market and buy it in US dollars how would the dividends be treated? Would the dividends be paid in US dollars or paid in CDN dollars then converted back to US dollars? If they are paid in US dollars then are they subject to the 10-15% US withholding tax? I am trying to find investments that I can buy with US dollars but not be subject to the US withholding tax. Thanks
Read Answer Asked by pietro on January 27, 2017
Q: When analyzing Canadian stocks with considerable exposure to the US, how much of the stock appreciation in the last 5 years would be attributable to the declining Canadian dollar, and more importantly, would a rising Canadian dollar have the reverse effect? Would the effect be different for a utility like AQN with large capital investment, as opposed to a services company like TD? Would management participate in hedging strategies to limit any negative effect on stock price?
Read Answer Asked by Marco on January 24, 2017
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