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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: I am curious about the parameters of "cyclicality" when it comes to different sectors. For example, the chip stocks (including AMAT) are apparently down because of a cyclical decline across them all. In this industry, how long does such a cycle typically run? In comparison, for example, to the commodities cyclicality, which can be many years (I have heard 10-15). Your answer will help me decide whether to take a tax loss on AMAT or hold on for a year or two. Thanks!
Read Answer Asked by Marcia on November 02, 2018
Q: Hi Guys,

I just completed my election of Directors for GS. When voting for directors you had two choices: Vote for a director or withhold a vote for the director. To be ridiculous, let’s say that all shareholders, except one, withheld their votes. The one shareholder votes for the director. Would that director be elected to the Board?

This method is used by many Canadian companies. I want to understand how and why they use this method. It really doesn’t seem like shareholders have a voice in selecting directors if the only vote that counts is a vote for a director.

Thanks for the information.
John
Read Answer Asked by John on November 02, 2018
Q: As a follow up to a question on CLS, which stocks in the three portfolios are on your "intensive care list" for monitoring, or do you keep a close eye on all the holdings?
Read Answer Asked by Kelly on November 02, 2018
Q: Just a comment about ALA's changed circumstances. During the conference call management made reference to changed circumstances in relation to access to capital and cost of capital for funding its growth plans. In addition to changes in interest rates over the past couple of years, a significant aspect of the capital equation is that its share price has basically been halved since the announcement of the WGL transaction. Recourse to capital through an equity raise would likely further reduce the share price and have a relatively greater dilutive effect on per share earnings and cash flow than it would have had when the share price was $33. The result is that the answer to the question of what is the most prudent means for the company to raise money has shifted. Though it's market cap is around $4.5B, according to the Q3 balance sheet ALA has about $23B in assets against about $12B in liabilities. Under those circumstances, if it can get anywhere close to 'value' for its assets, its cheapest access to capital by a longshot is simply through the monetization of some of its own asset base. If it can create further increased value by reinvesting that capital in its preferred growth projects, that can still be a very attractive proposition and set the company up well for the future. But in the meantime, the resulting reduction of the asset base for funding purposes will mean that it will have diminished cash flow from operations, and it is that cash flow that is required to pay/maintain/raise the dividend. As a long-time shareholder, I have taken a significant loss on my ALA exposure but I don't think there needs to be recourse to suggestions of fraud to explain the circumstances that the company has come to today. My view is that ALA may well rise again and be successful but that it would be further in the future than I had been looking for, there will probably be a (prudently) reduced dividend in the meantime, and the present market conditions are setting up better near-term opportunities elsewhere for loss recovery and profit, through companies that are not in the doghouse when the market comes definitively out of its corrective phase. ... for what it's worth.
Read Answer Asked by Lance on November 02, 2018
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