Investment Q&A

Q: Hello , following is my list of losers .. and I am assessing which ones to sell this month for YE capital loss. I appreciate your comments.

As an aside; in watching the huge drop in some of these stocks, one certainly wonders about the wisdom of their CEO's ... as an example META, they are spending billions on Metaverse so that people can work and play and interact in virtual reality .. maybe in the year 2050 !!. and many others that just didn't adopt their businesses to people post Covid returning to work and shop at malls... truly incompetent .. For me, this crash has convinced me to buy shares in companies that are making money and have a strong management team.

Thank you
Carlo R.

Q: your opinion on this Co. please. Thank you , Fooklin

Q: Hoping that your easter was/is enjoyable

I have received shares in the subject stocks and want to decide to add to them creating a partial position going forward. My two questions(oe each) is do I sell these stocks outright at my zero cost or do I consider adding into the position. They both are trading at attractive levels, have analysts' projected earnings increase but do not pay a dividend. Your wise thoughts and any recommendations please
Peter

Q: Hi Peter and Staff

Looking at my health care basket, I have a couple of losers in it VEEV and VTRS.

I have had losers I regretted selling and losers I wish I had not wasted opportunity cost on.......I am fine doing either....Do you think the risk/reward of selling either or both of these to top up ABBV,PFE,SYK or JNJ would be a good move in the long run ignoring how many positions I have or should I hang on. If a sale is suggested which order would you top up the 4 stocks mentioned.

Thanks for all you do
Dennis

Q: Would you be a buyer of Viatris after the 22% drop today?

Q: Hello team, from the list above could you please rank in order to:
1> Keep and or add for full position or
2> Sell now & move on, and
3> what would you replace the sale positions with?
Thanks
Carlo

Q: Would you give me your opinion on Viatris for a longer term hold. Thank you. Cheers

Q: Modest amount of funds in trust for teenagers. Plan to sell Alteryx at small loss. What would you suggest for USD purchase please? I was looking @ VTRS. Not keen on debt levels but will it provide downside protection in this volatile market? Time horizon 1.5 years. Could you also please identify growth oriented names. VEEV already owned. Also ETF ideas to look @ please. Please deduct question credits as appropriate.

Q: Good Morning 5i Team,

In your response to a recent question asked about your thoughts on Buffet and Lee-Chin's cash hordes and how much cash to hold in the current environment, part of your response was "Investors are not used to rising rates, and we think some protection is needed. Not necessary in terms of cash but in terms of some portfolio adjustments to companies less susceptible to higher rates (i.e. value stocks over expensive growth stocks). Growth stocks can still do well in a rising economy, but companies with valuations at 15 to 20X sales would see an adjustment with higher rates (of course this has already partially occurred this year). "

I am in the camp needing to make some adjustments, and I'm wondering if you could suggest several U.S. and Canadian stocks that you see as attractive "value" plays at this time.

Thanks very much,
Brad

Q: Hi, I have shares in VTRS. What is your take on the update report today?

Q: In your opinion, does Alcon and Viatris constitute a good buy at the moment?
Do they have growth potential?

Q: I would like your opinion on VTRS. I got 49share thru owning Pfizer. Should I add or sell. Thanks.

Q: HI!
I am wondering about the potential short and long term growth of VTRS as the sister company of PFE producing their generics?

Thanks Ben.

Q: Have $12,000.00 to invest, current BMO Inv Line allocation is as follows:
Communication 8%
Cons Disc 21%
Cons Staples 13%
Energy 6%
Financials 32%
Health Care 11%
Info Tech 1%
Companies held AW, RBC, SLF, SBUX, WMT, BCE, PFZ,SIS, BB, ENB, TNY, HEXO,VTR,ParkLawn

Would appreciate your thoughts on how I could deploy the cash.

Q: Hello 5i,
These questions are in response to your answer to Paul's question a bit earlier today. I, too, received shares of Viatris representing a fraction of a percent of our total equity portfolio. Under normal circumstances you tend to recommend not holding less than a 1% position. Also, I was unaware that VTRS would consider initiating a dividend. As an Income-focussed investor, that is interesting to me.
Rightly or wrongly, I tend to think of these shares as being "free" in a sense, so I am open to a variety of actions.
Now to the questions:
1. Given the foregoing, would 1% be reasonable to you? Your comment referenced "to a point", but that is not a metric that helps make an informed decision. Given the heavy debt load, what would you anticipate that "point" being for the average investor?
2. Given the heavy debt load, is it reasonable to expect VTRS to proceed with initiating a dividend this early? Might they not want to reduce debt first?
3. Would you recommend just holding on to the existing shares for a while to see how things play out before adding or selling?
Many thanks as always for your patience and stellar service - it is very much appreciated!!
Cheers,
Mike

Q: As a Pfizer shareholder I recently received 38 shares of Viatris. Reviews appear mixed on them but there is a suggestion they will soon introduce a dividend (25% FCF).
My question:.

Is Viatris viable enough to warrant adding to my position in it

Thanks

Paul

Q: How can we verify the ratio for the amount of shares we received of Viatris to our shares holding with Pfizer at time of spin-off? Thanks

Q: Hello 5i,
I have two questions pertaining to the spin-out:
1. Would I be correct in assuming that if held in an RRSP, there would be NO tax implications at all?
2. When typing in VTRS, I see a second option showing up: VTRSV. What, if any, is the difference? My broker recorded the transaction as VTRS and so that is what I use.
Many thanks, as always!!
Stay safe and well!!
Cheers,
Mike

Q: This week Pfizer spun-out Viatris as a Reverse Morris Trust Transaction. I understand the purpose of this type of transaction is to make it non-taxable. Are there income tax consequences for a Canadian citizen who owned Pfizer at the time of the spin-out?
Are Viatris shares worth holding?

Q: What are your thoughts of Viatris (combination of Mylan and Upjohn)? Shares were received from Pfizer. I'd looked at Mylan recent quarterly statements and did not see any red flags. Looking forward what is its potential? Hold or sell? Thank you.