Investment Q&A

Q: Is this not a Canadian company? I hold it in my TFSA and my bank has it listed as a foreign holding. Am I subject to witholding taxes, then?

Q: Hi 5i,
Although they have both been good investments, it seems that since 2010 BIP units have outperformed BEP units by a decent margin. Are the profit margins lower in BEP's focus area or is there something about the energy project investment arc that delays returns in the renewable energy space? I'm wondering what the BIP unit outperformance is attributable to and whether it is a factor that is likely to continue or whether, in the future, BEP is more likely to keep pace, or even to do a little catch-up. I'd be interested in any thoughts you may have on this. Thanks!

Q: bce , aw.un, with stocks like these , they seam to stay the course when people get scared they even tend to go up. do you see any stocks like these with that potential ,thank you.

Q: Which of the Brookfield funds do you prefer for a retirement income portfolio. I'm looking for something with reliable income and some capital growth. Is this a good time to buy any of these funds as they have had quite a run, should I wait for a pull back?
Thanks

Q: What are your top recommendations for Canadian power producers. I am selling Northland Power (NPI) based on my advisor's recommendation and would like to re-invest in the same sector.

Q: I would appreciate your thoughts and analysis on Brookfield Renewable's earnings. Is it a good long term investment? Thank You.

Q: I currently hold BPY (up 50% over cost) and H&R in my portfolio 4% and 3% respectively.
I am considering swapping BPY for BEP for the additional income. Your thoughts?

I also plan to crystallize my capital losses and purchase the following ETFs:
Non registered:
ZPW – US Put Write
ZWE – Europe Covered Call hedged to CAD.
ZWH – US covered call
CPD – CAD preferred
XRE – Capped REIT

Registered (RRIF):
PGX:US – Preferred.

Each would constitute 2% - 3% of my portfolio. Diversification is my intention, but risk and surety of income is the primary consideration in all of the above noted.

Again, your thoughts.

Thank you for considering my questions

Gail

Q: Hi 5i I notice members are asking about renewable energy companies. I would like to add 2 renewable energy companies to my portfolio, at present I have none. I'm a very long term investor, something like till the day I die. Thx for your wise advise, I was starting to believe in the " sell in May and go away " but this year staying with the market has been very good for me thanks to the 5i group. Thx again Gerry

Q: Thank you 5i for your excellent service!!!

I have divided up my portfolio into thirds.
One third is a diverse group of ETFs.
One third is cash and a group fluid group of stocks made up primarily from stocks you recommend. SJ, CCL, SIS, KXS... etc.
One third is made up of the seven stocks listed above. Do you have any concerns about any of these being a long term hold. I know Magna is cyclical but is that a concern?
Cheers,
Bryan

Q: NPI is at all time highs given the announcement today of a 'strategic' review'. I am not really sure what that means as I would have thought management would always be looking for future growth opportunities and to enhance shareholder value. Given the pop in NPI I am thinking of selling my position and replacing it with BEP.UN for no other reason than 1) the higher yield 2) NPI may be fully valued and I don't see what could possibly come from a review other than perhaps the sale of the company which certainly does not sound like a possibility in the news release.

Thanks in advance

Q: Hi,
Im looking to pick up some utility sector. Which of these would you recommend for long term continual investment. Dividends will also be reinvested through DRIP if available.

Thanks

Q: I have shares of AQN and I am in the profit zone, But because of the higher dividend I am looking to switch to BEP.UN
Your Thaughts, thanks

Q: Can you give me the EV/EBITDA ratios for these two companies?
Thanks a lot.

Q: Good Morning: Could I please get your opinion on the merits, risks and investibility of a couple of Brookfield Renewable preferreds (both perpetuals): namely, brf.pr.e and prf.pr.f. Many thanks, Don

Q: 9:53 AM 6/29/2016

Hello Peter:

Today you made this distinction between "Safe" and "Secure" dividends in your answer to Grant asking about Superior Plus : "We would consider the dividend 'secure'. 'Safe' is a different category completely".

1. I am looking to concentrate on companies whose dividends you consider to be in the "safe" category, and which yield over 3.5% as these should/must be at least the main core of any pensioner's holdings for reliable income. This can be confusing to sort out since I presume that you will not consider all banks, utilities, telcos, REITS, Pipelines, etc. qualify as "safe".

2. So if you could sort out a short list of the few that qualify for the "Safe Dividend" category it would be most appreciated. I do understand that disasters do occasionally happen, and any company no matter how safe can get into trouble.

2. This brings up the problem of portfolio concentration caused by owning only a few names or sectors. Is it better or "ok" to just own a portfolio of only "Safe" dividend stocks, or are we advised to dilute the quality of our portfolios and own some less safe dividend stocks to supposedly "diversify" risk? This harks back to the people whose portfolio consists of only the big five Canadian Banks and who have done brilliantly for the past 50 years!

Your considered opinion on this issue will be most appreciated........ Paul K.

Q: You rate this as an "A"; but, when I check my info provided by CIBC Investors Edge: debt/Equity is 2.8X, ROE is basically 0, P.R. is crazy high and P.E. equally so. They have issued a lot of common and preferred shares as well and must have a heck of a lot of non-cash write-offs which distort a lot of the metrics, I guess? What is the story on a pure cash basis then?

Q: With a time horizon of 10+ years, i'm looking to start a smith-maneuver portfolio to write off some mortgage interest. Could you please recommend 5-10 top picks that would be suitable for this strategy? Or would you recommend possibly an etf like CPD for something like this.

Thanks!

ps, i tried searching for previous questions in the q&a regarding this topic but couldn't find any, do you know which section they would be filed under?

Q: Hi 5i,
Are you able to provide any more detail on the rumour that Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners (BEP.UN) might be interested in Transalta Renewables (RNW)? At the current share price, is there sufficient value for them to pay enough of a premium to have a chance at a successful bid and still stay within an earnings-accretive price range? Thanks!

Q: Could you please tell me whet the dividend payout ratio is for these two company's?

Thanks.

Q: I manage the investment accounts for a family member who currently has a very small pension, CPP and OAS with the OAS Supplement. Her Supplement is reduced by 50 cents for every dollar of investment income she makes so she is effectively in a 50% tax bracket. Her capital comes from the recent sale of her house and the money must be available for an assisted living facility in a few years. My problem has been finding stocks to preserve capital and minimize the 50% tax bite which impacts what she has to live on currently. I have used AV.UN which has no impact on her income now and TMC which does but provides a high income. I think capital gains would be better than dividends which are grossed up. Any suggestions for appropriate investments for a 6 figure account?