Investment Q&A

Q: Duolingo went up 30% after earnings, then collapsed a few days later. What happened?

Q: DUOL is taking a beating of late and in a strong market as well? Pofit taking or something more? Would you consider it a strong buy or be looking elsewhere?

thx. M

Q: Every broker has issues, and Interactive Brokers has many. Given they also charge a commission and there are now multiple choices among Canadian Brokers for zero commission, including a bonus for transferring, I’ve finally moved my acct. Also the founder of Interactive Brokers is a very wealthy Trump supporter, so there's that as well.

Could I get your thoughts on DUOL’s earnings? As well as company potential? Is the current share price drop more market related?

Q: As one of 5i’s early subscribers, I find it a useful thought experiment to give my answer to a question before clicking on the 5i answer. I have found over the years our answers converge and so I rarely send in questions and comments. However my sense is that DeepSeek is a significant change.

On one level it is a clear lesson in the reality that, as Keynes said many decades ago, it’s real resources that matter, not money.

The American approach to AI development was that if you don’t have a $1billion you're not in the game. The Chinese have shown that if you have the pool of talent, amazing things can be done with relatively little money. The prevailing narrative that the Chinese are just copy cats was also blown out of the water. DeepSeek not only upends every assumption underlying the American approach to AI, it shows that the Chinese can out Silicon Silicon Valley and that means that, unlike in the past, China’s most talented minds will want to work for Chinese companies not American ones.

How will the Americans respond? Having staked political capital on the $500 billion Stargate, Trump and his entourage of billionaires have no choice, they will double down. We are hearing the narrative already, they are now saying that $500 million invested in DeepSeek’s advancements will produce even more amazing advancements in AI.

At a moment in history, as America consumes itself, China has taken a leap forward. Not only have they bloodied Trump, they have shaken the world in ways Napoleon could never have foreseen.

There are actually lessons to be learned in how Canada might deal with Trump but the political bobble heads and corporate Canada have actually come to believe the myths of neo-liberalism they started purveying in the 80’s, and are now incapable of rising above their paralysing fear.

Every investor has to ask, what are the implications of DeepSeek for their investments? Doubling down by the Americans will keep the party going for a while but it seems reasonable to expect a reckoning. Where would 5i look for alternatives to AI investments? Please suggest 5 US and 5 Cdn stocks that have strong balance sheets and reasonable growth prospects (without stretched valuations) that would benefit from using much less expensive AI? Also, please suggest a couple of ETF’s for Europe and China that would benefit should those markets surprise to the upside?
Mike

Q: Hi,

Looking to replace NVDA and VRT. I wish to avoid the AI theme and Mag7. Do you have an handful of tech alternatives to suggest in the US?

Many thanks.
Michael

Q: Hi 5i Team,

Would you still endorse a purchase of TMDX, CLBT, ASPN and CPH? When looking at the recent momentum of FLUT and DUOL would you still be buyers of these companies? What would be your order of preference if you were buying today?

Thanks as always,
Jon

Q: Hello 5i
Can you please give me the expected growth rate for these companies over the next 1-2 years.
Secondly, if you had to raise cash which order would you trim or sell outright?
Thank you so much for all your help!
Dave

Q: Good morning... Your comments on DUOL's quarter and whether you're still bullish on the company? Buy, sell or hold?

thanks, Mark

Q: In regards to some of the companies that have gotten whacked after releasing their numbers (like Uber, Shopify, Hammand ect), what are a couple names that you think look the most likely to dust themselves off and move higher from here? Thanks

Q: Hi, can we get an update on DUOL earnings and your feelings going forward?

thx, Mark

Q: Can you provide your top 5 growth stock picks over the next 6-12 months and provide commentary on why each is worthy to make the list. Appreciate getting separate Canadian and US lists.

Q: You recently suggested Duolingo as a good 5 year hold and I am wondering what would be the case for buying the stock/ Also, what would the negatives be, or things to watch for.
As always, your thoughts are appreciated.
Mike

Q: I have some USD cash sitting in my RRSP. What would be your most compelling buys today for an agressive investor for an RRSP, irregardless of sector. Kindly rank if possible. (with the caveat that tax loss selling isn’t possible)

I was considering FCX or EXP as I am light on materials. Would either of these fit in an RRSP, and which of these two would be your preference at this time?

Thank you
Please deduct as you deem fit.

Q: What are you 5 favorite US and Canadian companies to invest in for 3 years RAK

Q: My tech stocks have had a great run and it's time to trim as they are now about 33% of my portfolio. Can you please rank the above stocks along with SMCI (watching for a pullback in that one). I also have GOOG and AMZN. Do you think they are too closely related as well?

Q: I recently retired and looking to place some of my savings into the market with a 5 year horizon at which time I will re-evaluate. Will tolerate a moderate to light risk. Could you please recommend 3 or 4 stocks or etf’s for my TFSA and 5-6 stocks for growth. Appreciate all your efforts. Thank you. Brian

Q: Which 5 Canadian and 5 US companies would you buy for pure growth over the next 6 months? Can you provide a bullet for each on risk and main reasons for selection?

Q: In my mind, AI was a threat to DUOL since I thought it would lower the bar considerably for people to use the open source to create a language conversion program. But I've seen many like 5i and other growth investors really like their runway. It's there any merit to my concern, or is AI in fact increasing their moat or enhancing their first-mover advantage?

Q: I was interested in your reply to Ronnie today (14th) on U.S. growth suggestions. As individual securities you suggested IBKR, LPLA, CELH, CROX, DUOL. If I was to add HEI, ADI and ULTA to that list could you rank all 8 for say 5 yr pure growth potential and then re-rank if one was seeking a balance of both growth and safety? Thank you.

Q: The U.S. is growing much faster than Canada. Canada’s much slower economic growth relative to the U.S. seems to be related namely mortgage debt, Given this situation, can you suggest 1) Individual U.S. stocks for capital gain 2) Individual U.S. stocks that pay dividends, and 3) U.S. ETFs? Thank you