Investment Q&A

Q: Hello 5i Team,
Usually when a government bails out a company (Feds will own ~6%), it does not bode well for the said companies future. I know these are unique circumstances. Are you still comfortable with buying Air Canada? Or will AC go the way of bombardier (Zombie stock).

Have you heard if other airlines in Canada will be helped?

Thank You,
Andrew

Q: If you held Air Canada, would you take any action in response to the (clearly toughly negotiated) government bailout?

Q: Considering the new partnership/investment/bailout with the Government of Canada, How do you see this playing out ?
- I noticed Air Canada stock held up fairly well, considering the Government did the deal at a discount to current stock price.
- It looks like some smart advisers/consultants did the deal, however I am surprised that the stock did not drop more today...
- How the market interprets things these days is a bit confusing to me...
Good thing Vegas is opening up more..., because I want to bet Red on the Roulette wheel as a potential proxy for Air Canada at this point...

Q: Did the federal government's stake in AC today (Apr 13) result in a dilution (I mean, it must have) and if so, was it material ? Also, shares today closed slightly below flat-- why wasn't the gov't "bailout" viewed as a plus for share price?

Q: I don't often get timing right and mostly I get it right when I am not trying to. I sold AC (for a profit) mostly because I found other things that I could hold longer. AC may or may not sell off more but if I were to re-buy inside the 30 day window will that reduce my capital gains tax by averaging?

Q: Hi 5i,
Are the skies starting to clear for Air Canada? The one remaining cloud that I can see is the potential Fed bailout? I don’t hear much about it anymore. I am thinking that the Feds don’t want to bail out the airlines but hope they make it to the other side with the vaccines rolling out. I think the trade-off was a full refund of fares, which the airlines have resisted so far. What are your thoughts on this for AC? I have some shares but am wondering if this will be a catalyst or not?
Thanks again.
Dave

Q: In the answer to a previous question asked on March 22, 2021, you mentioned that you would prefer AC to CHR as an investment.

However, CHR has posted positive net income for Q2, Q3, Q4 2020, which seems pretty impressive for an airline during 2020. CHR seems like a more "solid" company to my untrained eye.

In the answer to the other question, you mention that CHR has been free cash flow negative for the past 5 years, but according to my research, it has also been posting positive annual net income since 2009. How would something like that be possible?

Q: Good Afternoon and Happy Easter:
I was surprised with your answer to Keith's question (Apr 2) regarding order to dispose stocks. You indicated that after the ETFs, KXS would be the 4th or so stock to sell from the list. This was ahead of AC:CA, WELL:CA and PHO:CA. I thought the recent drop in KXS was primarily due to the general pullback in tech stocks and not the result of any specific company bad news. I also thought that even though the company did well during the lockdown, its business model and market position would also serve it well as the economy recovers, perhaps even better than some of the other stocks listed. Please elaborate on your reasoning especially vis a vis the other 3 named stocks above. Thank you, Ian

Q: Hello, I need to liquidate some of the stocks listed. Disregarding sector diversification, in what order should I do this? Thanks for your help.

Q: Is there any news on the AC takeover of Air Transat. I still have credits with Transat, but with Covid numbers going back up again, I'm holding off on any Travel.

thanks! Paul

Q: Hi 5i

I would like to take a position in AC, but I'm worried about Canada’s vaccine rollout. I don't see a resumption to normalized traffic this year. My guess is they might hit 50% capacity late this year, and that might be aggressive. Can tell me how long AC can last with current monthly cash flow burn before they have to raise more money? Also can you provide your best estimates to traffic for 2021 and 2022.

Thx

Q: With the choice of adding to CAE(currently about 2% of equity portfolio) or purchasing a new position in AC which would you recommend and why? I recognize CAE may be less volatile in this market. Thank you .

Q: I’d appreciate your thoughts on SUP (in the USA) and its outlook. On a related note, what other cyclicals come to mind that are still way down from their historical highs but are a good bet to reach them again? They could be small, mid or large caps, but the more upside the better. Thanks.

Q: Hello Team,

Can you plese list your top 6 'recovery' stocks that should still show significant positive movement.

Thanks,

Dean

Q: Hi, I am looking to put some US funds into companies/sectors, which will benefit from the reopening of economy. I also read that small caps generally outperform when economy rebounds. Could you recommend some USD ETf's and few large cap US stocks, still trading below their pre pandemic levels in such sectors, in order of preference. Thank You

Q: Looking at these for continued strength in the Covid recovery. Which has the greatest potential as things return to “ normal “ , the greatest downside risk if they don’t ? Any other Canadian company in the aviation industry you would recommend. In a TFSA.
Thanks. Derek

Q: Looking for a travel play, it would be my only one. Of the above which would you recommend?

Cam

Q: I have a 4% position in Air Canada. I've made over 30% so far. I think it still has room to run as the economy opens up, but who knows. At what point would you start to lighten up?

Jason

Q: Hi, currently holding these as my industrials, looking to add 1-2% to this sector. Looking for long term growth, would be in RSP. How would you rank these if I were adding? Thanks!
TSE:XBC 2.72%
TSE:WSP 2.41%
TSE:ATA 1.83%
TSE:AC 1.46%
TSE:SIS 1.4%
TSE:GDI 1.2%

Q: Hi there,

I only have a little bit of money to put in right now and I’m looking at either WELL or Air Canada - which would you recommend? I am comfortable holding for a year or two minimum and am looking for growth but want to stay on the safer side. Appreciate your insight!