Investment Q&A

Q: I have been watching Weight Watchers (WTW) ever since Oprah put her considerable marketing support behind the company and it seemed to beat estimates quarter after quarter. I felt like I missed the boat when it went from $12 to $105 from Jan 2017 - June 2018. Ever since it has dropped like a rock to its present $35 price. My questions are 1) what caused this huge fall and is it over sold? 2) what are the current EPS estimates and PE? 3) when do they report next? 4) what is their debt load and is it manageable? and finally 5) do you think it offers a compelling entry point?

Many thanks
Scott

Q: Further to my previous question on these etfs. if I buy these etfs and they over time accumulate gains from distributions. And I then sell some units for income is my gain or loss solley dependent on wether I sold above or below my purchase price or could I in fact sell for my exact purchase price and still have a cumulative gain from distributions from the swap? Also in your opinion would these funds as start ups be a poor way for a retired person to avoid income as to gain on oas and gis ?

Q: I would like to add another tech stock or ETF to my portfolio.I have 10% total in KXS,MSFT, & AAPL. I have been looking at SYZ,ENGH, CSU and Intel.I would like to know which of these stocks held up well during the recent correction.
Thank you for your invaluable service.

Q: If I understand correctly I would have to purchase ALA common shares no later than the close of business on Jan 23rd to get the monthly dividend as the stock goes ex-dividend on Jan 24th.
Since I sold the stock on December 24th I would count that as the first day I didn't own the stock. 30 days starting December 24th would take me to Jan 22nd, so provided I bought the stock on Jan 23rd, I could claim the capital loss and get January's dividend. Do you agree?
The stock has gone up nicely since I sold it on December 24th but it is "seller beware" so to speak! (Are the shorts getting squeezed)?
Thanks,
Jim

Q: Good morning 5i team,with the possibility of trade war between US and China,is now a good time to buy gold stocks.
Thank You!

Q: Hi Peter, Ryan, and Team,

Across all accounts, our sector allocations need re-balancing. I'm trying to re-allocate money only in stocks that are already held. In the Consumer Discretionary space, should I add to GIL and/or MG today? (GIL is 2.75% and MG is 2.92% of the total portfolio)

Thanks as always for the timely advice.

Q: Can I get your thoughts on the recent set of news for VHI. The contract with the province of Nova Scotia seems promising.

Q: I'm wondering if you can give your thoughts on TTOO? Company history, growth, acquisition record, management, balance sheet, cashflow and earnings? Risks? Do they meet forecasts?

Q: I hold both these U.S. banks which I bought back when "everybody needed to hold a US bank" which was only several months ago but seems like ancient history. This morning BBT was downgraded from a buy to underperform. Can I get your opinion on whether to continue to hold or take my losses and dump them.

Thanks, Carl

Q: LNR has started acting better. Aside from portfolio weighting considerations, what are the main concerns here? I see a stock that is trading under book value and could move significantly whenever the sector becomes more compelling. Given a long time horizon do you think adding is warranted? Thank-you as always.

Q: I currently hold a global infrastructure f class mutual fund (CIBC Renaissance ALT062)in registered acct's. It has had poor resent performance with a big drop at the end of 2017. Cause?( It has a 15% investment in UK and top holding in Eurotunnel). Could you recommend an ETF or company as a suitable replacement. Also, would it provide more choice and liquidity if I converted to US dollars?

Q: Hi Gang,
Have some cash available and would like to know your thoughts on the above, looking buy 3 or 4 of the above.

Thanks
Anthony

Q: What is the lowest stock price and or market cap ever added to one of your portfolios ?

Q: If Canaccord as an example raises capital for a public company, and usually if not always obtains warrants, is Canaccord then allowed to make an analysis with a buy recommandation on that stock ?
Is there a time restraint at the onset ? Is there a time restraint at near a period when warrants are about to expire ? For a junior company particularly when any or few analysts cover such a stock, my feeling is that Canaccord could influence strongly the stock price . I welcome your comments.
Thanks.

Q: I am retired and have over the last year built a somewhat diversified portfolio that is geared toward income. I own 1000+ shares of the following of stocks and ETF’s.
Stocks : AQN, ENB (2K), BEP.UN, CVE, RY, SLF, BCE, CPG, IPL,NGD,BT,TD (U.S.),GE (U.S.)
ETF’S: ZEF,ZWE (3k),ZWU, CYH, REEM (2K),MFT (3K), XTR, ZMI (2), ZWP, ZDM, ZPW,ZWH.
I am presently holding an additional 45% in cash and feel that I am lacking in US exposure. I am thinking of purchasing either HEA or ZDY. I like the yield of HEA (6.46%) vs ZDY (2.96%). My question is should I be worried that there is not a lot of daily volume with HEA, in fact some days none. 2. How does someone go about buying 20,000 shares of an ETF with very little daily volume? Is there another ETF(income) that pays a minimum of 3% yield with a broad US exposure that you would recommend? Please note this is for a 5-7 year hold. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Q: I’m wondering what is an optimal % of fixed income to hold … In my case, 15% of my portfolio is in CBO, CLF, CPD, and XHY .. for a 60 yr old, retired investor dependent on portfolio income, is this advisable? … optimal? … not really neccessary? Or, is there a good argument to be made for leaning less on fixed income and more on “a diversified portfolio of banks, pipelines, utilities, consumer stocks, and other dividend-paying equities” (John Heinzl in Sat.’s G&M) .. which i do have (but I could be even more diversified by holding less fixed income) .. I understand that fine-tuning these percentages will be a personal choice, but I would appreciate your perspective. thanks!

Q: Hello 5I,
Last summer Peter wrote an article about 5 possible takeover candidates in the Financial Post. Wouls you still consider them potential takeover candidates today and have the rational / $ matrix changed for each of them?
Thank you very much!

Q: I am considering selling TCL and buying NFI to try and reduce downside risk while still having upside potential. Your thoughts please.

Q: what would you think of the following strategy?
instead of paying the high MER of ZLB i buy the top ten stocks listed under ZLB in the proportions listed and then at the end of each year I readjust to match their new top ten? i know this would involve some trading costs but even if all ten would have to be replaced (not likely) i would still be ahead. anything i am missing?

Q: Greetings 5i Team.
We are adjusting our accounts and looking to place 6% of our equity allocation in the Cdn ‘industrials’ category. If you were to choose among the listed securities, which names would you prefer for each of a one, two, three, and four name selection?
Thankyou
Sam