Q: Hi 5i,
Just a comment in relation to BIP.UN’s buy-out of ECI. I have held both of the securities for a number of years. ECI shareholders who have not previously held BIP.UN should take a careful look at it to determine if it is appropriate for their needs. ECI pays a fully eligible Canadian dividend on a monthly basis at a higher yield, relative to the recent past price range of ECI. It may be that the takeover premium makes BIP’s yield higher but only by dramatically lowering ECI’s. In contrast, BIP pays a quarterly distribution that is not an eligible dividend, is broken into three categories for tax purposes, and is paid in $US. Depending on one’s brokerage account set-up, some people may find that they are paying a currency transaction fee on each BIP distribution. It is important to be sure that BIP is really the kind of vehicle one wants to own. I hold BIP in an RSP account and it works well for me in that context but I would probably not want to have it in another kind of account. In regard to tendering to the cash and shares offer, people may want to consider how many BIP shares they would expect to end up with. If one’s ECI holding is relatively modest in the first place and one is likely to receive only 25% or less of the value in shares, a person could end up with a BIP holding that 5i would advise selling as “too small to have a meaningful impact on the portfolio.” If that is the case, it may be better to go for all cash (or sell it all at once in the meantime) and avoid paying a transaction fee later on an unnecessary tag end.
Cheers!
Just a comment in relation to BIP.UN’s buy-out of ECI. I have held both of the securities for a number of years. ECI shareholders who have not previously held BIP.UN should take a careful look at it to determine if it is appropriate for their needs. ECI pays a fully eligible Canadian dividend on a monthly basis at a higher yield, relative to the recent past price range of ECI. It may be that the takeover premium makes BIP’s yield higher but only by dramatically lowering ECI’s. In contrast, BIP pays a quarterly distribution that is not an eligible dividend, is broken into three categories for tax purposes, and is paid in $US. Depending on one’s brokerage account set-up, some people may find that they are paying a currency transaction fee on each BIP distribution. It is important to be sure that BIP is really the kind of vehicle one wants to own. I hold BIP in an RSP account and it works well for me in that context but I would probably not want to have it in another kind of account. In regard to tendering to the cash and shares offer, people may want to consider how many BIP shares they would expect to end up with. If one’s ECI holding is relatively modest in the first place and one is likely to receive only 25% or less of the value in shares, a person could end up with a BIP holding that 5i would advise selling as “too small to have a meaningful impact on the portfolio.” If that is the case, it may be better to go for all cash (or sell it all at once in the meantime) and avoid paying a transaction fee later on an unnecessary tag end.
Cheers!
