Investment Q&A

Q: Although this company is not on your radar as it is too small and high risk, can you briefly explain in layman’s terms what this means for the company?
Azincourt Energy Corp. (“Azincourt” or the “Company”) (AAZ.V) announces it has granted an aggregate of 1,410,000 incentive stock options to directors, officers and consultants of the Company and shareholders?
Have a great Christmas everyone!

Q: Hello 5ir,
I own AGU which will be merging wit POT. The effective day of the merger does seem to have been established. I have sold the April 20, 2018 call option as a covered write. What happens to the option if the effective date of the merger is before the option expiration date of April 20, 2018?
My broker did not know and neither did their option desk?
Cheers, HD

Q: Peter and His Wonder Team
How are annual portfolio returns calculated? I thought I knew but now am not sure. I thought Dec 31 was the date that everyone did there mathematics...measuring the difference that occurred during that year. Are there other ways? For example can you just use any day during the year that your portfolio hit its high and use that number? In other words is there accounting consistency between the financial institutions and retail investors or is there a little manipulation for marketing purposes? Thanks for the clarification.
Dr.Ernest Rivait

Q: I've been a member of 5i for about two years and your help has been substantial. Thank-you. I currently own a portfolio that closely mirrors your balanced portfolio.

My question today relates to one asked recently about Warren Buffet's wishes regarding his investments should he die. I believe it was somethink like 10% to short term bonds and 90% to the S&P 500. I'm seeking advice regarding what a kind of portfolio a Canadian should develop in a similar situation. My wife has no interest in day to day stock analysis. Should she inherit our portfolio, I'd like to construct a 'buy and hold' ETF portfolio, in addition to our current portfolio, with exposure to Canada, the United States and the rest of the world. This would comprise the equity part of a more complete portfolio. Hopefully, it would have the potential to show resonable gains with little attention by the owner. My question is: which 3 ETF's would you choose to gain exposure to the 3 markets for a Canadian who simply wants to buy and hold? What % would you put into each ETF?
All the best to you and your families for the holiday season.

Q: Hi

Why the brief halt on BTL yesterday? “Circuit breaker”? If so what is the criteria they use.

Q: Hi 5i,

I'm a younger guy (mid 30s) who's fortunate enough to have saved hard and basically paid off my primary residence. I'm now looking to redeploy that equity through a credit line, which comes at a cost of prime + 0.5%. Our TFSAs are maxed (aligned with model BE/growth portfolios) and RRSP contributions are healthy, so I'm comfortable with our total equity exposure, but I would like a low-risk income-oriented holding in a new non-registered account that yields enough after tax to offset the cost of capital on the credit segment. Is there anything that comes to mind? Maybe a series of Prefs (neutralizes rate risk assiciated with this strategy) with a few high-yielding equities to bump up the overall yield?

Thanks for your help!

Q: If we are to believe that history is our best teacher, what in your opinion, were the major factors that contributed to the Dow Jones Sell off in Aug 2015 and Jan 2016? Was it mainly global financial events re Greece and China? What are the best tools to monitor the events that could lead to a similar correction? Thanks for your wisdom. Use as many credits as required, as I have 143 left. :)

Q: I have TFSA, RRSP and margin accounts. My TFSA is maxed, but RRSP has plenty of room. I'd like to add another $50K, and was wondering whether I should add to my RRSP or margin account. My hesitation with putting the cash into RRSP is that I may need this in the next 6 months, as we are currently shopping for a house. What would you suggest?

Q: My question is about your answer to Maurice about Biotricity yesterday. What is a decent board? How do you judge the board?
Thanks
Will

Q: Milan's question and comments about Warren Buffet's advice to his wife for investing after he passes away makes me wonder: Since DAY 1 (or there abouts) can you tell if he has beaten the market and if he has by how much?

Thank you for your answer; and thank you for a very good year $$$; and best wishes for a merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year ... in every way.

Q: Robert asked about Cannabis and Wine....:
Andrew Peller (ADW.A), Canopy Growth Corp (WEED)
Date: Dec 19, 2017 07:38 AM


This may be of interest from the Financial Post (and in other news feeds):

Canadians are already spending almost as much on marijuana as wine
The $6.2 billion in weed Canadians consume a year is about two-thirds the $9.2 billion beer market and close to wine’s $7 billion tally.

Canadians consumed as much as $6.2 billion of marijuana in 2015, almost as much as they spent on wine, the federal statistics agency said Monday as it gears up to officially track weed when it becomes legal next year....."

http://business.financialpost.com/commodities/agriculture/marijuana-use-may-have-hit-c6-2-bln-before-canada-legalization
............................................................................

"North Americans Are Spending Nearly As Much On Marijuana As They Do On Wine..."

https://www.weednews.co/north-americans-are-spending-nearly-as-much-on-marijuana-as-they-do-on-wine/

Q: What do you think is best for monthly income/moderate principal protection? Could you explain your position on investing in dividend paying stocks vs bonds/preferds/other options? Thank you

Q: Good morning Peter and company,

In his will, for his wife's benefits, Warren Buffett has instructed the trustee to put 10% of the money in short-term government bonds and 90% in a very low-cost S&P 500 index fund such as Vanguard’s.

Would that be a good practice for all retired individuals living off their stock portfolios by withdrawing 4% annually, if they are prepared to live with the market's fluctuations?

Bond values have nowhere to go but down as central banks raise interest rates. Would 10% cash be better than 10% bonds today?

Thank you for your considerate answers to my questions.

Milan

Q: Google Finance is closing down its portfolio feature and I'm wondering if there is another site that has this feature. It charts your portfolio as a whole and provides a chart totalling your market gain daily on the portfolio also with a comparison feature.
Thanks for all your great information.

Q: Hi 5i,

Further to your reply to Clarence's question about indicators for a market correction, could you please provide links or info on where/how to track those indicators?

Also, where can I find info on the debt/cash that a company holds? I see various ratios but no actual numbers, even on 5i.

Thanks as always.

Q: I am a member of American Assoc of Independent Investors (AAII) and subscribe to their wonderful database product Stock Investor. AAII is a fantastic place to learn, search using outstanding strategies and collect investment knowledge through osmosis. But alas there is no Canadian equivalent. Various screeners provided by brokers are rudimentary and do not support well known strategies.

I would urge 5i to create a similar service. They use data from Reuters and so could you. Since Canada is primarily resource based market, many screens may not work as they are. Here is a chance to create a Canadian solution tilting towards resources. 5i could do it independently or even with collaboration with AAII. This service will be completely new idea differentiating you from other advisory services. I hope you will explore this opportunity.

Q: Peter & Team,

I note that you frequently talk about anticipated future revenue growth for certain companies (eg, 2018 projections). I also find that future expectations re sales/eps growth are often an available screening criteria in many online stock screening programs (eg, Finviz). Can you tell me the source of these projections as well as your professional opinion as to how much rigor there is behind behind these estimates? Are they purely based upon company projections and, if so, do analysts ever weigh in as to the integrity of these numbers or lack thereof? Thank you.

Q: I'm new to the system, and unable to access your Reports in the Report section. For instance, under your Report category, I typed in the symbol GWO, and clicked on Great West Life. Great West Life appeared in that area ... but when I ran a search, there were no results. If I get a report in your Question area, it's not identical to the reports in the Report area. For instance, I don't see your Ratings in the Question area Report.

Q: I am starting a Growth Portfolio with $100,000 to be phased in over three years. I purchased DOL and SHOP with each 5% weighting, or $5000 each. What weightings should I consider for each of ECN, GSY, OTEX, PHO? (These positions will be in my TFSA and held for the long-term, more than 5 years.) Are there any other positions that I should consider at this time and if so, what weighting?
.PS...I currently hold KXS and GUD in my balanced portfolio.

Q: I believe we are due for a major correction - What do you think are the best ETF's that will hold up the best in
1) Cdn Equities, 2) USA Equities, 3) REITS, 4) Consumer Staples, 5) Commodities,