Investment Q&A

Q: Thought I'd let members know that Peter has a blog on the
Financial Post website today.
"5 (non-energy non-Alberta) stocks to watch this year"

Q: I don't have a company or symbol in mind for investment, but there is a group of investment newsletter and research publishers online I would like to know more about by the name of Money and Markets AKA Weiss Research Issues. They too claim to be conflict-free advisors. Their research, I believe, is excellent, and the accuracy of their projections has been surprising a number of times. Though my dad says their sales pitch is sensationalist, I believe they are trustworthy and have put investors first. I would simply like to know, would the team at 5i trust the advice and models at Money and Markets? Thank you.

Q: Would you explain how ETFs generally work. When I buy an ETF, am I buying someone else's or am I giving money to the provider to buy shares as allocated by the particular index it is tracking?
Likewise when I am selling-is someone buying my units or is the provider selling the composite shares? How is the price determined-NAV or what a buyer is willing to pay? Should liquidity be considered? What are the major factors when considering purchasing an ETF? Thanks

Q: (Prevoiusly known as Davis & Henderson)
Re: All the comments about DH Corp initiating a DRIP. If you own shares thru a Broker (i.e TDDI) and you own a sufficient quantity of shares that your dividends allow the purchase of at least ONE SHARE then your Broker will purchase for you (called a Synthetic DRIP, with no commission)as many shares as possible (only whole shares, no fractions). This is why Mike has been recieving re-invasted dividends since March 2013 (as have I). One qualification is, at least with TDDI you need to have this feature turned on for the respective A/C. This cannot be done by the Client. You must contact your Broker to ascertain or request that the feature is enabled.
Company DRIP's are an economical way for small investors to start to build a position and also re-invest 100% of the dividends including fractional share purchases.
Hope this provides some clarification.

Q: I was doing some research on CXI and, this morning, I found an article signed by 5i Research on the Seeking Alpha website. I quickly returned to the 5i site to see if you posted it here and I didn't find anything. If you are writing for other websites, how can we find out about it and is there a way you could notify us when one of your pieces is published?
Robert

Q: Hi Peter and 5i staff.
I've been browsing the website for awhile now and really like the service you provide, it's great for a novice investor like me. I've made most of the newbie mistakes in the past and as a result went completely conservative to GICs for a few years. Your service has given me the will to get back into buying Stocks and EFTs.

My first question is an easy one, but I think it's important for me to be clear on this:

Several times I've seen where you mention a company is good for growth, are you usually referring to a share price increase, or can this also mean dividend growth?

Thanks for any help on clearing this up,

Paul

Q: I agree that the U.S. market is a good place to be and you have had a number of inquiries on which stocks to buy. But what am I missing? The exchange rate is at $ 1.19. To me, this means any stock purchased would have to increase by 19% just to break even. Can u help me with the logic of buying US at this time.

Q: Hello,

I wonder how often you revise the ratings given to your coverage universe file.

For example, February 27, 2014 you writed a report on Enbridge with a grade of A-, since that time I have not seen a report on Enbridge ENB but is still A-

Does this mean that you are always confident Enbridge and your opinion on the title identitique.

thank you

Q: I don't know if this question has been asked. (I'm sure it has, but here goes anyway...) Do you foresee a time when you might start covering US stocks? Or at the very least, starting a US Model Portfolio, which would be great to see here. In this environment, where everyone is saying "invest in the US" it becomes crucial to have a source of reason to turn to when picking from the infinitely large minefield of companies that make up the US market. I, for one, would not be averse to paying extra for this service so you could hire some like-minded people to initiate this. Thanks for listening.

Q: Hi folks:
Re insider buzz words: what do the following mean:
"Grant of rights" and "Exercise of rights"? Which,if either, is a good sign for investors?

Q: Question and suggestion: Diversification/ sector allocation/Portfolio Rebalancing is such a frequent topic that I wonder if there should be a seperate category heading for it.

I am one of those who is still trying to get "diversification" right (read burnt by being overweight Energy) and have been combing through "Market Strategy" and "Market Outlook" for guidance.

Should I be looking elsewhere on your site?

It seems clear to me that your advice currently is: 10% Energy, up to 10% Telcos, 10-15% Financials. Beyond that I am not sure.

No doubt how a question was phrased would affect your answer, but on October 8 Utility weighting was 10% and on December 24th (a Q from Ray) Utilities were 0%.

Any help you can provide here would be greatly appreciated.

Q: Hi Peter,

The previous question was more about market sentiment than anything company specific. I hold a very diversified list of 40 stocks but the list I provided were the worst offenders.

Maybe I should find a new hobby like stamp collecting or better yet get a gym membership until the market uncertainty passes which I suspect will take a few more months.

Thanks

Q: Hi Peter,

What are my rights, if any, to ask and expect honest answer from a company where I am a shareholder? For example, am I permitted to call a person in charge of investor relations of a corporation and ask specific questions about their balance sheet or strategy or lack thereof? If I'm not satisfied with the answers in that I am rebuffed, do I have an avenue to seek assistance from a regulatory agency to discuss my experience and hence improve transparency. Thank you for your time.

Q: I thought you were offering a portfolio analysis for a fee but cannot find a link or any info. CSU is getting to be a bigger part of my investments and should maybe be trimmed. Is the analysis still available? Thank you. (I'm not sure if this question was accidently submitted already)

Harvey

Q: Greetings:
How do I find out when you are holding a webinar? I see
a question about a webinar which supposedly held today.

THANKS,
BEN

Q: Is there some trick to hearing the seminar? I've registered, clicked on the appropriate link in the email that was sent, tested my speaker with the webinar program, but hear nothing, see nothing, and have no sense that the seminar is actually happening. anyone else confused?

Q: Just a further comment on short term parking rates. CIBC is offering 2% for deposits into a high interest (LOL!)account,regularly paying only 1.05% or so, but payable only until the end of March. Only worth the transfer if you have a substantial amount (i.e hundreds of thousands).

Q: I can't seem to find any info about the "dividend seminar". Could you please tell me where I can find out more?

Thanks

Q: Member's question on rates. I use Peoples Trust daily interest savings account for the short term. The rate has been at 1.8% for many months. I also use their DI savings TFSA at 3%, again, in effect for a over a year.
They have had a special 2.45% rate on a one year GIC for a few weeks.

Q: Good morning Peter and the 5i Team,

Just a suggestion to Peter who recently asked a question about parking some cash for 6 months plus. He quoted an interest rate of 1.25% for "a high interest (LOL) investment account". Oaken Financial (a division of Home Capital (HCG) which is in 5i's Model Portfolio is offering 1.75% on their savings account. I have found dealing with Oaken to be very pleasant and they are certainly efficient.