Investment Q&A

Q: I'd like to know your philosophy regarding taking gains. Recently I've heard from "knowledgeable" (I think it's true) people who believe in selling half of your stock when it doubles, as a rule. What are your thoughts on that?
Also, that leaves me pondering what to do with my losers... I've heard not to hang on, hoping for a turnabout... just take your losses like a big girl and move on. Your thoughts generally?
And in particular, I'm holding onto AHF, CHW, AVO BAD, SGY, BXE, MCR, ACQ with this hope... which ones should I dump???

Always grateful,
Brenda

Q: Dear Peter and team.

I am switching a $25,000 family plan RESP (for 2 kids ages 6 and 4) to a self-directed account and would like to create a diversified and safe portfolio. I plan on maximizing annual contributions and expect the government top up as well, so will add $6,000 per year. The funds will not be needed for 12 years and I am willing to weather some volatility. Do you think an 8-10 stock portfolio is a good starting point, with the annual lump sum contributions used to add 1 or 2 new positions each year? If so, could you recommend 8-10 stocks to be acquired over the next month or so?

Many thanks for an amazing service!

Q: Hi Peter,

Thank you for your great subscription service. I have a pretty balanced portfolio and want to add some good dividend yield stocks. What do you think of CTY, Calian Technologies, Russel Metals, Wajax, Precision Drilling and Chemtrade Logistics. Some of these have stock prices that have gone down due to their exposure to oil and gas, but it might be a good time to buy low cost companies that pay good dividends.

thank you
Anne

Q: I am down $4.00 on 1000 shares of Corus since the CRTC announcement. The dividend is 5 per cent. Since Shaw owns most of Corus woukd it not make sense for Shaw to buy out the rest of the shareholders? Consolidation makes sense to me only one dividend from Shaw after a takeover and possible synergies. Or would you sell and move on maybe to lions gate in the US which has momentum.

Q: From a technical point of view, Lumenpulse seems to have reversed it's slide at major support with high volume. Without knowing what may have prompted it would it be a good entry point?
As always, your insight is greatly appreciated, Peter

Q: Hi team. I currently hold MRE at $9.50 a share. should I continue to hold it or sell it. I would like your opinion on it.

Thanks. Rob.

Q: With the recent announcement, do you believe the dividend will be in jeopardy? They have had a good record of raising dividend from .75 (2011) to 1.14 (2014). Will growth stall and will the dividend increases will abate for a time?

Q: Keeping in mind the often-heard advice to sell your losers, what is a good way to define a loser; is it just being underwater on your position, or are industry and macro developments important considerations as well? The reason I ask is that I am currently under water on Corus, but I'm not sure if that alone makes it a loser given it's position and relative strength in the industry. However, when considering the challenges that the broadcasting industry will continue to face going forward, maybe I should categorize it as a loser and move on. How would you approach a decision like this? Thanks for any insight you can provide.

Q: Hello gents, a good entry point now? It kind of looks like an avo scenario don t you think- Investor over reaction driving price down

Q: Hi team:
I have asked this ? of you before but I am even more concerned now. What is going on? Cipher has dropped from $18.39 on Jan 27 to todays close @ $12.62. I can't help it but I am suspicious that something is going on because that is a big drop even tho you & others say there isn't any significant news. I have been down this road before & something or someone is causing this. Sorry to be so cynical but like I say I have been down this road before & it doesn't end well for us "little
guys on the outside"
Regards: Jerry

Q: I hold a small position in this stock.
Will dividend be safe? Can I buy more for income?

Q: Hello,

I am working at cleaning up my portfolio. I sold my losers (SGY and ACQ) at big losses and am now trying to reduce my Canadian portion of my portfolio to 20 stocks. Currently 5 of the 20 are in the tech sector which is 25%. Do you think this is too high? I own the following 5 tech stocks:CSU, ESL, OTC, GIB.A and AVO.

I don't mind being a bit overweight in the sector as I think it will do well over the next few years. How many should I keep? If I were to drop one or two which would you suggest? CSU, ESL and GIB.A have been my best perfromers so I hate to sell them because I find the stocks that do well are generally the stocks that continue to do well. But I also think OTC and AVO have good prospects.

I look forward to your advice.

Carla

Q: Good morning,

What will be the impact of yesterday's CRTC decision on Corus?

Thanks

Paul

Q: Is pcl construction a listed company and are they in the same business as wsp,stn and snc

Thanks
Paul

Q: Between Stantec and WSP Global which one would you consider better to be part of. They both seem good to me but I own some Stantec from just before the stock split and it is down slightly. I was considering moving half of my $ value from STN into WSP just so I could see some growth in the allocated funds. Also on a side thought could you give your opinion on the possible outcome for SNC's court proceedings and if they are not able to avoid charges how this would affect Stantec and WSP.
Thank you as always

Q: Hi, could you please provide some commentary into what to what to look for when it comes to listening to the conference calls when earnings are released. I find them to be quite informative but realize the CEO/CFO want to paint the rosiest picture they can, and the questions analysts pose sometimes seem somewhat on the softball side. Any insight to this would be appreciated. As always, thank you all so much for this.

Q: Hello team,

Between Lumenpulse, Alimentation Couche-Tard, and Exco Technologies which one would you choose for a long term hold (3-5 years) in a TFSA looking for some risk but the highest upside potential?

I cannot decide as I find ATD.B expensive, LMP risky, and XTC not having as much growth.

Have a wonderful day everyone.

Q: I was caught badly over extended in the aggressive portion of my portfolio in late 2014 and into this year. I am still, foolishly I think, holding a few of the problem stocks in hopes of them recovering - Rock Energy RE -55%, Questor QST -49%, Canaccord CF -45% and Raging River RRX - 23% but the likelihood of recovery seems to constantly be moving further out. Is there any hope of these recovery near term or is it time to give up on these non-performing assets, take my losses and move on?

Q: I participated in a private placement and the stock certificates have been sent to me. How do I get them into my td waterhouse account, and how long does it take to get them into the account. thanks

Q: Hi Peter & 5i team: After reading many of your answers to members it seems to me more or less the holdings in your model portfolios are for "hold" if no further news from you. Am I right on this? I prefer not to take cap gains and let it grow instead, but when the market comes to a correction my "strength" gradually goes down also and I had times resulted buy high sell low. Or at the end of the year I just rushed to take tax losses. I have a number of holdings from your model portfolios and the rest that your comments to members are positive. Also, my portfolios are well diversified. Any suggestions that I can do better? Or I just sit back and watch out any new comments from you on the 5i site? I am really impressed by your answers to members. Thank you for your wonderful service.