Investment Q&A

Q: Seems like a barrage of questions on Cineplex, in a week, but will ask, anyway. What is its current/ forward PE and is the present valuation justified (even after the steep decline) ? Do you expect Cineplex to continue to generate strong cash flow to pay down its very high debt load ( $600 mln ? ) and support 4.5 - 5% dividend ? How are the results of Cineplex capital investments in new initiatives like Rec rooms and VIP Cinemas ? Cineplex was removed/sold from 5iPortfolios, last year, in what looks like a smart move. But added back to Income portfolio, after some time, at a much lower price ($36.50, I think). With the recent drop in price, do you still have conviction that it's a good income stock to own and would you add ? Also, any change to A- Rating, with all recent developments and outlook ? Thanks

Q: Constellation Software announced this morning of a nice acquisition of Acceo Solutions for a price of $250 mln.
Q1: Seems like a good size acquisition, after some time. With annual proforma revenue of $116 mln, how significant is this transaction ?
Q2 : What is your understanding of the proposed financing ?
" Constellation expects to finance the Acceo acquisition on a stand-alone basis. This is a continuation of Constellation’s use of leveraged capital structures to compete more effectively for larger vertical market software businesses. "
Thanks

Q: Hello Peter. What do you think about the $250M deal that CSU announced this morning, and what do you think it will do for CSU's outlook and share price going forward in the near/mid-term?

Thanks,

Q: As a follow-up to your Jan 12 reply to Elmer: I bought OTEX a couple of years back partly based on a very low PE in the 6-7 range (Thompson-Reuters stock info in National Post). Same source now has PE at 80. Your response says: the stock is cheap at 13X earnings. I'm confused. Could you explain? Should investors ignore the Thomp-Reuters numbers, or how can they be used?
Thnx in advance.

Q: Savaria is a small company in what seems to be a fairly fragmented market. What are their competitive advantages? Do they benefit from patents? Who are there primary competitors?

Bought a full position on your recommendation and it has run up nicely from the ~$14 range. Would you continue to hold? Also, what is the forward PE multiple?

Thanks very much!

Q: What are your thoughts on $wsp going forward. I currently hold a full position.

Thanks Valter

Q: Has WCP been buying back their own shares and if so how much? Thx

Q: What would you add to today in BE, regardless of sector, current holding size, etc.? What looks good? Many thanks.

Q: When does toy report earnings next. What are expectations?

Q: Go Easy has had a nice run bought in at $27.00 Now 39 do you think it has a ways to go or would you take some money off the table thanx

Q: With Savaria getting 64% of their revenue from the US, do you see a material change in EPS with the US tax being reduced to 20-25% for Savaria?

Thanks, Barry

Q: Please your take on its 2% increase in distribution for the 1st 3mos of 2018.Thanks for u normal great services & views

Q: Update please

Q: Hi Peter,

SIS has grown to about 9% of my portfolio from an initial 6% and wondering if you think there's any more upside? My full positions are 5-7% so wondering if I should continue to hold or trim my position?

On the other hand GUD is down 20% and wondering if I should add more here or start a new position in CLS (I'm low on tech) if I do trim SIS. All of these are/will be in my TFSA.

Also, wondering about ECN, what will it take for it to break out above $4? It seems to be stuck below $4 for a long time now. I hold this in my RRSP.

Thanks for your advice as always.

Q: They announced the hiring of a new president recently. The article mentioned that the new hire had a background in growing the cloud business at his previous company. Was this hiring part of an orderly transition at the company and does his background suggest a new direction for the company or just a good fit for what has always been going on there? Can we expect a little "spark" to this company now?

Appreciate your insight.

Paul F.

Q: I'm looking for a breakdown of Enbridge's revenue/operations. Oil transportation and midstream services vs natural gas distribution (utility), vs renewable (wind/solar etc.). Could you give me an idea of the breakdown or point me in the right direction?
Thanks

Q: Is the recent pullback on ATB Dec./Jan. profit taking? I can’t find any news. Seems a good time to add this one. What are your thoughts on the P/E and debt?

Q: Hi,
I bought gud at just over $10. Being at 7.92 right now and 3% of my portfolio do you think it’s a good time to average down and increase holding to 5%? Or would you view that as too much of a position?

Q: This list of companies from the Balanced Portfolio were all beaten up a bit last year. Which of these do you now consider buying opportunities? Are any of these on your list to watch & discard if performance doesn't improve? If I were to add some of these to my relatively diverse portfolio, how would you order them in terms of anticipated total returns?

Q: OTEX has been on a downward trend since its high on May 8, 2017. Today @ $41.79 its below SMA (9), (50), and (200). Parabolic SAR (0.01, 0.1) is 41.56 but still showing some upward movement. MACD is trending down, currently 0.3 and below the signal line. The Histogram is below the zero line and trending lower. The Price ROC has trended down from 70+ late in December. Now it's at 0.34%. RSE has followed PROC and has fallen to 43.82 from 70+. What is the cause of this poor performance? Has their marketing strategy tanked? Has the competition found of way of beating them at their own game? Has management tired of doing a good job? Is the company in financial trouble? Is operating cash low? Debt too high? Please give me some reason to hold this stock.

Elmer