Investment Q&A

Q: Hi, given the choice between retractable preferred shares and perpetual preferred shares, what would be the better option, in like of today's potentially higher interest rate environment going forward? Thanks, your Q & A section is my must read daily!

Q: Good Morning! Given the recent issues EIF is facing, would you consider the new EIF convertible debenture with a 6% coupon a safe investement if held to maturity and if so would such investment be best in a TFSA, RRSP or outside. Do you see the debenture possibly sinking bellow par in the near future and would it be better to wait and possibly buy it later at a more favorable valuation.

Thanks for your advice.
Joseph

Q: Would you give me your pros and cons on the proposed following offer as part of the "fixed income" portion of a portfolio.

Canadian Western Bank 4 .40% 5.25-Year Rate Reset Pfd
Short Description: Treasury Offering of Non-Cumulative 5.25-Year Rate Reset First Preferred Shares, Series 5


Thanks

Q: You mentioned previously Exchange Income (EIF) convertible debentures as a good buy for in a fixed income portfolio. Did you have any one of the outstanding (or new issue) in mind or one that would fit into my ladder of maturities?

Q: JE
Any thoughts on Just Energy, and why it dropped 7.6% yesterday

Q: Hi Peter and team, thanks for all your great advise in 2013. I'm looking at several converts to spruce up my fixed income side. I would appreciate your thoughts or ranking of the following debentures: afn.db.a, are.db.b, ahf.db, eif.db.e, fr.db.h, mrt.db.a, weq.db.c, di.db.c and nwh.db.
I'm 70 and plan to hold to maturity and would represent about 10% of my fixed income.

thanks in advance

Q: Hi Guys,

Everyone seems to love Element Financial (EFN). I was wondering if the reset (5 year bond + 4.71%) preferred share (EFN.PR.A) with a 6.6% dividend due in 2018 would make a good investment for the fixed income portion of my portfolio?

From 1 to 10 (10 very safe), how safe is my capital?

Thanks for the help.
John

Q: At age 72 the most recent recommendation for income (bonds) in a portfolio is age 72x72= 52%. Would you agree that convertible bonds (less than a 5 year term) should be a significant portion of the total. What % amount would you recommend and could you please provide a few names to include.
Thanks for providing such a necessary service to the small retail investor.

Q: Could you please comment on Pembina's (PPL) latest preferred share offering.
Thank you.

Q: Do you have any update on the IBI group? The last word on them was not good. I own some IBG.DB.B and am severely under water. In trying to clean up dogs before year end I noticed the underlying stock had started to rally and since, if they did not default at the end of December, I was earning 30%+ on the existing value, I decided to wait to see if they defaulted. They did not, the interest arrived in my account and it has been rising every day (up 19% today). Is this rise just because they did not default or are things a bit better at IBI. When do they next declare?

Q: BBD.PR.B perpetual, cumulative, floating at Prime, Preferred from Bombardier
Would this preferred share be a good long term holding? With a current yield of ~5.25%, when BOC does finally increase the overnight lending rate, each quarter point increase bumps up the monthly dividend. With $20 billion on the order books, the company looks safe for paying the dividends. Please give me your thoughts.

Q: Pembina Pipeline Corp. 5.00% Rate Reset Preferred Shares Class A , Series 5

Hi Peter
I have been offered this reset preferred . Is this a good investment in an income section of my portfolio ?
Will the rising rates affect this preferred and will I be vulnerable ?

Q: An offering of AIM Pr. share this morning. It is a P3. Could you give me your opinion please.Thanks.

Q: Happy New Year. I hope it's a good one for everybody. I'm looking for companies with preferred stock with good dividends.
I already have SLF.PR.D and would like some diversity. Thank you.

Q: Hi Team,
I have 2 Manulife Prefers.
1/MFC.PR.G 4.4% price @ $25.70
2/MFC.PR.C 4.5% price @ $21.55
Please explain why their prices are so much apart. Since they are issued by the same company. Thank you for your help!

Q: I was under the impression that the price of convertible debentures followed that of their common stocks but in reviewing a number of convertible debentures that will mature by the end of 2014, I find that is not always the case. For example, EIF.DB.A, PKI.DB, NPI.DB, and IBG.DB all followed their common stock prices very closely (down); ATP.DB and CHR.DB held their values well while their common stock prices plunged; while PGF.DB.A and AFN.DB remained flat or fell gradually while their common stocks soared. What are the factors that impact this apparently irregular behaviour? I look forward, as always, to your reply. Thanks.

Q: Dear 5i,

I just did my 2 year renewal with you. I've been a member since the very first day and wanted to thank you for your care of exisiting members!

To celebrate, I was hoping I could ask a question about TRP and TRP.PR.D. I own both the common and preferred stock of TransCanada (about 5% in each) and wanted to sell one of the positions for balancing reasons. The rest of my portfolio is all cash and stocks (no other fixed income). I was planning on holding the preferred "forever" and selling the common but the thought crossed my mind that the preferred my react particularily negatively to rising interest rates (worse than the common). Any thoughts on what should stay and what should go?

Q: Convertible Bond question of Jan 02/14(asked by Lance):

Also check the "Change of Control" sections in the CD prospectus (sedar.com). In such circumstance, often the company must make an offer at par in cash, and somtimes extra shares are available to compensate for the loss of interest to maturity.
Publish at your discretion.

Q: I've heard that a lot of bank preference shares are being bought back in the coming year or so. Would you kindly tell me if that applies to any of the following, and when that might be and at what price. Thanks.
BNS.PR.T
BNS.PR.X
CM.PR.M

Q: Hi Peter and 5i: a couple questions about convertible debentures (“CDs”) and also could you please let me know if anything that I am saying suggests I may be misunderstanding these instruments. First off, it seems there are two typical situations that result in CDs trading above their face value. One is if the common share price appreciates to the point where the CD’s are primarily of interest for their potential conversion value. I’d like to leave this aspect aside, as right now I am more interested in their characteristics when they are behaving more like bonds. The second situation seems to occur mostly when they get relatively closer to their maturity dates. I would guess this is an effect of their relatively high original yields in combination with the fact that the perceived default risk can decline more steeply and from relatively higher levels for these corporate debt instruments than for “safer” fixed income alternatives. If they are issued with 6 or 8 years to maturity, that is a long time in the world of corporate business and who really knows how some of these companies will do over that kind of timeframe. On the other hand, in a CD’s last year before maturity, the visibility of the solvency and continued existence of the corporate issuer may be extremely good. With a short enough time to maturity, one might even think that the default risk is not materially worse than with government backed securities, that is, probably still somewhat worse but the overall risk is small enough that the difference is not that significant. So my first question is: Is it common for professional money managers to purchase CDs with short remaining maturities in order to boost short term yields in their fixed income funds? Would that be a significant component of what causes CDs to trade above par as their maturity dates get nearer?
Second question: Are there any standard “catches” or pitfalls in the construction of individual CDs that retail investors really need to be watchful for? I know it is important to go right to the filed prospectus document when evaluating a CD for potential purchase but it would be helpful if I had a better idea of what kinds of features to be on guard against when I am doing that research. (Feel free to refer me on to another info source on this one, if that would make the most sense.)
Thanks for any help, as always!