Investment Q&A

Q: Good morning Peter, Ryan, and Staff,

I notice that 5i often includes a stock in a different sector as compared to the TSX. For example, you have GSY in the Consumer Cyclical sector, but the TSX has it in the Financial sector. Could a case be made to include GSY in the Financial sector? (Has it grown a lot since 5i first started following it, and perhaps has become more "financial"?)

I am confused when looking at a stock that 5i doesn't cover. For example, several members recently have expressed interest in Pollard Banknote PBL. The TSX lists PBL as Consumer Cyclical. Would you concur? When in doubt, where can we determine the appropriate sector for a particular stock?

Thanks in advance for you insight.

Q: I see you use these Greek origin words often. Please explain what they mean.
Thanks,
Jim

Q: please let me know your thoughts about:
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Q: Gentlemen: Gary Shilling says that 50% of returns are from knowing the direction of the market, 30% from the right sector and 20% from having the right stock. Along this line, please comment on where you see opportunities or risks now with specific examples please. I e direction, favourite sectors, and favourite stocks. Tks-JP

Q: Do not chuckle at my ignorance here please, but my question here is on ETF and Mutual Fund fees bought in self directed brokerage portfolios. If a posted managed fee (ie 1.5%) where does that withdraw fee show up and is it taken our annually or monthly? I never see a charge on my monthly statements for the etf management fees. How are they calculated, on the purchase price or a share value on a set date? Thanks

Q: Hi team
I have some money invested in this fund, Fidelity Magellan
it used to be managed by Peter Lynch
the US market has done well

Buy, hold or sell ? thanks
Michael
if you do not cover this fund, not sure if I should use the credit for the questions ?

Q: Greetings.

I am planning on early retiring next year at 55. I am looking to transition my portfolio form balanced/growth to income. It would seem that although timing the market is not a predictable strategy, it would seem to me that this is probably the perfect time to transition my portfolio given the weaknesses in the utilities, telecom, pipes etc.

I have cash saved for my first 2 years of retirement to avoid being forced to withdraw funds at a 'inopportune time'. However, i also know my portfolio may need to last a number of years prior to being able to claim cpp, oas and social security (spouse of american citizen collecting social security). Would you recommend transitioning now or do i risk too much growth in the next while? Your thoughts/recommendations are always appreciated.
Cheers

Q: TD Waterhouse said, they did not have any US Treasury Bills in their inventory. Therefore, I could not buy any US Treasury Bills. Is this right and where can you go to buy? TD does have TD Ameritrade in the US, why would they not have US Treasury Bills there?

Q: Greetings
What’s your view of companies that offer to repurchase shares via a ‘normal course issuer bid’ and simultaneously issue a similar amount of stock to officers and directors through stock options? The two activities run more or less concurrently but of course are issued under separate notifications.
Thank you

Q: What is your opinion on Fidelity Can.Large Cap B (Fid.231)?
It still has 4 Stars, but had zero return in 2017.
What do you see in the future for this fund?
Thank you.

Q: Can you please recommend few TITANIUM stocks or ETF.

Q: Hi,
I'm wondering about this IPO, primarily for it's focus on industries / sectors I feel will provide future growth. However, I have concerns over some of the wording in the prospectus and feel this may just be a 'flyer', as opposed to a trust unit opportunity. It is slated to begin trading under the ticker BL.UN and think it may be worth waiting to see how the IPO goes, before trying to assess its potential. I am wondering if you could offer any thoughts on it, as I have come to value your insight very much and certainly have benefited with your recommendation of NVDA as a stock focused on the future of AI. If your view is that there is a better approach through a selection of stocks or ETFs (such as ROBO or ARKW), then feel free to redirect my attention.

As always, I look forward to your thoughts.

Thanks,
Dawn

Q: Hi there, a follow up to my previous question: you suggested IWO and VSS - were there any ETFs listed on the TSX that would be equivalent? Thank you!

Q: Thank you for your answer on my question/comment on ETF.
I had missed to mention why I am uncomfortable with this passive investing trend. The markets over many years has been acustomed to this type of "investment du jour" but there is something special to ETF that I forgot to say and why I think it is important.
ETF are among many other qualities supposed to be providing valuable diversity . You did not provided a comment on my question about what I call the tail wagging the dog. If I am right and I do not know if I am (hence my question), then there is NO diversity about buying an ETF as it will behave like a stock and they will force down or up the undervalued securities.
Te ETF's that I buy have an extremly narrow scope and are more induced to react to the underlying ebb and flow value of the underlying asset they are suppose tyo represent than the other way around.
Your comment on this question (very important for me as one of my major belief is into diversification) will be appreciated and if it is too long or irrelevant, please simply keep it private

Q: Hello 5i. Just wondered if you had seen the article on this topic in the Globe & Mail over the weekend. What it suggests is that dividends from US-listed ETFs held in an RRSP account are not subject to US taxes. However, the article states that this is not the case for dividends paid by Canadian-listed ETFs that invest in US stocks. In this case, dividends ARE subject to US withholding taxes, even if the ETF is held in an RRSP account. The article goes on to say that these taxes cannot be recovered. (Same situation would apply to mutual funds.)

Assuming the article got this, I'm not sure that all ETF investors are aware of this nuance.

Q: What is your view on seg. funds, pro's and con's, thanks?

Q: Can you suggest best websites that provide insider selling, buying and holdings. I have visited INK Research, but fairly expensive for subscription. Any others that are more reasonable cost, or best, free!!

Q: Hi Peter,
I have been researching answers from 5i on TFSA's. I am looking for a little help to define criteria for growth stocks in a TFSA.
Using TFSA for growth only
Using RRSP and Non-Reg accounts to balance portfolios (including consideration for TFSA)
In a growth model TFSA, is the TFSA to contain a "mix" of sectors or just the best growth stocks available (in recent history this would be almost all tech stocks)?
If you were to select 10 growth stocks from Canada and the USA, what would those 10 stocks be (ranking if possible) at this time?
Is a US stock without dividends the same as a Canadian stock in an TFSA.. i.e. not subject to any taxes or capital gains yearly or when cashing in the stock?
Our assumption is that we are missing out on growth potential if we do not have high growth US stocks in our TFSA. Should we be adding US tech stocks now?

Please take the number of points that are appropriate to answer our question.
Thank you for your great service.

Jerry and Debbie

Q: Hi. Peter and 5I.
I have also, as Carl, noticed the significant increase of questions on ETF's. This is one of the numerous red flags that are started to pop up all over the market universe in my opinion.
I have taken action against what I consider a risk reward more and more tilted to the downside and am way more concern today about terminal losses (unrecoverable losses) than I am about simple losses on further potential gains(opportunities costs)
I consider ETF's to be purchased only where I cannot buy company stock in certain asset classes or I need to buy in a foreign market that reflects a potential opportunity.
I have a general question about ETF and how they work. If ''everybody'' is buying ETF's now, does that means that the underlying stocks will also grow no matter their intrinsic value. In other words, would it be possible that the ETF's buyer may have now a predominant impact on the market than ''all'' the direct buyers of the underlying stocks. Tail wagging the dog kind of...
A comment on the extract from A wealth of common sense that you mentioned.
If the 16000 mutual fund are buying ETF does that not add to the overextended existing situation?
Passive investing is not just the domain of retail investors.
Thank you
CDJ

Q: I have a TFSA and a Cash account. I haven't always deployed my money in the smartest ways. For example, I hold RCI.B and VEE in my TFSA and growth stocks like PHO or SIS in my cash accounts. How urgent is it for me to get my growth stocks into my TFSA? Is it just a matter of selling and rebuying in the correct account or can I do a transfer in kind?