Investment Q&A

Q: Peter & Team, I have a handful of market darlings that all declined roughly 5 times worse than market today: SJ, CCL.b, BYD.un, CSU, CIG, FSV. Any idea why these would perform so badly today and is it telling us something? I note a couple of BNN market call experts sell when stocks break down usually applying stop losses. Given I have substantial taxable gains on these holdings, would you recommend paring back or selling (and buying back at lower prices as the Market Call people are attempting to do)? I note some of these are 5i top picks for when the current rout is over.

Q: Hello,
I am trying to follow your balanced equity portfolio. I have bought the securities that you have rated A, A-, and B+. As I go to B-, I'm wondering why they are included, when you have higher-rated stocks in your overall list. I would guess that they do not fit under the "balanced" criteria, but perhaps when put together (e.g.: an income stock and a growth stock) they would make a balanced combination? I could do this myself, but I like how following your portfolio takes the effort out of sector diversification.

thanks,
Henry

Q: Please provide recommendations in Canada & US for the following sectors to properly diversify a long term income portfolio :

Consumer Staple
Material
Consumer discretionary
Industrial
Utilities

Thanks

Q: I have five Canadian small cap stocks: ALP; EL; LND; PHM; and SPN. I have a couple questions on small cap stocks in general. What index(es) can I use in Canada and the United States to compare my small cap stocks to. What is your outlook for a turn around in the small cap space.

Q: some very good information. Thought I would pass it on to other subscribers.

https://www.oaktreecapital.com/insights/howard-marks-memos

Q: I assume revenue, and most expenses, for DR are in US dollars. Will the falling Canadian dollar have any significant impact on their earnings?

Q: The stock is down 17% YTD incl. 6% drop today. Any explanations why? There seems to be no news... SJ is one of the few companies that benefits from low CAD dollar, so I am surprised it is dropping so much.

Q: Regarding certain analysts recent advice to sell everything I would like to refer to a chart in Stock Charts that was published today on the Juggling Dynamite blog. The chart follows the value of the TSX and the $Cdn. The $Cdn leads and the TSX eventually catches down. 2002 TSX bottom 6000 & $Cdn at 62.5. 2009 TSX bottom 7500 & $Cdn at 77.5. If the TSX follows the $Cdn down to the current 68 cents, the TSX level will be 7000.

You keep telling us that nothing has changed. Maybe all assets are reverting to the mean from their elevated levels caused by all the QE. Almost every 10 year stock chart that I look at shows super charged growth starting about 2012.

The chart that I referenced is quite shocking and suggests that this correction could test the 2009 levels. Would you please comment.

Q: Both SLF and IGM are down 20% in the last 2 months. This is much worse than the market declines over the same period of time. Any reason why?

Q: In response to Bill's request for a DRIP site where shares are exchanged I highly recommend the following. I have used it for well over a decade and it is moderated and we have never had an issue with anyone.


http://www.dripinvesting.org/boards/boards.asp

Q: Hi,

Given the mkt direction, do you think Canadian banks are a good place to hide out for two years and should I wait or buy now?

Q: )I have tracked 9 ofyour Fri. recommendations ,as of now (3pm) they have dropped around 3.3%, the tsx has dropped 1.2%.What message does this send to me?

Q: I sent this question on Friday afternoon but it seems to have been lost in the deluge.

I would like to increase my holding in the utility sector for balancing purposes. I am looking for a solid dividend and some growth to balance out the more risky areas of my portfolio. I have looked at your answers regarding ENB, TRP and IPL and can't discern which one you favour. I am thinking IPL because it is the most beaten up and offers a high dividend yield. I have learned not to just chase yield but they are an exerienced company who have just increased their dividend, cut their cap x and provided thoughtful guidance (I think). The one negative I see is that much of their volume comes from the oilsands and perhaps there is fear that this supply will decline in this low priced environment because it is expensive to produce.

With this background, are pipelines a good investment as utilities and if so, is my thesis on IPL sound? Secondly, would Telus be a better "utility" choice as some analysts/advisors do include the telcoms in this sector.

Thanks for your insight.

Paul F.

Q: I currently have a holding in LRE which has a buy-out offer of $0.52 on the table from an anonymous Chinese company. I think this is to be voted on in February. Would it pe prudent to sell now at .30 or wait for the outcome at .52. By the way, Peter's appearance on BNN Friday was the most realistic advice I have heard anywhere since this downturn. Thans, John

Q: I hold a small position in Gluskin Sheff, which is getting hammered today, down 10% after an update that noted some revenue outflows.

Is this a game-changer in terms of outlook, or simply a hiccup that warrants taking advantage of the dip?

Q: As a follow up to the question asked by Richard regarding RBC I can say that anecdotally my late father starting buying bank shares in 1982. There were a number of occasions when he was advised by others to sell and he refused every time. He bought the shares for the dividend and the view that Canadian Banks were the safest Canadian equity. My mother and my siblings are very grateful for my father's wisdom.

Q: SJ is being hit fairly hard today (5%) on above average volume. Anything to explain this or is it just a bad market and some profit taking?

thank you

Q: Supposing the BOC drops the overnight rate on Wednesday by 25 basis points. ZPR would go South. CBO and VSC go North. XBB goes North. Am I correct?

Thanks

Q: Isn't the main concern on this that although the payout is well covered right now, many of the Alberta properties are perhaps empty but rent revenue still coming in under contracts and as they expire or if perhaps these businesses go under, the coverage ratio and other financial metrics will significantly deteriorate. How big a risk would this be for them? Is it quantifiable from the numbers they release? To ascertain if a distribution cut could occur sometime in the future...

Q: At the moment, the TSX is down 1.06%, supposedly on cheaper oil fears. However, your Balanced portfolio is down almost 2.5%, despite having only one oil related stock - which is up, ironically. Why would this be the case?