Investment Q&A

Q: Hi, Alterra has been creeping up into new territory. Have you heard any news here?

Thanks,
Robert

Q: Could you comment on recent reorganization of DRM AND D.UN

Q: CCT has been sliding over the past few sessions. When does this become a buying opportunity. Are there any new risks since the buyout announcement that are motivating the sellers. Thanks.

Q: This is rather a naive question from the trenches, I’m afraid, but nonetheless, I’m here to learn and hope you don’t mind.

In regard to stop loss orders, which I use on occasion, despite the very wise caveats I have garnered on this site, I am still at a “loss” on a certain aspect.

In the event that a certain stock plummets in after hours trading, at what point is one’s stop-loss triggered? Could I potentially lose far more than I think I will? Do stop losses provide only the illusion of safety?

For instance, if I put a stop loss on ABC company at $50, and in the after hours trading the stock drops down to $20, at what point does my stop loss get triggered? Does it get triggered in "after hours" or does it wait for the next day when my losses could be even greater? Does my stop-loss immediately become a market order once it reaches $50? And, if I haven’t put a limit on the loss, at what price will it sell? If the drop is immediate — and huge, — (i.e., if it drops from 50 to 20 without intervening bids), does my stock then get sold at $20?

I’m beginning to uncover a lot of “smoke and mirrors” in the trading-investing game, and it seems fraught with a lot of dangers that initially appear benign and helpful.

(That being said, if the stock drops from 50 to 20, I realize it wouldn’t matter anyway, but I’m using this for illustrative purposes only.)

Thanks for any help you can provide to demystify the stop-loss game. As ever, your answers are always appreciated.

Q: Hi guys, hope you had a happy Easter.

Just a quick question on Paramount and Cequence. I bought both of these stocks a while ago and I am down about 43% and 56% respectively. I have heard a lot of talk that the natural gas outlook does not seem promising in the near future. Should I cut my losses and find something else to buy? Any suggestions?

Thanks

Q: I have noted that many of the recommendations you make regarding equity ETF's consist of companies that have a record of consistently increasing their dividends. If one wants to buy the actual companies rather that an ETF, which companies that you currently favor, (i.e. showed up in your recent balanced portfolio or income portfolio) would you recommend I buy now?.

I realize this is an open-ended question, and you don't know how my portfolio is constructed but I'm curious about which of the companies you have chosen for your balanced portfolio most closely match the criteria of consistent dividend increases.

Could you direct me to any other sources that might give me more insight into which companies increase their dividends consistently.

Q: Unfortunately I'm forced to sell a stock for some cash needs. I've identified these two stocks and would like your opinion on which one I should let go. Evertz or DH Corp. Thank you for your help.

Q: Hello, need help with a bit of housekeeping. I like MCB’s cash position, global exposure and get paid to wait (5% yield). I will have to sell shares to purchase MCB. The energy/pipeline sector (WCP, CPG & ENF) make up 12% of my portfolio, with WCP making up 7% of my portfolio. I was considering trading ENF for MCB but, not sure after reading your answer to Darcy and Ken today.
Should I bring WCP down to 5% and purchase ½ position in MCB, sell ENF and replace with MCB or do nothing?
Thanks

Q: Is it financially strong enough to buy/own this stock. Because it is a Trust Unit, will it be able to continue to pay dividends and interest in the future. Also might there be growth in the dividends.
Your analysis and advice on this company will be greatly appreciated.

Q: I just became aware of CIPF (Canadian Investor Protection Fund). One Million coverage per brokerage account in case your broker has an issue like bankruptcy theft etc. Would you advise limiting the amount held at any one brokerage less than on million. And once you reach one million do you split the money into two accounts to keep it under. It seems this would make sense to take full advantage of this protection. Similar to limiting the amount invested in a GIC or HISA to $100,000 to take advantage of CDIC... Or am I just being paranoid?
Man

Q: For those of you who own EasyHome, you probably have been frustrated by the weakness of the stock, even after good earnings, a cheap valuation, plus an increased dividend. I wanted to share that today, Eric Nuttall selected it as a top pick. He said that the exposure to Western Canada is only about 7%. The stock moved up 4%.

Q: Hello,

OCT has been drifting downwards over the last few weeks. Any reason why this is happening? Is this still a buy?

Q: Hi, Peter and Team,
Which one of the 4 Canadian Mortgage companies (MIC MKP HCG TMC) for income you would prefer for RIF account?
Thank you and appreciated your services.
Regards

Q: Hey guys, I have way too many stocks in my portfolio and I am trying to consolidate. I have wba and pfe with +20 gains on both however they only account for 1% (each) of my portfolio. Which one should I sell to buy a larger position into the other one or sell both and purchase another u.s. health care company which you recommend. (Medium risk with dividends similar to pfe and wba)
Take care,
Jim

Q: What are your thoughts on the debentures that Constellation issued last year and the new debentures that will be issued this year?

Q: Hi there,

I am trying to reduce my exposure to interest rate sensitive REITS and find myself struggling where to reduce my weighting. My weighting has been inching up to close to 24% of my portfolio based on the good performance of a couple of my US holdings. I currently own REI.un, HR.un, AMT.un and BXP.un. I am currently leaning towards reducing REI given the continued good perfomance of both AMT and BXP. Your thoughts?

Q: To add to your reply to Herbert in today's column, I have held both BEP.UN and BIP.UN since June '13. Both pay good dividends but BIP is up 50.8% while BEP is up just 30.1%

Q: is the 10000 cash a 10% weighting

Q: Hello Peter
Is the shares purchase price the criteria used in order to determine the proper percentage allocation within the portfolio ? if the value of the shares decrease should you add in order to keep the the proper allocation ?
Thank You for the excellent service
Dan

Q: Do you prefer pza.un or aw.un. Thank you. Don.