December 31, 2013 Comments
On Monday I bought some Boston Pizza Royalties Income Fund units based on my update of Friday. I also decided […]
On Monday I bought some Boston Pizza Royalties Income Fund units based on my update of Friday. I also decided […]
On Monday, markets were relatively flat. Constellation Software rose 4.4%. The Canadian dollar rose about a half. This reversed a
Visa Inc. is updated and rated Weak Buy / Hold at $219.67. Visa is a very unusual company. It is
On Friday the S&P 500 was basically unchanged while the Toronto Stock index gained 0.5%. I believe the Canadian dollar
On Boxing day the U.S. markets were open (’cause Boxing Day does not exist in the U.S.). The S&P 500
On Christmas Eve we had the S&P 500 up another 0.3% and Toronto up 0.5%. It would be great if
Having only trimmed 6% of my Toll Brothers this morning at $35.50, I entered an order to trim another similar
Checking the markets this morning, I see the DOW is up 63 points. The thought occurs to me, has this
Bank of America is updated and rated Speculative (higher) Buy at $15.69. It looks attractive on a price to book
Dollarama is updated and rated Weak Buy / Hold at $87.78. It’s a great company. They have built a fantastic
On Thursday the markets basically held on to the big gains from Wednesday. The S&P 500 was down just 0.1%.
A P.S. to the post below, I was reading that US. mortgage applications are WAY down. I understand that is
The outcome of the FED meeting was surprisingly positive. The FED announced hat it would moderately taper its bond buying
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.3% and Toronto was about unchanged. Constellation Software was up another 5.2% to
It seems like 2013 has been one of the most interesting years in the market in a while (well, then
Costco is updated and rated Weak Sell / Hold at $117.91. As a customer I really like Costco. And as
Canadian Western Bank is updated and rated (lower) Buy at $37.77. This is probably still a good long-term investment. But
On Friday the S&P 500 was unchanged and Toronto was up 0.1%. Toll Brothers is updated and rates Speculative Buy
On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.1%. I will definitely have some updates to
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.3% and Toronto was up 0.1% Toll brothers initially rose on its earnings
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 1.1% and Toronto was down 1.4%. Apparently this was due to some disappointing
On Monday the S&P 500 was up 0.3% to a new high closing price of 1808. Toronto was up 0.2%
On Friday the S&P 500 was up 1.1% and Toronto was up 0.6%. Most of our stock picks were up
On Thursday the S&P 500 fell 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.8%. Most of our stock picks were down today.
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.1% as was Toronto. For Canadian investors who own U.S. shares the modest
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.3% and Toronto was down 0.7%. I never know where markets are headed
On Monday the S&P 500 fell 0.3% while Toronto was up 0.2%. Some of the bigger moves included CN rail
One more month to go in 2013. I would certainly be happy if we could hold onto the excellent gains
Stocks are up again this Friday morning. Canada’s GDP grew at 2.7% annualized in the third quarter. GDP numbers are
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was up 0.25% and Toronto was up 0.1%. Most of our stocks picks were up
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was flat while Toronto was down 0.9%. On the other hand Alimentation Couche-Tard surged 3.0%
On Monday, the S&P 500 and Toronto both ended the day down very marginally – basically flat. Constellation Software fell
On Friday the S&P 500 closed up 0.5% (and closing above 1800 for the first time ever) and the Toronto
Well, Thursday was yet another very strong day in the markets. The S&P 500 was up 0.8%, The Dow was
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.1%. Markets were initially positive on positive economic
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.1%. Among our stock picks there was not
On Monday, the DOW pushed over 16,000 for the first time and the S&P 500 pushed over 1800 for the
On Friday the S&P 500 rose 0.2% to another record high. Toronto was up 0.3%. The next update here will
On Thursday the S&P 500 index rose 0.5% to yet another record high close of 1791. Toronto rose 0.4% to
Today the S&P 500 was up 0.8% and Toronto was up 0.3% Canadian Tire poked its head just above $100
On Tuesday the S&P 500 and Toronto were each down 0.2% I don’t believe markets are predictable in the short
Stock markets were open on Monday despite Remembrance day. S&P 500 was up fractionally, up 0.1% and Toronto was down
Canadian National Railway Company is updated and rated Weak Buy / Hold at $116.90. This is a great company that
Melcor is updated and rated (lower) Strong Buy at $19.71. Basically it looks like a bargain but there is risk
Friday was another strong day on the markets with the S&P 500 up 1.3% and Toronto up 0.6%. Toll Brothers
There was additional news on Toll Brothers later last night and this morning. They are making a large acquisition of
This morning the good news was that U.S. GDP was strong. But the market decided that was maybe bad news
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was up 0.4% and Toronto was up 0.1% The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up
Markets started out quite negative on Tuesday but in the end the S&P 500 was down only 0.3% and Toronto
Stocks were up a bit more today… S&P 500 up 0.4% and Toronto up 0.2%. Blackberry / Research in motion
Stantec is updated rated Weak Buy at CAN $65.69 and U.S. $62.81. Stantec’s share price has risen a remarkable 65%
On Friday the S&P 500 was up 0.3% and Toronto was down 0.2%. Stantec was up another 5.7% and is
Thursday saw the S&P 500 down 0.4% and Toronto down 0.7%. Not a scary day for our stock picks though,
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.5% and Toronto was up 0.1%. Apparently the FED is less optimistic about
Another good day for the markets on Tuesday with the S&P up 0.6% and Toronto up 0.5%. It seems that
On Monday I did not note much of interest in the market. S&P 500 up 0.1%, Toronto down 0.2%. Stantec
On Friday I sold what amounted to 6% of my Toll Brothers shares at $33.56. These particular shares had been
Another day and the markets were up again. This all seems a bit too easy… I am thinking about what
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.5% and Toronto was about unchanged. There were a couple of big gainers
Markets were up nicely today. S&P 500 up 0.6%, Toronto up 0.5%. The reason the markets were up was because
The week has started out not too badly on the markets. The S&P was flat awhile Toronto was up 0.4%.
The U.S. markets finished the week at all time highs. Nothing surprising there, stock markets don’t reach new all time
Onwards and upwards (at least for today) The S&P 500 gained 0.7% on Thursday and Toronto was up 0.6%. Most
Well it appears that the gong show in the U.S. senate and house is about to be resolved positively. On
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.7% but Toronto gained 0.3%. The big question is what will happen the
On Monday the U.S. markets were open while the TSX was closed. The U.S. market opened in negative territory but
Wells Fargo is updated and rated Strong Buy. It just reported another excellent quarter of earnings. Revenues did decline in
In a remarkably strong day on the markets, on Thursday the S&P 500 rose 2.2% and Toronto rose 1.3%. Apparently
Stocks rose slightly on Wednesday with the S&P 500 up 0.1% and Toronto up 0.3%. Our stock picks seemed to
Another down day as the S&P 500 fell 1.2% and Toronto was down 0.8%. Wells Fargo got down close to
The S&P 500 fell 0.9% on Monday but Toronto was up 0.2%/. Wells Fargo closed down 1.7% to $40.62. I
This week we should expect more nervousness due to the U.S. government shutdown and the pending debt ceiling limit. As
The market and our Stock Picks have weather the first four days of the government shutdown quite well. On Friday
And so the market was sweating a bit more today… S&P 500 down 0.9%, Toronto down 0.8% Most of our
It seems the market started to sweat a bit today about the shutdown and the pending debt ceiling issue. The
Well, it was another interesting day on the markets. How much more interesting does it get than a U.S. government
Given the antics and theatrics to the budget legislation and “government shutdown” in the U.S. the DOW was set to
So far the budget show-down and government shutdown theatrics have been something of a non-event for North American stock markets.
The Dow is down about 100 points or 0.6% this Friday morning. Apparently this is due to concerns about the
On Friday the S&P 500 fell 0.4% and Toronto was about unchanged. U.S. markets have fallen moderately due to concerns
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.3% and Toronto was down 0.1%. Most of our stock picks were down.
Tuesday was another decent day for our stock picks. The S&P 500 was down 0.3% and Toronto was up 0.3%
Monday was another interesting day in the markets. It seems like it’s been a few years since we have had
My personal portfolio composition is updated. My four largest positions, Wells Fargo, Canadian Tire, Melcor and Toll Brothers make up
Not to say that markets are predictable at all, but the fact that the market today gave back some of
Well THAT was unexpected. Fed says slowdown in its bond buying just yet and so the markets rose. DOW and
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was up 0.4% and Toronto was up 0.1%. Markets don’t move up in straight lines
Monday was a strong day for the markets with the S&P 500 up 0.6% and Toronto up 0.7%. Most of
As of Sunday night, markets futures were up on news that Larry Summers is out of the running for the
On Friday the S&P 500 was up 0.3% and Toronto was up 0.2% Walmart is updated and rated Buy at
On Thursday the S&P 500 was down 0.3%. Toronto was down (again) this time down 1.0%. Almost all of our
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was up 0.3% and is just a shade under its record high of early August.
And Tuesday was another good day for the U.S. market with the S&P 500 up 0.7%. Toronto managed to be
Monday was a good day in the markets with the S&P 500 up 1% and Toronto up 0.3%. Most of
On Friday the S&P 500 was unchanged and Toronto was down 0.2%. I entered some orders today to move some
On Thursday the S&P 500 was up 0.1% while Toronto was up 0.7% Our stock picks have done well the
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was up 0.4% and Toronto was up 0.7%. Canadian Tire was up 2.2% and Stantec
Melcor is updated and rated (lower) Strong Buy at $19.36. Toll Brothers is updated and rated Speculative Buy at $30.61.
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was up 0.3% and Toronto was up 0.1%. A notable gainer was Constellation software up
Canadian Western Bank was up 4.7% as fears of insurance losses due to Alberta floods were mostly unfounded. I hope
With the markets down yesterday, I decided today to enter of a few trades. I bought some Toll Brothers. I
I have read the Q2 report for Melcor. It continues to do well. I am confident it will continue to
On Tuesday the S&P 500 fell 1.6% and Toronto fell 1.3%. This was apparently due to fears of U.S. involvement
On Friday the S&P 500 was up 0.4% and Toronto was up 0.7%. Toll Brothers fell 3.9% as a report
On Thursday the S&P 500 was up 0.9% and Toronto was up 0.8%. This week Target’s earnings report indicated that
On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.6% and Toronto was down 0.8% Market declines are not all bad news
Liquor Stores N.A. Subordinated debentures are added to the list above rated (lower) Buy at $104. Yielding 4.6% to maturity
On Tuesday, the S&P 500 rose 0.4% and Toronto rose 0.6%. Canadian Tire rose 2.6%, more than recovering yesterday’s decline.
Liquor Stores N.A. Ltd. is updated and rated (lower) Buy at $15.98. While the yield is quite attractive, keep in
On Friday the S&P 500 was down 0.3% and Toronto was up 0.3%. Our stock picks were mostly up. I
On Thursday the S&P 500 was down 1.4% while Toronto was up 0.5%. Several companies including Walmart reported weak results
Melcor released earnings this morning. At a quick look I think the earnings are good and the outlook positive. The
The S&P 500 fell 0.5% on Wednesday and Toronto was about unchanged. Couche-Tard was down 2.9% to $58.48 and is
On Monday the S&P 500 was down 0.1% while Toronto was up 0.4%. We had Toll Brothers up 1.8%. Melcor
On Friday the S&P 500 was down 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.1%. Our stock picks on average were down
Canadian Tire earnings are out and look pretty decent. Announced intention to do something strategic with the credit card operation
Excitement about Canadian Tire abating , open now projected at $85.28. Well these things usually take a bit of time
Canadian Tire opened for trading at $86 but then quickly rose to a high of $90.49 and closed the day
The S&P 500 fell 0.6% today and Toronto fell 1.1%. Notably we had Toll Brothers down 2.5% to $32.20. I
Today the S&P 500 was down 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.5%. Almost all of our stock picks were down
Stantec is updated and rated Buy at $50.46. The stock has risen 13% since we rated it a (higher) Buy
Visa Inc. is updated and rated Weak Buy at $184. (essentially a hold) This is a fantastic company. However its
The first day of August was a strong day in the markets. The S&P 500 was up 1.2% to a
Today the S&P 500 was about unchanged while Toronto was down 0.8%. Our Stock picks had a better day than
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was about unchanged while Toronto was down 0.7% Potash corporation fell 16% on news that
The most recent of the free newsletter was sent out… http://www.investorsfriend.com/nl-july-28-2013 On Monday the S&P 500 was down 0.4% and
S&P 500 up 0.3%, Toronto flat on the day. Toll Brothers was down another 1.1% to $31.95 and the low
S&P 500 down 0.4%, Toronto was down 0.6%. We had Toll Brothers down 6.2% to $32.31. This is a more
Today the S&P 500 was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.1%. Toll Brothers was up 2.1%. Canadian Tire was
S&P 500 was up 0.2% to yet another record close. Toronto was up 0.6%. I may sell some or all
Bank of America is updated and remains rated Speculative (higher) Buy at $14.75. As I read the Q22 report, it
Wells Fargo is updated and remains rated (lower) strong Buy now at $44.45. It seems to be a very well
Another good day in the market with the S&P 500 and Toronto each up 0.5%. We had Stantec up 2.8%,
S&P 500 was up 0.3%. Toronto up 0.4% as Fed chair Bernanke sooths the markets. Our stocks picks had a
The S&P 500 was down 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.1%. None of our Stock Picks moved much and most
The S&P 500 was about flat today but Toronto was up 0.5% as it was boosted by the Loblaws /
Alimentation Couche-Tard is updated and rated (lower) Buy at $61.88. This company has rather quietly grown int a giant. It
On Friday, markets were relatively flat. Among our stocks picks most of them fell somewhat on Friday. Our two U.S.
Ben Bernanke the FED chair indicated that accommodative monetary policies (probably meaning low short-term interest rates) will remain in place
Markets were about flat in the U.S. and Canada today. We had Canadian Tire up 1.2% and Stantec up 2.7%.
In my July 6 update just below I mentioned that I was thinking of buying some of the oils sands
On Monday the S&P was up 0.5%. Off hand I am not quite sure what Toronto did because Yahoo Finance
The train derailment in Quebec is obviously very tragic. It seems clear that dozens were killed. (I find it strange
RioCan is updated and rated Buy at $25.49. It seems like a reasonable investment choice. The biggest risk factor is
The jobs report came in at 195,000 which is better than expected. Dow futures up 166 points, interest rates up
U.S markets were closed today. Toronto was up 0.2%. No large movements among our stock picks but it was nice
Today the S&P 500 was up 0.1% while Toronto was down 0.3%. Canadian Tire was down 1.1% to $80.62. At
This week belatedly starts off with the S&P 500 flat on the day and Toronto up 0.4%. Canadian Tire was
The next update will likely be for RioCan. If you search back in these comments I have not been a
On Friday the S&P 500 was down 0.4% while Toronto was up 1.0%. Interesting moves included Shaw Communications up 5.4%
S&P 500 was up 0.6% today and Toronto was up 0.4%. Almost all of our Stock Picks were up. Notably,
S&P 500 was up 1.0% today and Toronto fell 0.5%. Most of our Stock Picks were up today. That includes
The S&P 500 was up 0.9% and Toronto was up 1.4%. Among the stocks I follow there were impressive gains
It was a negative day on the markets with the S&P 500 down 1.2% and Toronto down 1.3%. For whatever
I have updated the article on long-term historical asset class performance for the first half of 2013. Given the weak
The composition of my own portfolio is updated. On Friday the S&P 500 was up 0.3% and the Toronto index
The S&P 500 fell 2.5% today and Toronto fell 2.4%. I did a bit of buying in the morning, which
So, apparently the FED has signaled that the “quantitative easing” consisting of the Feds buying $85 billion per month worth
It was another strong day on the markets with the S&P 500 up 0.8% and Toronto up 0.6%. Most of
It was a strong start to the week with the S&P 500 and Toronto both up 0.8%. Notably, we had
Markets rose substantially on Thursday but then fell and gave back about half of that on Friday. Still the S&P
The S&P 500 was down 0.8% today and Toronto was down 0.9%. Almost all of our stocks picks were down
Canadian National Railway is updated and rated (lower) Buy at CAN $100.44 or U.S.$ 98.54. It’s an excellent company with
I’ve completed and update for Canadian National railway and will upload the report tomorrow evening. The rating will be (lower)
On Friday the S&P 500 rose 1.3% and Toronto fell 0.3%. Given the rise on Friday I considered if I
It was not a bad day in the markets. The S&P 500 was up 0.8% while Toronto was down 0.3%.
Okay, so stocks were down two days in a row. S&P 500 down 1.4%, Toronto down 1.2%. With the U.S.
Our report on global exchanged traded funds has been updated. Most of our stocks were down today. The S&P 500
With Toll brothers down today I decided to buy back 500 shares. As mentioned under May 29, earlier this month
At the end of the day the S&P 500 was up 0.6% and Toronto was down 0.3%. We had Toll
On Friday the TSX fell 0.8% and the S&P 500 fell 1.4%. In the U.S. the declines came in the
A subscriber just emailed and asked me if I would trim Berkshire. On May 11 below I mentioned I would
A note to our American subscribers: Are you able to easily buy stocks on the Toronto stock exchange? Canadians can
I sold what amounts to 54%of my Bank of America shares this morning. It probably still has strong potential for
Markets were relatively flat today. However, several of our Stock picks did very well. Wells Fargo was up 1.2% to
A moderately negative day on the markets with the S&P 500 down 0.7%. But Toronto was down only 0.1%. Toll
It seems crazy just how good the U.S. market and out stock picks have done this year, especially after doing
U.S. markets were closed today for Memorial day. Toronto rose 0.2%. It’s interesting that Valeant Pharmaceuticals has risen so much
FirstService Preferred is removed from the list because the company has redeemed them. Investors in the preferred shares received cash
Stantec is updated and rated (higher) Buy at $44.50. I have now been watching this company grow steadily for fourteen
Today the U.S. markets showed some resistance to negative manufacturing data from China and worries about a slowdown in the
Today started out with markets up substantially as Ben Bernanke signaled he would keep on stimulating the economy. But markets
Markets did well today with Toronto up 1.0% and the Dow up 0.3% Toll Brothers will report earnings before the
We’ve just pretty much ended the annual season for voting our shares. I used to vote my shares years ago.
Canadian Western Bank preferred shares are updated and rated Sell at $26.38. I believe the bank will redeem these next
My analysis of the valuation of the Dow Jones Industial Average is updated. It suggests that the DOW is about
Melcor is updated and rated (higher) Buy at $18.62. I may add to my position in this company. Constellation Software
It was yet another day where the American markets did much better than Toronto. The Dow was up 0.4%, the
Today was surprisingly strong on the markets. The Dow was up 0.8%, the S&P 500 was up 1.0% and Toronto
The S&P 500 ended the day about unchanged while the Dow was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.5% Canadian
Canadian Tire is updated and rated (higher) Buy at $83.78. It is obviously not the buy it was at my
Friday was another good day on the markets with Canadian Tire up another 1.7% and Melcor up 1.9% and Bombardier
As most will have heard, Canadian Tire came out with decent earnings today but more importantly announced plans to spin
Another decent day in the markets. Thursday should be interesting as a some of our companies will report earnings. I
Okay, so I know that technically we are not supposed to get excited about day to day moves in the
Our stocks picks did better than the market today. Bank of America was up 5.2% after it settled a dispute
Weather is always interesting… Here in Edmonton Spring refused to arrive in April and winter hung on strongly. We got
Markets were strong on Friday. Our Stock picks have done well year to date, up 11.1% on average. My own
Markets recovered the ground lost yesterday. Our Stock Picks had a particularly good day with Toll Brothers up 3.1%. Almost
Markets were down today. They can’t rise everyday. The Melcor Real Estate Investment Trust started trading today. It was issued
Well, today seemed to be another case of another day, another few dollars gained. S&P 500 at a record high.
It seems that the Market works in mysterious ways. We see lots of stories warning about slow growth and slowing
Toll Brothers rose 2.4% on Friday which was nice to see after my recent comments about it and purchases of
Today was another decent day in the markets. There were no big gainers among our stocks but a little bit
Toronto had a good day, up 1.5%, while the DOW was down 0.3%. It seemed a decent day for our
It was certainly a pleasant surprise to see Toll Brothers up over 9% today to $34.13. Yesterday morning it had
On Friday, Melcor‘s new Melcor Real Estate Investment Trust posted its final prospectus. The REIT will yield 6.75%. It appears
Bombardier Inc. is updated and rated Speculative (lower) Buy at CAN $3.89. This is an interesting company that certainly makes
Our stocks had a good day on Friday. Overall our average Buy or higher rated stocks is up 7.4% this
Most of our stocks were down today but Canadian Tire was up 0.8%. The company has reached a new 10
Today’s market decline seems more sensible than yesterday’s gain… It is perhaps an encouraging sign that Toll Brothers managed a
Well, I don’t think too many people were expecting this big rebound (or any rebound for that matter) today. It
It was a nasty day in the markets. The TSX was down 2.7%, the Dow was down 1.8% and the
Wells Fargo is updated and rated (lower) Strong Buy at $37.21. Although I have a large exposure to this, I
MicroSoft was down 4.4% today on news that PC sales have fallen. It has risen about that much in the
So far this year it has certainly been a good time to be in the U.S. market. Despite various worries
After scaring people last week, the markets have surprised with a strong start to this week. A new record for
Monday ended up being a decent day in the markets for our stock picks. Most notably Toll Brothers was up
FirstService is updated and rated Weak Sell at U.S. $33.50 or CAN $ 34.01. I like it as a company
Ouch, markets took a drubbing today. Dow down 0.8%, S&P 500 down 1.1% and Toronto down a painful 2.1%. Our
It was another day of the U.S. stock market doing better than the Cnadian market. A notable winner was Wells
As mentioned yesterday I wanted to raise some cash today. sitting at home after my trip I took the opportunity
I spent some of my travel time carefully re-reading a book called Buffett the Making of an American Capitalist. Buffett’s
AÂ moderately weak day in the markets. Most of our stocks were down. Melcor, Boston Pizza and Walmart were among
Day 6 in Manhattan: NBC studios tour, SOHO, Chinatown and a show (The Book of Mormon). One disappointment the green
The stock markets were closed today, but Manhattan was certainly open. Day 4 in Manhattan: Short bus tour of downtown…
S&P 500 reached an all time closing high today. And will reach many more in the years to come. Canadian
Markets were a little negative today. My American Banks and Berkshire were down. No big losses overall though. Day Two
A strong day for the markets. Right now I am just holding and enjoying gains. As far as my trip
I leave tonight for a family vacation in New York City. I hope to visit the New York stock Exchange
My article on the valuation of the S&P 500 is updated and now suggests that as a point estimate the
Friday was another strong day on the markets with the DOW up 0.6%. Most of our stock picks were up.
Melcor Developments reported today that it has filed a preliminary prospectus for the proposed partial spin-off of its rental properties
Toll Brothers was up an impressive 5.8% today. I added a bit to my Melcor position today based on an
Our stock picks did okay today. Canadian Tire was up 1.1%. I did not sell any of my Shaw at
As expected, markets were weak today due to the Cyprus bail-out situation. But overall the reaction was modest and not
As of late Sunday, it appears that the markets will open down 1% or so due to events in Cyprus
Toll Brothers is updated and is rated Speculative Buy at $34.13. As the report indicates, this luxury home builder is
Today, Thursday saw another good day in the markets. Most of our stock picks were up nicely although nothing spectacular.
The Dow and the S&P 500 were both about unchanged today but the Toronto Stock Exchange Index was down 134
Our banks stocks lost some ground today as did Toll Brothers and Canadian Tire. The noise to signal ratio from
Of note today was Wells Fargo up 1.7%. I like the prospects for this bank and also for Bank of
Melcor Developments is updated and rated (higher) Buy at $18.61. This is a very well-managed Edmonton-based company that has traded
Two of our Stock Picks were down noticeably today. Canadian Western Bank was down 4.8% and Constellation Software was down
Well, it was yet another strong day for our stock picks. But we should not get over confident. There will
So the Dow Jones Industrial Average reached a new all-time high today. Not a big deal, but it does seem
It was a decent day at least in the American markets with the DOW up 0.3%. Walmart was up 2.2%.
Berkshire Hathaway is updated and rated (lower) Buy at $102.05. For the reasons given in the report this rating may
Strong gainers today included Canadian National Railway up 3.0%, Couche-Tard up 2.7% and Melcor up 2.4% (but it is thinly
Markets were very strong on Wednesday with the DOW up 1.25% and Toronto up 0.6%. Berkshire Hathaway was up 2.5%.
Markets were generally strong today. Toll Brothers was up 3.3% on strong reports regarding U.S. housing prices and new home
A graph of today’s markets shows that they started out strong, but reversed to losses by mid-day and then fell
Canadian Tire is updated and rated (lower) Strong Buy at $68.65. There are risks with any investment and I would
Canadian Tire earnings came out prior to the opening of trade. The fourth quarter was okay, at best, not terrible,
I plan to update a couple of the reports this weekend based on earnings reports. I also plan to update
Markets fell today on fears that the FED would stop buying back bonds and interest rates would rise. Well, maybe
Well, a pleasant start to the markets this week. ‘course we’re supposed to be thinking longer term but still a
As many of you saw, I sent out an email today intended only for former (not current) customers. The email
Berkshire Hathaway A shares closed Friday at a record closing price of $150,141. This exceeds the previous high close of
In today’s news, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway is partnering with another outfit to buy Heinz. This is not a huge
Today we had a number of stocks falling in price. But that is nothing unusual. Boston Pizza was up 2.5%
Markets were higher today… In particular we had Toll Brothers up 4.4%. It looks expensive at this point but I
Stocks were generally down a bit today. The Q4 earnings for many Canadian companies should be rolling in shortly. I
Greetings and welcome to a new group of subscribers who joined this weekend after seeing an article in the Edmonton
I’m featured in the business section of the Edmonton Journal tomorrow. http://www.edmontonjournal.com/business/Lamphier+sides+coin+this+stock+picker/7940653/story.html Our stock picks have ended out the week
A notable winner among our Stock Picks today was Alimentation Couche-Tard, up 4.7% to $52.60. I did not see the
Most of the stocks that declined yesterday recovered today. There does not seem to be much sign of fear in
Markets were negative today. It’s certainly not something that worries me. I think any pull-backs right now might prove to
So, we got a surprise 150 point, 1.2% jump in the DOW today. Which goes to show that in investing
Markets were generally down on Thursday. This hardly seems surprising after all the recent gains. There was unfortunate news for
Markets were moderately down today. Notably (especially to me, since it is my largest position) Canadian Tire was down 1.8%.
Today was another decent day in the markets with modest gains in most of our stock picks. Dow up a
Our stock picks lost a modest amount of ground on Monday. Following up on yesterday’s comment I added somewhat to
Friday was another decent day in the markets. Toll Brothers was up 2.4% to $37.98. That’s a 23% increase since
Not surprisingly, Constellation Software recovered from the little dip it took yesterday, rising 3.7%. Canadian Tire did well, up 2.1%.
Constellation Software was down 3.3% today. This occurred in the last hour of trading and was on relatively small volume.
Today we had Bank of America up 1.9%, Melcor up 1.6% to $19.75. CN fell about 1% despite a dividend
U.S. markets were closed today for the Martin Luther King holiday. The Toronto stock exchange index rose 0.5%. With Canadian
On Friday we had an okay day in the markets with the Dow and Toronto each up about 50 points.
Toll Brothers was up 3.6% to $36.16. Bank of America was down 4.3% after a disappointing earnings report. Given the
Although the Dow was down we had Bank of America up 2.0%. We are now entering a period where many
Today ended up being another good day for our stock picks. Notably, Toll Brothers up 3.8%, Canadian Tire up 1.6%.
Shaw Communications announced after the close that it had sold its Mountain Cable franchise in Hamilton to Rogers for $400
My popular article on the valuation of the Dow Jones Industrial Average is updated. I see the Dow as about
It was another strong day for stocks… Melcor continues to bounce around. Yesterday I mentioned that having seen Tuesday’s closing
Today would have been a mildly negative day for our stock picks except for one stock. Several alert subscri9bers emailed
Melcor gave back 8.2% today closing at $18.70 But it is still up about 19% this brand new year. As
Markets gave back a little today after the recent gains. However Melcor was up about 2% on decent volume and
I have updated the table showing the percentage of my portfolio that is is invested in each stock I own
Friday was another positive day in the markets. I finished selling out everything in my margin account. 200 shares of
The TSX finished down 0.6% today. The Dow had been up but finished down 0.2% after the market began near
I don’t think too many people expected today’s big market rally. After all we already got a big rally on
Well, the 2012 year is now over. Our Stock Picks this year had an excellent performance. Click to see the