2016

On Monday the S&P 500 was down 0.8% and Toronto was down 0.3%. There were no particularly notable moves in our stock picks.
Boston Pizza is at $18.67. I bought some of my BP units at about $21 and some over $19. But I also bought in the $16s when...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was down 0.9% and Toronto was down 1.4%. Accordingly, most of our stocks were down. Melcor was down 6% which is probably explained by its extremely low trading liquidity. It's certainly not a stock for short-term trading.
S...

In Glasgow now and fly out tomorrow morning. In two weeks in the U.K. I saw about a half hour of light rain while driving and other than that a half day of overcast and the rest was basically bright and sunny and temperatures of mid twenties. Apparen...

Posting from Inverness Scotland today...
Apologies for lack of posts due to technology issues. Meanwhile the market seems to be going along well with no major developments that I am aware of. Oil is at $51.29 which is of course good news for a number...

It seems the markets managed to do okay today despite me not looking in until after the close.
Canadian western bank up 2.4%.
Melcor up 2.0% to $15 adding to recent gains. But trading is so thin that I won't get too excited about it.
My travels now h...

Saturday is yet another warm sunny day here on the Isle of Man (our last day here). Liverpool then Western Scotland.
Our stock picks were mostly down yesterday after a weak U.S. jobs report. Stantec down 2.8%, Wells Fargo down 1.8%, Bank of America d...

Markets on Thursday were up modestly as were most of our stocks with no big moves either way. Oil is a bit over $49.
Canadian Western Bank's earnings report must have been about as expected as the stock did not move on the news.
National Bank is out ...

It's another sunny day on the Isle of Man though a bit windy.
On Tuesday our stocks were mostly up.
Canadian Western Bank will report shortly, perhaps today. The headline number will be well down because they had a large special gain last year this t...

Greetings now from the Isle of Man where a famous motorcycle race event is taking place. The weather is remarkably good here, sunny highs around 20.
Nothing too exciting happening in the markets that I know of. |Stocks set to open somewhat lower toda...

Greetings from Morecambe, England. A tourist area on the western sea. Not far from Scotland. Quite an older area which makes it more interesting.
On Friday, markets and our stocks were mostly up modestly. Oil is hanging in at over $49 as of early Mon...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 and Toronto each ended the day about flat.
See my previous post for two updated reports. As noted in an earlier post, I am traveling in the U.K. starting Sunday and may not be able to post much especially next week.
 ...

Toll Brothers is updated and rated (lower) Strong Buy at $29.46. (It's currently at $29.00 as I post this). Earnings per share were up sharply in it's Q2 earnings report released this week. I had expected that based on houses it contracted to build l...

I will be traveling in the U.K. for two weeks starting Sunday and so my posts will be less frequent. Particularly next week I may have limited ability to connect to the internet.
This morning the markets are relatively flat overall.
Costco is up abou...

Wednesday was a positive day in the markets with the S&P 500 and Toronto each up 0.7%.
Wells Fargo was up 2.6% after holding an investor day. The presentations are available here. When I looked briefly through the CFO's presentation I was struck ...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 rose 1.4% and Toronto rose 0.2%.
Toll Brothers ended the day up 8.7%. Other gainers included Element Financial up 3.3%. Visa up 2.8%. Alimentation Couche-Tard was up 2.7%. And American Express was up 2.0%.
I spoke to the P...

Our report for Alimentation Couche-Tard is updated and rated Buy at $56.37. This has been an absolutely tremendous Canadian success story. It's been one of Canada's very best managed companies since it came on the stock market in 1986. Today, it is n...

U.S. markets are about unchanged this morning while Toronto is closed for the holiday.
I sold my Walmart shares this morning and used the money to add to my Toll Brothers position. Walmart seemed about fairly valued while Toll Brothers appears to be ...

Our report for Walmart is updated and now rated (lower) Buy at $69.86. The shares seem about fairly valued but I would lean somewhat towards selling. I own 100 shares in an RRSP account and plan to sell and perhaps use the funds to add to my Toll Bro...

Stocks are mostly higher this morning with the S&P 500 up 0.7% and Toronto up 0.6%.
Statistics Canada reported today that consumer prices are  up an average of 1.7% in the past year but the core rate was 2.2% excluding gasoline and food. That put...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.1%.
Walmart ended the day up 9.6%. This was based on an earnings report that was not very strong but which exceeded expectations or fears.
Couche-Tard was up 2.5%.
Toll Brothers announ...

Walmart is up 8% this morning while the markets overall are somewhat down. The market may have been a bit quick in writing off Walmart.
Statistics Canada reported weaker wholesale trade figures this morning.
...

The S&P 500 was flat on Wednesday and Toronto was down 0.7%.
Wells Fargo ended the day up 2.2% and Bank of America was up 4.8%.
At Melcor Developments, Andrew Melton bought 1000 shares today at $13.45. The particular account was listed as an indi...

Oil is at $49.26. The S&P 500 is up 0.2% and Toronto is unchanged.
Bank of America is up 3.6% to $14.50. Wells Fargo is up 1.8%. to $48.55 This may be linked to a higher possibility of a June rate increase by the FED, which would be a positive fo...

Tuesday's action saw the S&P 500 fall 0.9% while Toronto rose 0.2%.
Some companies in Canada have been active raising new equity money int he past two days. TD Direct was selling e new equity issues in Algonquian Power and Utilites today. And yes...

The S&P 500 is down 0.5% while Toronto is up 0.3%.
Statistics Canada reported Manufacturing sales for March:
Manufacturing sales decreased 0.9% to $50.0 billion in March, a second consecutive monthly decline. The decline in March mainly reflected...

On Monday, the S&P 500 and Toronto were each up 1.0%.
Melcor was up 3.0%.
Oil is at $48.22
...

This morning, the S&P 500 is up 0.6% and Toronto is up 0.9%.
Oil is up 3.3% to $47.73. This should be good for all the Alberta-based companies on our list.
The Canadian Real Estate Association reports that home prices for existing homes continue ...

Melcor is updated and continues to be rated Strong Buy at $13.25.
On Friday, the S&P 500 was down 0.9% and Toronto was down 0.3%. Onex was down 4.8%. Canadian Tire was down 2.9% giving back a portion of recent gains.
...

The Toronto market is flat at this hour while the S&P 500 is down 0.3%.
Oil is down 1.3% but is still just over $46 which is not so bad.
Natural Gas prices in Alberta have plunged to ridiculously low levels due to the shut-down of the huge gas co...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 and the Toronto stock index were both about unchanged.
Canadian Tire was up 4.5% on its earnings release.
Stantec was down 3.4% also on an earnings release.
Melcor did not react much to the earnings release and was down 1...

Markets are down modestly on Thursday.
Canadian Tire is up 2.7% to about $143 after releasing earnings. This company/stock was below $110 most of January (after declining from highs over $135 last Summer) and it was briefly below $105 in January. The...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was down 1.0% and Toronto was up 0.1%.
Melcor reported Q1 earnings after the close. (Note that our report is as of Q4) Things were mostly about as expected. The Income property income is still growing modestly. Occupancy...

On Wednesday, U.S. markets are down modestly while Toronto is up 0.2%.
Oil is up 2.5% to $45.78. This is positive for Canadian Western Bank and Melcor and AutoCanada.
It is, of course, hard to say how the Fort McMurray situation will affect various c...

Markets are higher on Tuesday with Toronto up 1.5% and the S&P 500 up 1.0%.
Liquor Stores N.A. is up 6.1% after reporting Q1 results. They seem to be making progress but I am still not a fan given that they lost money in the quarter (albeit Q1 is...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was up 0.1% and Toronto was down 1.0%.
Melcor was down 2.2% to $13.40. They will release earnings on Thursday. It continues to trade at just less than half of book value. Given the quality of its assets and its modest debt ...

Toronto is up 0.8% while the S&P 500 is down 0.2%.
AutoCanada is up 12.5% after reporting earnings. This is despite a 60% cut to the dividend. It appears that "the market" is okay with the dividend cut and so am I. The high dividend on this compa...

The main market indexes were about unchanged on Thursday.
Element Financial was up 5.6% but I did not se what news might have caused that.
It will be interesting to see which insurance companies are hit by the Fort McMurray losses. I would think Inta...

Markets are moderately higher this morning.
Oil is up 3.5% apparently related to production cuts associated with the Alberta fires.
Costco is down 3.4% on a somewhat weak April same-store sales report. Sales were flat in U.S. dollars but up a respect...

http://www.investorsfriend.com/bostonpizzaroyalties/Stocks ended the day on Wednesday with the S&P 500 and Toronto each down 0.6%.
Canadian Western Bank was down another 3.0% to $24.81. The Canadian Western Bank preferred shares Series 5 were dow...

Stocks are mostly down this morning.
One exception is TransForce up 1.4% to $24.00 continuing a recent recovery from a low of just under $19.00.
AutoCanada is down 0.5% to $19.53 despite a new report indicating that April auto sales in Canada were at...

Tuesday's session ended with the S&P 500 down 0.9% and Toronto down 1.1%.
Oil is at $43.57 U.S. and the Canadian dollar fell to 78.6 cents U.S.
Canadian Western Bank was down 6.8% for the reasons mentioned this morning.
AutoCanda was down 5.1% to...

Stock markets are down today. The S&P 500 is down 1.1% and Toronto is down 1.5%.
There are probably a variety of reasons. But the fact is that markets are always volatile.
Canadian Western Bank is down 8% after it pre-announced that loan loss pro...

On Monday, the S&P 500 rose 0.8% while Toronto was down 0.6%
Oil is hanging in at about $45 U.S. dollars and the Canadian dollar is at 80.0 U.S. cents.
Amazon rose 3.7% to $684. This is in addition to gains last week. I had rated it a Sell on Dec...

Warren Buffett appeared in a very lengthy interview on CNBC this morning. His insights are always worth listening to.
http://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/02/warren-buffett-on-coke-bezos-wal-mart-and-more-cnbcs-full-coverage.html
 
 
...

You can listen to Warren Buffett (and Charlie Munger) answer questions for about five hours at the following link:
https://finance.yahoo.com/brklivestream
There are always valuable nuggets of great wisdom in the responses. This is the first year that...

This morning, the S&P 500 is down 0.8% while Toronto is up 0.5%. Oil is at $46.39.
I bought a small amount of Constellation Software today.
Bombardier is down 4.4% to $1.95 as the market perhaps realises that the C Series plane sales required ver...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 0.9% while Toronto was about unchanged.
Most of our stocks were down.
Constellation Software was down 5.1% to $487. This is an extremely well managed company and the price decline provides an opportunity to buy.
...

The big news this morning is that Bombardier announced a firm sale of 75 C- Series planes to delta airlines. Plus options for 50 more. This is certainly good news for the employees. For investors the news may not be as good as it seems. The planes we...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.2% and Toronto was up 0.6%.
Oil is at $45.24.
AutoCanada was up 2.8%.
The former Valeant CEO faced the hotseat in Washington today. It is remarkable that this industry which was unregulated as to price in the Un...

The Toronto stock exchange index is up 0.3% this morning while the S&P 500 id down 0.4%.
Oil is up 2.1% to U.S. $44.95. That's $56.90 in Canadian dollars which is not such a low oil price. This is positive for many Alberta-based companies includi...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.2% and Toronto was up 0.1%.
Bombardier was up 10.6% to $1.99. After the close, Bombardier announced that it would release its Q1 earnings the day before its annual meeting rather than the day of. I saw speculation...

Markets are moderatly higher this morning.
Bombardier is up another 7.8% to $1.94. Looking at this I wondered if I should sell some of my position. It's a relatively small position for me. I don't recall if my last purchases were above this price or ...

On Monday, the S&P 500 fell 0.2% and Toronto fell 0.6%.
Most of our stocks were down moderately and there were no particularly notable moves.
The Canadian dollar is at almost 79 U.S. cents and oil is at (U.S.) $43.14.
...

Markets are down this morning. This is despite oil holding in at $43.43.
With Couche-Tard down 1.6% to $53.70 I have added 100 shares to my position. The shares are still relatively expensive but it is a company that seems worthy of accumulating on d...

On Thursday night, I sent out an email with a link to the free newsletter. If, by chance, you did not receive it, you can join  the list by clicking the link to the free newsletter from the menu at the top of each page on this site.
On Friday, the ma...

Statistics Canada has released retail sales figures for February. Within Canada, retail sales were up 0.4% versus the prior year. The increase would have been higher if not for lower gasoline sales. In volume terms sales were up 1.5%, indicating that...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 0.5% and Toronto was down 0.2%.
Oil was down to $43.18. Actually, that is higher than yesterday but is considered to be down because we have moved to the next months contract. Yesterday's price on the May contrac...

Markets are flat overall this morning. Canadian Western Bank is basically steady (down four cents) which is impressive after gaining about 12% in the past two days. Toll Brothers is up 2.5% and AutoCanada is up 2.1%.
Statistics Canada reports that in...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.1% and Toronto was up 0.3%.
It was a better day than that for some of our Stock Picks.
Canadian Western Bank was up 5.0% to $28.90. This stock bottomed at $19.26 earlier this year. AutoCanada was up 4.7%. Canadi...

Stock indexes are up modestly this morning.
Canadian Western Bank is up a somewhat immodest 5.1% on top of yesterday's gain of 6.6%. I suspect some popular analyst or other has "upgraded" the stock.
Bombardier is up 4.8% also on top pf yesterday's ga...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.3% and Toronto was up 1.1%.
Canadian Western Bank was up 6.6%. I am not aware of any news from the company but some analysts may have concluded it was under valued.
Bombardier, which is a volatile "penny stock" wa...

Statistics Canada reported a survey of large retailers today. A very mixed picture . Liquor up 10%, footwear up 15% on the year (probably due to the lower dollar), Toys games and hobby supplies down 17%. The implication is that some retailers will do...

On Monday, the S&P 500 and Toronto were each up 0.6%.
Brookfield Office Properties came out with a 6.0% rate reset preferred share that will renew at a minimum 6.0% in five years unless the company buys it back at its face value of $25. Unless Br...

Markets are moderately higher today despite the oil price decline.
TD Direct alerted me to a new issue of rate reset preferred shares at 5.75% with a minimum 5.75% distribution at the reset. It sold out quickly. This was a very attractive return as l...

On Sunday, oil fell 7.4% to $38.42 as OPEC talks of a production freeze went nowhere. Reportedly, Saudi Arabia wanted Iran to freeze at January levels. That seems like a nonsense request. Iran quite clearly planned to ramp up production after its san...

Markets are modestly weaker this morning. Oil is down 3.5% to $40.
Bombardier is up 13% on rumors that a deal to sell 75 C Series jets to Delta is close. It's welcome news although the jets will apparently be sold at half of list price and at a loss....

Markets were about unchanged on Thursday.
Bombardier was up 7% on rumors of a sale of C Series jets to Delta but Delta indicated that nothing would be announced one way or the other until next month.
Wells Fargo earnings results were relatively stron...

Statistics Canada reports that new vehicle sales in Alberta in February were down 9% in units and 4% in dollars compared to February of the prior year. For the country as a whole new vehicles sales were up 9% in units. The Alberta figures are not bad...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 rose by 1.0% and Toronto by 0.7%.
Bank of America was up by 3.9% and Toll Brothers by 3.3%.
Some weak companies also rose. Bombardier was up 5.94% and Liquor Stores N.A. was up by 4.8%.
I have been watching impatiently f...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 1.0% and Toronto was up 1.2%.
Oil finished at just over $42 and the Canadian dollar is at 78.4 U.S. cents.
Canadian Western Bank was up 3.0% and AutoCanada was up 3.7%.
I received my proxy documents today from Bomba...

Markets are strong this morning with the S&P 500 and Toronto each up 0.8%.
Oil is holding at just above $42 although it was down somewhat earlier today.
Toll Brothers is up 3.6%
The reason for higher U.S. markets today probably includes that J.P....

Markets are strong on Tuesday morning with the S&P 500 up 0.7% and Toronto up 1.0%.
Oil is at $41.12 and the Canadian dollar is at 78.15 U.S. cents.
Melcor, unchanged today at $14.50 appears to continue to offer excellent value.
Boston Pizza has ...

On Monday the S&P 500 was down 0.3% while Toronto was up 0.2%.
The stocks on our list were quiet although Liquor Stores N.A. was up 3.9% to $8.44.
Oil is just over $40 and the Canadian dollar has climbed back to 77.5 cents U.S.
...

Markets are higher on Monday morning. The TSX is up 0.8% with oil up to $40.3.
Toll Brothers is up 1.7% to $29.23 after some positive comments from Barrons.
AutoCanada is up 3.1%.
Britain is introducing a law to crack down on companies that facilitat...

The Toronto market was strong on Friday rising 1.0% as oil rose. The S&P 500 was up 0.3%
Canadian Western Bank rose 4.2%.
Along with oil, the big market mover this week might be the several large banks which report Q1 earnings this week.
...

Markets are strong this morning with oil up 6.3 to $39.60.
Canadian Western Bank is up 4.4%.
Statistics Canada came out with a very positive jobs report for March.
This is welcome news. But we should be a bit cautious given that these figures are bas...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 fell 1.2% and Toronto was down 0.6%.
Costco was down 3.0%. I have updated the report for Costco and rated it (lower) Sell at $152.03 (lower) Sell means somewhere between a Sell and a Hold.  The story with Costco has not c...

Markets are down this morning. However Statistics Canada reports that building permits were up significantly in February versus March in Canada. Also commercial rents continue to rise. These factors indicate continued strength in the Canadian economy...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 1.0% and Toronto rose 0.3%.
Element Financial was up 3.3%, Amazon was up 2.7% and AutoCanada was up 2.6%. Toll Brothers was up 1.7%.
Costco reported same-stores sales that, after adjusting for currency and gasoline price...

Statistics Canada has provided an annual review of Canada's 2015 imports and exports.
Canada had a $23 billion dollar trade deficit in 2015 whereas it had a $4.8 billion surplus in 2014.
The deficit can be attributed to currency fluctuations which ma...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 fell 1.0% and Toronto was down 0.2%.
Wells Fargo was down 2.0%, Bank of America was down 2.4% and Couche-Tard was down 2.0%.
Before anyone gets too upset about that; here's another thing that happened today: The companies ...

Statistics Canada reported today that Canada's exports were down in February versus January and that the trade deficit has widened.
Some of the notable figures are:
Energy product exports were down 14% in February versus January. This included price ...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was down 0.3% and Toronto was down 0.8%.
Melcor was up 5.2%. However, this was based on the usual very tiny volume for this company and so may not mean anything.
...

Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion
The use of tax havens is in the news after a leak of documents.
I don't have much sympathy for anyone practicing tax evasion or even very aggressive forms of tax avoidance.
When companies report that they have subsidiari...

Our Dollarama report is updated and rated Weak Buy at $92.13. The story here has not changed. Fantastic company but the stock price is expensive at 31 times earnings. The success of Dollarama in generating earnings growth is very remarkable.
...

Markets are moderately weak today.
Oil is down 3.8% to $36.88. Despite the difficulties that causes for many, (including to some companies that I own shares in) it is beneficial overall for the citizens of Canada and the world. (At least, if any resu...

Time marches on and Q1 is now over.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.1%.
AutoCanada was up 5.3%. Dollarama was up 2.8%, a partial give back of recent gains.
Cara is buying St. Hubert...
TD Direct was out with two more...

Statistics Canada reported today that GDP rose a huge (assuming it's not an annualized figure) 0.6% in January and rose 1.5% year over year.
http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/160331/dq160331a-eng.htm?cmp=mstatcan
Some of the figures may be rat...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.4% and Toronto was up 0.6%.
The Canadian dollar is at 77 U.S. cents. Earlier this year it touched 68 cents and a LOT of people seemed to think it was heading to 60 cents. "Run and get your investments into U.S. ...

Markets are strong this morning with the S&P 500 up 0.6% and Toronto up 1.0%.
Dollarama is up 6.3% based on its strong earnings report.
Stantec is about unchanged at $31.98 which is impressive given that it just successfully closed an issue of su...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 rose 0.9% and Toronto rose 0.3%.
Notable gainers included Toll Brothers up 3.2%,  Melcor up 2.7% (although on thin volume as usual). Constellation Software up 2.8% and Dollarama up 2.3%.
TransForce announced that it manage...

The Toronto stock market is down about 0.6% today as Oil is down to $38.
Melcor Developments is out with an announcement of a new Normal Course Issuer Bid whereby it apparently intends to repurchase some shares given that it "believes that its common...

Markets were tame on Monday with the S&P 500 about unchanged and Toronto up 0.2%.
Reports today indicate that Warren Buffett has continued to add to Berkshire's massive position in Wells Fargo. At year end he reported an even 500 million shares. ...

Market are slightly weak today...
I have added today to my Stantec position. I also started a new position in Royal Bank of Canada which we had rated a Strong Buy.
I am expecting Bombardier to post very soon its circular for its April 28 annual meeti...

Our report on Stantec is updated with a rating of Buy at CAN $31.33 or U.S. $31.33. Stantec's earnings declined moderately in 2015 but declined about 30% in Q4. This was due to the down-turn in oil and gas activities and mining activities. And Stante...

Our report for AutoCanada is updated and the stock is rated Speculative Buy at $17.42. It could have been rated higher but I wanted to be conservative given that the earnings could decline in 2016 due to the recession in Alberta where 45% of its deal...

Markets are down modestly this morning...
Statistics Canada reports that the number of people on EI (Employment Insurance) did not change much in January versus December. In Alberta the change was just 2%. However, on a year-over-year basis the numbe...

On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.6% and Toronto was down 0.8%.
AutoCanada was down 3.6% to $16.52. I will update that report within the next couple of days and I believe it is attractive at this price.
I have updated my article on Understandin...

This morning Amaya Gaming is down 22% to $14.50 on news that's its CEO is charged with insider trading in relation to the stock. I mentioned in my comment of February 1, 2016 that this was not a company or a CEO that I would be prepared to put a lot ...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 ended the day down 0.1% while Toronto was down 0.5%.
Rate reset preferred shares have risen as the government of Canada five year bond yield has risen moderately in the past month.
TransForce closed down 1.6% to $21.99. It...

Markets are down moderately on the Brussels, Belgium attacks.
It would be understandable if people react be canceling trips to the Netherlands and perhaps to other places as well. But that would seem to allow the terrorists to win.
It so happens that...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was up 0.1% and Toronto was up 0.5%.
Yahoo Finance reports Oil (West Texas, May contract) at $41.63.
Bombardier was up 6.2% and the Bombardier pref. share that we follow was up 5.8%. Presumably on hopes for a Federal govern...

In this morning's news Valeant's CEO will soon step down and the company has admitted that it has serious problems and has accused a current Board member who was a prior CFO of improper conduct. That Board member has refused a request to step down. T...

On Friday, the S&P 500 rose 0.4% while Toronto fell 0.9%.
Decliners included Couche-Tard down 3.5%, Stantec down 3.2% and AutoCanada down 6.0% on its earnings report. I bought some AutoCanada for a an account owned by relatives of mine.
On Friday...

Our report on Melcor is updated and rated Strong Buy at $13.82. The stock price has fallen substantially over the course of the developing recession in Alberta since the Spring of 2014. According to the financial statements each share represents equi...

Markets are up modestly in the U.S. but down modestly in Toronto. Oil is at $42.
AutoCanada is down 5.2% on its earnings to $18.14. I'd be tempted to buy at that price.
Statistics Canada reported today that core consumer prices rose 1.9% in the past ...

Markets were strong on Thursdays as the S&P 500 rose 0.7% and Toronto rose 1.1%. Oil (West Texas) is at $41.58 and the Canadian dollar will buy 77 U.S. cents.
Notable gainers today included: Fedex up 11.8%, Stantec up 4.4%, Bombardier up 7.8% and...

Markets are strong this morning and oil has surged 2.4% to $41.
Melcor's stock is up 1.7% to $14.00. But that is on its usual tiny volume and is really almost no reaction to the earnings report given that it should be up with the oil prices.
Fedex is...

Statistics Canada reports strong manufacturing sales in January:
Manufacturing sales rose 2.3% in January to $53.1 billion, the highest level on record. Higher sales of motor vehicles, food, and motor vehicle parts were largely responsible for the ga...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.6% - propelled by Valeant's 51% face-plant.
Those who emailed me about making sure they are on the list for the free newsletter have been added. (There were more of you than I expected ...

Markets are down moderately this morning and oil is down 1.9% to $36.47.
Valeant is down an ugly 34%. Sometimes the mighty do fall hard. The unfortunate fact is that Valeant has a lot of debt and that means the equity could conceivably go to zero. I ...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was down 0.1% and Toronto was down 0.3%.
There were no big moves in any of the stocks on our list.
My next update will likely be for Stantec. I suspect it will be rated Buy or (higher) Buy. It's an exceptionally well-manage...

Stocks are mostly down modestly to start the week.
Statistics Canada has reported new auto sales for January.
For Canada, new auto sales were up a hefty 9.2% versus January last year. (I don't know if weather played a role in either year).
Ontario wa...

Our Canadian Western Bank rate reset preferred report is updated and rated (higher) Buy at $16.61. These shares yield an attractive 6.6%. But at the reset date in three years time if the five year government of Canada yield remains at about 0.70% the...

I just sent a note to the free newsletter list that the S&P 500 index is over-valued. You should have received this email as most of you would be on the list for the free newsletter. But it is a separate list. If you did not receive that email, l...

Our Berkshire Hathaway report is updated and rated Buy at $141. I would judge this to be a good stock to buy and to accumulate on dips.
...

Stocks were up pretty much across the Board on Friday. The S&P 500 was up 1.6% and Toronto was up 1.1%.
Some of the notable gainers included:
Liquor Stores N.A. was up 5.7% as some investors apparently agree that cutting the dividend could signal...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was about unchanged and Toronto was down 0.1%.
Liquor Stores N.A. fell 6.9% due to its poor Q4 earnings report.
This morning Canadian Western Bank announced an  issue of $100 million of 6.25% rate reset preferred shares. ...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 rose 0.5% and Toronto rose 0.6%.
Canadian Tire rose an impressive 2.9%.
Liquor Stores N.A. released Q4 earnings this evening. Overall the results were awful although there was a marginal increase in same-store sales. And...

Just when we were all getting used to the market going up pretty much everyday for the past few weeks, the markets delivered a negative day on Tuesday. The S&P 500 was down 1.1% and Toronto was down 0.5%.
Notable decliners included AutoCanada dow...

Laurentian Bank is out with a offering of five year rate reset shares this morning. Available through TD Direct and probably most of the other big bank brokerages. The yield is 5.65% and then resets to the five year Canada yield plus 5.13% in five ye...

Monday was a strong day on the markets, particularly in Toronto which was up 1.3%  as oil rose about 5% to $37.90. The S&P 500 was up 0.1%.
Canadian Western Bank was up 3.8%, AutoCanada was up 5.2% and TransForce was up 5.4%.
AutoCanada has not y...

Canadian stocks are mostly higher this morning. Oil is up 3.3% to $37.09 and the Canadian dollar is at 75.0 U.S. cents.
...

The report for Canadian Western Bank is updated and it remains rated Strong Buy. Their Q1 earnings were about flat compared to the prior year which is good performance given the recession in Alberta. While impaired loans have increased 40% in the pas...

Royal Bank of Canada has been added to our list and rated Strong Buy. It appears attractive based on a 10.7 P/E ratio, 17% ROE and 4.5% yield. Earnings per share could suffer in 2016 due to energy loan losses, the recession in Alberta and due to the ...

Subscribers, please forgive me using this space for a personal advertisement. My son is looking for a summer job position and perhaps one or more of you happen to be looking to hire a geology student this summer, preferably in the Edmonton area.
Loga...

U.S. markets are slightly up this morning after a positive jobs report in which the unemployment rate remained at 4.9%. Markets would likely be higher except the worry now is that the FED will have more leeway to raise interest rates.
Meanwhile, Stat...

Thursday was a positive day in the markets with the S&P 500 up 0.3% and Toronto up 0.8%.
Oil is at $34.68 and the Canadian dollar is at 74.5 cents U.S.
Canadian Western Bank ended the day up 2.9%.
AutoCanada was up 8.2%. I don't know if that is j...

The Canadian Western Bank Q1 earnings report was released this morning. The results were relatively good (earnings flat) considering the fears of large loan losses. The stock is up about 4.6%. I suspect that the difficulty (why the stock is not highe...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 rose 0.4% while Toronto was up 0.3%.
AutoCanda was up 5.6% but that of course is after months of declines... I eagerly await their Q4 earnings report to see where things stand.
Canadian Western Bank was up 4.7% and relea...

Statistics Canada reports this morning that capital spending in the oil and gas extraction industries in Canada was down $10.3 billion to $11.9 billion in Q4 or down 46.4% from the prior year.
That is clearly a HUGE decline. To put this in perspectiv...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 surged 2.4%. "Strangely", I don't think you will hear very many investors at all complain about this type of "volatility". It's only downward volatility that tends to draw complaints. Toronto was up 0.9%.
Some of the more ...

Markets rose this morning due to positive economic reports. Note that, unlike analysts in the media, I will NEVER say that markets are rising since that implies they will keep doing so and my view has always been that markets can change direction any...

Warren Buffett was the guest for a full three hours on CNBC's Squawk Box this morning. This was from 5 am to 8 am at Buffett's Omaha location. I am not sure how many 85 year olds would or could go on live T.V for three hours starting at 5 am twice a ...

On Monday, the S&P 500 ended the day down 0.8% while Toronto gained 0.5% as oil rose to $33.75.
Constellation Software was up 1.9% to $565. We last rated this a Speculative (lower) Buy on December 15 at $580. Basically, a great company but it loo...

Markets are off to a slightly positive start for the week.
Statistics Canada reports that restaurant/bar sales rose in December in all provinces including Alberta.
 
...

Buffett's annual letter was posted today.
He once again expressed confidence in the future, noting that today's crop of new babies is the luckiest in history and will live better than their parents, on average.
He explained that increasing productive...

Our Toll Brothers report is updated and the stock is rated (lower) Strong Buy. I was disappointed that the earnings were down modestly in its latest report and that the number of homes delivered was down 3%. However, this is basically a timing issue....

Life expectancy was addressed today in a new Statistics Canada report. Life expectancy is, of course, a major factor in retirement planning and in the solvency calculations of pensions.  One fact that is sometimes forgotten or not understood is that ...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 rose 1.1% to 1952. This puts it 8.5% below its all time high. That is really not that much below the peak considering the inherent volatility and nature of stock markets. Toronto was up 0.1% to 12,754 and is about 18.5% b...

Stantec is down 3.8% after releasing Q4 earnings that were down 33% mostly due to lower oil and gas and mining activities. Stantec is an exceptionally well managed company and will continue to grow. I would be comfortable adding to my position.
Stant...

On Wednesday, markets closed relatively unchanged after a very weak start to the day. The S&P 500 was up 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.2%.
After the close, Enbridge announced an equity raise of $2 billion dollars at $40.70 per share. For context, Y...

Markets are down this morning partly due to Royal Bank's earnings not being as good as hoped with concerns about loan losses in the energy sector and also oil down again. Negative days in the market are nothing unusual of course.
I grabbed a few more...

Tuesday's action had the S&P 500 down 1.3% and Toronto was down 0.6%.
Most stocks were down but Bombardier was up 4.8% and Toll Brothers was up 3.8% on its earnings release. I thought Toll should be up more than that. Perhaps it will rise again t...

Markets are down this morning with weaker oil prices.
Toll Brothers came out with earnings. The stock at first dropped but now is up 4%. The profit was lower than expected and I will try to understand why the much higher contracted home sales of a ye...

Monday was a strong day in the markets with the S&P 500 up 1.4% and Toronto up 0.2%. Oil is at $32.93 having lost some of day's gain in evening trading.
The reason Toronto was not higher was that Valiant Pharmaceuticals was down 11% to $104. It i...

Markets are up this morning due to oil being up 5.4% which was in turn due to some new projections about shale supply and drilling rigs.
The finance Minister announced lower growth projections and a higher deficit projections. I am not sure that was ...

I have now listened to Canadian Tire's conference call. My reason for selling the shares was that I have been expecting for the last year that they would get hurt by the lower dollar as they import a lot of their products. The company constantly said...

Friday, the S&P 500 was unchanged while Toronto was down 0.9%.
Canadian Tire was up 3.3% to almost $130. I have not yet had a chance to got through its Q4 results.
Canadian Western Bank was down 2.8% presumably due to lower oil prices and worries...

Markets are down this morning. But Canadian Tire is up another 1.9% to $128.
Statistics Canada reports that annual inflation is running at 2.0% as of January and is also at 2.0% on a core basis (strips out volatile food, which is up and gasoline whic...

In Thursday's action, the S&P 500 was down 0.5% and Toronto was up 0.5%.
Canadian Tire was up 7.8% on its earnings.
The Bombardier Preferred shares series C shares that I own and follow were up 10.1% to $10.90 to yield 14.3%. That yield signifies...

Canadian Tire's Q4 earnings were strong and the stock is up about 7%. And this on a day when markets are about flat. I sold too early. (They say you can't go broke taking a profit. But that's poor advice and you sure can leave a lot of money on the t...

Wednesday was another interesting day in the markets.
The S&P 500 was up 1.6% and Toronto was up 2.5%. Oil was up sharply and now sits at $31.45.
Some notable gainers on our list included:
Bombardier was up 21% and the Bombardier pref. shares wer...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 1.6% and Toronto was up 1.4%.
Most of the stocks on our list were up.
Bombardier, which is priced as if near death bounced up 11% on rumors that there would some improvement to its governance. It will report earning...

Markets are up modestly this morning but are down from earlier highs. It had been hoped that OPEC meetings would result in some collusion (err agreement) to lower production but instead the agreement was only to freeze production and Iran was not par...

I have been thinking about adding Royal Bank to our list because so many Canadian investors own it and because I don't have  any of the large Canadian banks on the list.
However, just to read its 215 page annual report is no small task. And it's prob...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up 1.9% and Toronto was up 2.4%.
Oil was up 11% on hopes that OPEC would soon resume the collusion and production curtailment process that in the past kept oil prices artificially high.
This week there are earnings repo...

TransForce Inc. is updated and rated (higher) Buy. Earnings from continuing operations will likely decline modestly in 2016 due to weakness in some of its segments and due to the sale of its waste management division. However, the company is very wel...

Statistics Canada reports that new car sales in December for Canada were down 2%. In Alberta they were down 22%.
TransForce is up 4.6% to $21.50 due to its earnings and its plan to buy back 10% of its shares in an auction process at a price somewhere...

Agrium is updated and rated Speculative buy at Canadian $114 and U.S. $81.25. It's a tough company to predict since its product prices tend to be quite volatile as are some of its input costs. On top of that the volumes that it sells are dependent on...

Statistic's Canada reports that new home prices were about unchanged in December. These prices tend to be stubborn and take a long time to react to a slower economy. Even in Calgary new home prices are down only 1% year over year. That may not accoun...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was about unchanged and Toronto was down 0.8%.
Boston Pizza reported basically blow-out results especially given low expectations and rose 3.3%. See related posts just below.
Oil is down 2% on Wednesday evening to under ...

The Boston Pizza report is updated and rated (higher) Strong Buy at $16.90.
Normally I would not expect Boston Pizza to provide much in the way of a capital gain. It's the yield that is attractive. But given that a more reasonable price (or value) is...

Gasoline in Edmonton this morning is selling at 59.9 cents per liter. Deduct 5% GSP and that is 57.0 cents per liter. Deduct 10 cents Federal excise tax and 13 cents provincial gasoline tax and that is 34 cents per liter before tax. THAT is cheap.
Th...

The Boston Pizza Royalty units Q4 report out this morning far exceeded my expectations. Same-store sales royalty-eligible sales were up 1.8% despite the slower economy in Alberta. Distributable cash per unit was up a remarkable 13.3% due to a transac...

Tuesday's markets had the S&P 500 down 0.1% while Toronto was down 2.0% as oil slid about 5%.
It's human nature to focus on the recent declines in stock market prices. It's impossible not to see the gloomy news about declines.
However, what reall...

Statistics Canada reports that:
"Canada produced 19.2 million cubic metres of crude oil and equivalent products in November, up 3.6% from the same month a year earlier."
The solution to lower oil prices is lower world oil production. Canada's oil pro...

Monday was a negative day in the markets with the S&P 500 down 1.4% and Toronto down 1.8%.
Among the bigger decliners were Element Financial down 6.2%, Couche-Tard down 6.0%, Bank of America down 5.3%, Visa down 5.3% and Dollarama down 3.8%.
I am...

The report for Canadian National Railway is updated and the stock remains rated Buy.
...

Oil is below $30. And with few signs of supply reductions oil could certainly remain low.
Financial stocks are down this morning with Bank of America down% to $12.26 and Element financial down 4%.
It's tempting to add to positions but also, of course...

On Friday, the S&P 500 fell 1.9% while Toronto was down 0.1%.
Bombardier fell 8% while its preferred shares fell 9%.
I have updated the composition of my own portfolio to show what I own at this time.
This week I am looking forward to several Q4 ...

The U.S. added only an estimated 151,000. This was weaker than the expected 190,000. But the official unemployment rate fell to 4.9% which while not a record low is in fact quite low. Overall, the American economy is still growing although slowly.
In...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was up 0.1% and Toronto was up 1.4%.
Costco was down 2.3% after reporting same-store sales up 1% in the U.S. in January.
Its same store sales in Canada were down 6% but were up 11% after adjusting for currency and gasolin...

Markets are strong this morning with oil up another 3% to $33.26.
Q4 earnings reports continue to come in. The bigger news this week may be the unemployment numbers due out Friday morning.
...

With a late in the day rally, the S&P 500 finished Wednesday up 0.5% and Toronto finished up 1.2% as oil rose 9.6% and the Canadian dollar rose  1.32 U.S. cents or 1.9%.
Regarding the RioCan preferred A share that will be deemed at $25 on March 3...

In the news this morning:
Rona Inc. is up about 100% after agreeing to a takeover deal from Lowes. this deal raises a few interesting points:
The stock jumped in a step fashion from the close yesterday at $11.77 to the opening price today at about $2...

Tuesday was a weak day in the markets with the S&P 500 down 1.9% and Toronto down 1.8%. And oil was down to $29.55.
Notable decliners includes AutoCanada down 10.3% to $17.18, possibly due to reports showing that vehicle sales in the U.S. have sl...

Last night it became clear that Bernie Sanders has a very legitimate chance of being the Democratic Nominee. And whoever gets the democratic nomination will likely be the favorite in the run for the Presidency against the fractured republican party. ...

On Monday the S&P 500 was about unchanged and Toronto was down 1.2%. And oil was down about 6%.
TransForce rose 6.2% after completing the sale of its waste management division.
The Boston Pizza Royalties Income Fund rose 3.1%.
I don't follow Amay...

The TSX is down 1.6% on lower as oil is down about 4.0%. The S&P 500 is down 0.4% as manufacturing is down due to the higher dollar and weakness in export markets.
...

 
On Friday, the S&P 500 was up 2.5% and Toronto was up 1.8%.
Visa Inc. was up 7.4% on better-than-expected revenues and earnings.
On Friday, Statistics Canada reported November GDP figures indicating a 0.3% gain in Canadian GDP from the pri...

Thursday was a positive day for stocks. The S&P 500 was up 0.5% and Toronto was up 1.7%. Oil was up 4.4% to $33.72.
CN rail was up 3.4% on strong earnings driven by lower fuel costs and cost control. Canadian Western Bank was up 3.8%.
Bombardier ...

Statistics Canada reports food and restaurant sales in Alberta down 0.2%. So just a tiny decline despite the economy. I continue to see Boston Pizza as strong investment with a good yield around 8% and the distribution unlikely to be cut or if cut du...

 
 
 
 
 
A down day on the markets.
I would add to Toll brothers at recent prices.
Bombardier slipped under $1.00, a shameful display of incompetence.
I am in Phoenix this week and due to a new but crappy computer its a hard...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 1.4% and Toronto was up 1.5%.
 
...

Markets are up today. Probably due to some combination of news including earnings reports, higher oil and China "injecting liquidity into its banks".
OPEC apparently wants a world-wide agreement for oil producers to cut supply. I believe nationally c...

Monday was a down day in the markets with the S&P 500 down 1.6% and Toronto down 2.0%.
Accordingly, almost all the stocks on our list were down.
A couple of stocks of note:
Toll Brothers is down to $26.95. That makes it more attractive than at an...

TD Direct Investing has a new issue out, a 5.75% rate reset preferred share from Empire Life Insurance Company.
The other large bank discounts brokers are also likely offering this. These deals tend to sell out fairly quickly. If you want in on them ...

American Express is updated and rated Speculative Buy. This company is down 37% since it was first added to this site rated Buy two years ago. Its earnings per share have grown slightly since then but the P/E multiple came down significantly due to a...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up 2.0% and Toronto was up 2.9% as oil had a very strong rise of 9.7%. Most of the stocks on our list were up 2, 3 or 4%.
America express however was down 12.1% after reporting earnings which included a lower near-term ...

Statistics Canada has reported the December inflation numbers.
The Canadian CPI was up 1.6% from the prior year held down by lower gasoline prices.
Core inflation which strips out the volatile food and energy sectors was up 1.9%. (For years core infl...

Thursday was a welcome positive day in the markets.
The S&P 500 was up 0.5% and Toronto was up 1.6%
Bombardier bucked the trend and was down 9% on news that United Airlines had chosen Boeing for a large plane order that Bombardier was hoping to s...

Statistics Canada reports tthat residential construction in Canada was up 2.2% in November compared to the prior year. But single family construction was down 9.6%.
In Alberta, residential construction was down 15.7% but there was no break-down betwe...

Wednesday was another memorable day in the Stock markets.
The S&P 500 closed down 1.2% and Toronto was down 1.3%. And the lows of the day were far lower than that. Oil was down as well.
My strategy has always been to continue to buy what appear t...

The report for Bank of America is updated with a rating of Speculative Strong Buy at $13.69.
Bank of America reported Q4 earnings per share which were 9% higher than the year ago quarter but which earnings remain affected by various items related to ...

On Wednesday morning the Bank of Canada left interest rates unchanged. I believe this was good news. But it was over-shadowed by a significant drop in stock markets tied to world events and outlooks.
In regards to the overall stock market declines, I...

Tuesday ended with the S&P 500 about unchanged and Toronto up 0.5% - despite a drop in oil prices.
Most stocks on our list were up today.
Rate reset preferred shares did well. A Husky preferred share that I own a tiny amount of was up 5.25% (albe...

The biggest or virtually only reason for the Canadian 69 cent dollar is said to be lower oil prices.
But other factors affect it to.
Every Canadian person, company or government that wants to spend money in U.S. dollars such as for imports, vacations...

On Monday, the U.S. stock markets were closed while Toronto fell 1.1%.
Some of the big questions facing investors are how low will oil go?, how long will it stay down?, to what price might it recover? and how will low oil prices affect other aspects ...

New vehicle sales for November were reported today by Statistics Canada.
For Canada overall, the number of new cars and trucks sold was up 4.45% versus the same month  year ago and in dollar terms were up 6.95%. For Alberta unit sales were down 15.9%...