(This post was drafted October 14 but failed to upload at that time)
On Thursday, the S&P 500 was up a hefty 1.7% and Toronto was up 1.0%.
(It seems I neglected to make my daily comment yesterday, my apologies.)
CN Rail was up 1.8% today. Toll Brothers was up 3.0%. TFI International was up 2.7%. Linamar was up 2.9%.
TD Direct was out today with an offering of 5.0% convertible debentures from Ag Growth International These mature on June 30 2026 and are convertible at a share price of $45.14. To me, the 5.0% sounded not bad for a portion of my portfolio (assuming the company is in good shape financially). The fact that they are convertible means that they will trade which to me is an attractive feature. A non-convertible debenture or bond can be sold but usually at a big bid / ask spread which is in effect a large hidden commission. The share price of Ag Growth is currently $28.21. That may mean that gaining through the conversion aspect may be unlikely. But it also hopefully means that we are not paying much for the conversion option. And I note that the share price was over $50 a few years ago so perhaps we can indeed get back there. In buying these there is really no time to analyze the company. I took a leap of faith and put in for some of this offering. As I write this the offer is still open. I also noted that the offer is a “bought deal”. That means that the brokers have confidence that they can sell these shares to investors. If it were a weaker company they would have done a best efforts “marketed” deal as opposed to a bought deal.
If stocks keep rising I may look to trim some position to raise more cash. I’m at a stage where I like the idea of at least 30% in cash or fixed income just in case stocks turn down.