Markets were strong on Thursday with the S&P 500 up 0.75% and Toronto up 1.1%.
CN Rail was up 2.6%.
Toll Brothers was up 3.9% and continues its impressive performance.
At about 7:30 pm Mountain time, Melcor announced that Melcor Developments will...

The report on America Express is updated and rated Weak Buy / Hold at $254.
This is a great company with a very high return on equity of 35%.
The stock is up 36% this year to date and it's up 79% since my previous update on October 22 last year. Its ...

On Wednesday markets started out quite weak but then roared back strongly. The S&P 500 ended the day up 1.1% and Toronto as up 0.9%.
U.S. inflation apparently came in a bit hot which had spooked the market in the morning.
Dollarama was up 8.2% af...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.45% while Toronto was down 0.1%.
After the close, AutoCanada announced that it has sold two dealerships in Alberta in order to pay down debt. It appears that these were two strong dealerships (at least in terms of...

Markets were higher on Monday, recovering some ground that was lost last week.
The S&P 500 was up 1.2% and Toronto was similar with a 1.1% gain,
The Melcor REIT was up 10.4% to $3.49. But it's trading volume is low and so this move may be meaning...

The report on the Boston Pizza units is updated and rated Buy at $16.78. The yield is attractive at 8.1%. There is always a risk that the distribution could be trimmed if more of the restaurants close  or if business declines during a recession. But ...

Markets were lower on Friday with the S&P 500 down 1.7% and Toronto down 0.9%.
Shopify was down 4.1%.
American Express was down 3.1%.
Canada's unemployment rate increased.
I'm becoming more cautious on the market. I'm tempted to reduce some posit...

Thursday was a moderately negative day in the markets with the S&P 500 down 0.3% and Toronto down 0.2%.
The 5 year government of Cañada bond yield is down to 3.85%. It's interesting that it went down about 15 basis points after the Bank of Canada...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was down 0.2% while Toronto was unchanged.
RioCan was strong with a 3.6% gain to $19.35. In late June it had dipped as low as $16.29 which seemed like a silly low. I mentioned it on June 17 at $16.54. 
Canadian Tire was ...

Markets were down on Tuesday as the S&P 500 fell 2.1% and Toronto fell 1.3%.
AutoCanada was one of the bigger decliners - down 6.5%.
Cameco was also down 6.5%.
Stocks on the rise included the Minto REIT up 2.1%, and Fortis up 1.8%.
This morning I...

Friday was yet another strong day in the markets with the S&P 500 up 1.0% and Toronto up 0.5%.
The first eight months of 2024 have included some unexpectedly large gains.
Canadian Western Bank up 67% due to the national bank takeover offer.
Dolla...

Happy 94th Birthday to Warren Buffett. He is still going strong. But as he says he knows he is playing in extra innings at this point.
On Thursday the S&P 500 ended the day unchanged while Toronto was up 0.4%.
Canadian GDP came out at 2.1% annual...

Markets were down on Wednesday with the S&P 500 and Toronto each down 0.6%.
Notable moves among the stocks on our list included: Lightspeed down 4.0%, Starbucks down 3.35%, and lululemon down 4.55%.
Canadian Western Bank was up 4.5% to $52.42 bec...

Apologies, as I was not able to make my usual little daily comment yesterday.
On Tuesday, the markets were relatively quiet with the S&P 500 up 0.1% and Toronto down 0.3%.
No big moves today in the stocks we cover. It's nice to see Canadian Weste...

Friday was another strong day in the markets with the S&P 500 and Toronto each up 1.1%.
Toll Brothers was up another 5.3% to $148.72. It's been a great investment this year. I've always said it was well managed but its gains in the face of higher...

Posting from Cape Breton Nova Scotia this Friday morning.
Markets gave back a bit of ground on Thursday with the S&P 500 down 0.9% and Toronto down 0.4%.
There were no noteworthy moves in the stocks on our list.
Workers have returned to the job a...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 and Toronto were each up 0.4%.
Toll Brothers was up 5.6% on its earnings news. This well-managed company has been a great investment in recent years.
Loblaws is piloting an ultra discount banner store chain in Ontario. F...

A few thoughts on my impressions of things on Florida and up the east coast based on my road trip.
Prices are relatively expensive. Fast food is generally about the same price as in Alberta except I'm paying in U.S. dollars.
I'd say the same about at...

Posting tonight from Milford Connecticut (Day two of a road trip from Tampa Florida to Cape Breton Nova Scotia)
On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.3%
AutoCanada was down 4.3%.
After the close, Toll Brothers reported anoth...

On Monday the S&P was up another 1.0% and Toronto was up 0.3%.
Toll Brothers was up 3.35%.
Couche-Tard is looking at acquiring 7-11 chain from its Japanese owner. This would be a big acquisition but I'm not sure how big and I did not see any deta...

On Friday markets edged a little higher still with the S&P 500 gaining 0.2% and Toronto up 0.1%.
A quiet day overall with no particularly noteworthy moves in the stocks on our list.
I notice CWB.PR.B last traded at $24.63. It's a bit crazy that i...

Greetings from Tampa Florida.
Thursday was yet another strong day in the markets as the S&P 500 rose 1.6% and Toronto was up 1.2%. A strong U.S retail sales report was part of the reason.
Some of the biggest gainers included Shopify - up 4.6% and...

On Wednesday the S&P 500 was up 0.4% and Toronto was up 0.6%.
AutoCanada plummeted 17.6% after releasing terrible earnings and announcing another cyber attack. It was no surprise that earnings were down due the a big cyber attack at their main IT...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 1.7% and Toronto was up 1.0%.
Starbucks soared 24.5% after announcing that it had canned it's relatively recent new CEO, Laxman Narasimhan and that it has hired the highly successful CEO of Chipotle, Brian Niccol as...

On Monday the S&P 500 was unchanged while Toronto was up 0.4%.
Starbucks was up 2.6% on news that it has apparently reached a settlement with an activist investor.
Linamar was down 4.0%. That may be due to the generally poor outlook for the auto ...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up 0.5% and Toronto was up 0.4%.
Linamar was down 1% despite reporting strong earnings growth and a positive outlook. Earlier in the day it was down about 3% and I added to my position.
RioCan was about unchanged despit...

The report on Linamar is updated and rated Buy at $62.64. I was very tempted to rate this a (higher) Buy based on its low P/E and low price to book and its recent growth and it outlook. But I want to be a bit cautious given that the auto parts indust...

The report on Canadian Tire is updated and rated Hold at $149. The company managed to report a strong earnings per share increase in Q2 despite a 5.6% drop in same-store sales at its Canadian tire stores. The company faces a weaker consumer environme...

Thursday was a strong day in the markets with the S&P 500 up 2.3% and Toronto up 1.6%.
Canadian Tire was up 7.7% after spotting earnings before the opening of trading. As feared their same-store sales were down noticeably  (4.6% overall and 5.4% ...

On Wednesday markets were higher earlier in the day but closed with the S&P 500 down 0.8% and Toronto down 0.45%.
Shopify was up 17.8% after reporting strong growth.
There will be a number of reports for the market to react to tomorrow.
Stantec r...

The report on Melcor Developments is updated and rated Buy at $12.23. This has not been a good investment going back to 2014 when oil prices fell and home-building slowed greatly in Alberta. Now, Alberta home building is much stronger but the share p...

On Tuesday the S&P partially recovered from yesterday's 3.0% loss as it rose 1.0%.
Toronto played catchup to yesterday's losses (when it was closed) and was down 1.1%.
The yield on the 5 year government of Canada bond rebounded somewhat from rece...

Lightspeed Commerce has been added to our list. It is a speculative stock given that it has been operating at about break-even. But it appears set to report profits going forward and its valuation seems potentially attractive.
I bought a small positi...

U.S. stock markets declined noticeably on Monday in response a 12% loss in the Japanese stock market index and losses in other markets. The decline was triggered by a surprise increase in interest rates by the bank of Japan and by news that Warren Bu...

Markets took a beating on Friday as the S&P 500 was down 1.8% and Toronto was down 2.2%.
This was triggered by a weak jobs report int eh U.S. as people start to fear that a recession is underway. This also pushed interest rates down on the bond m...

Management at Aecon has continued to disappoint me more and more. I've used the recent price increase as an opportunity to exist this company. It's rated Sell at $16.60 ( a price from yesterday). The previous rating was also sell.
In Q2 they reported...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 1.4% and Toronto was down 1.7%. Apparently this was due to concerns about the U.S. economy slowing.
Most stocks were down on the day.
TransAlta managed an 8.6% gain after reporting earnings.
The decline in the Ba...

Investors were in an optimistic mood on Wednesday and sent the S&P 500 up a hefty 1.6% and Toronto up 1.25%.
Most of the stocks on our list were up on the day.
With Facebook / Meta  reporting strong earnings after the close, tomorrow could be ano...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was down 0.5% and Toronto was up 0.2%.
Construction company Aecon Group was up 3.3%. This will be my next update. It has been very poorly managed in recent years. While it's possible that its troubles are behind it, that's...

On Monday there was not much movement in the markets overall. The S&P 500 was up 0.1% and Toronto was down 0.15%.
When buying or selling shares of smaller companies and also preferred shares be cautious if they are thinly traded. That can lead to...

West Fraser Timber is updated and rated Sell at U.S. $88 or Canadian $122.
Lumber and and OSB prices are currently relatively low and home renovation activity is low. So it appears that West Fraser's earnings will remain modest in the near term. It's...

Friday was a strong day in the markets as the S&P 500 was up 1.1% and Toronto was up 0.9%.
Toll Brothers was up 5.1%.
West Fraser Timber was up 3.7%. This company will be my next update and so far it looks like I will rate it a Sell.
 
...

Another day with lots of news...
On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 0.5% and Toronto was down 0.1%.
lululemon got hammered down 9.1% due to analyst downgrades. It's now down 52% from its high reached late last year. It is facing more competition a...

The report on Visa Inc. is updated and rated Buy at $256. It's an incredibly high quality company with a powerful market position. While it's not exactly cheap, the valuation based on the P/E ratio is noticeably lower than its historic average.  It w...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was down a hefty 2.3% while Toronto was down 0.8%.
Visa Inc. was down 4.0% after its earnings release.
CN Rail was down 3.25% after releasing earnings and lowering its full year outlook.
As expected, the Bank of Canada l...

On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.3%.
Again today almost all the preferred shares on our list moved a little higher.
CN rail reported Q2 results. Revenue and freight volumes were strong but earnings were disappointing an...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was up 1.1% and Toronto was up 0.8%.
Most of the stock on out list were up today. Toll Brothers and Dollarama were each up 2.0%.
Most of the preferred shares on our list moved a little higher again today.
As mentioned, I li...

The report on Fortis Inc. is updated and rated Buy. It's a steady investment for the long term.
...

On Friday, markets were down for the third day in a row. That's not any real cause for concern given all the gain this year.
On Friday, the S&P 500 was sown 0.7% and Toronto was down 0.2%.
The grocer on our list, Metro Inc. was up 2.6%.
Starbucks...

Markets gave back a little more ground on Thursday with the S&P 500 down o.8% and Toronto down 0.5%.
Toll Brothers bucked the trend with a 2.5% gain.
As mentioned today, the preferred shares on our list are all updated (with the exception of the ...

Rate reset preferred shares have done very well indeed in the past year.
A year ago many rate reset preferred shares were under $20. But they appeared set to offer capital gains as they reset at higher interest rates and because market interest rates...

Markets moved lower on Wednesday - which seems to be a rare thing lately.
The S&P 500 was down 1.4% and Toronto as down 0.6%.
Shopify was down 6.9%.
Toll Brothers was down 3.2%.
West Fraser Timber was up 3.8%.
 
...

On Tuesday, markets had yet another positive day. Most investors will be feeling fat and happy with all these gains.
The S&P 500 was up 0.1% and Toronto was up a hefty 1.1%.
Canadian Tire was up 2.4% to $141. It's going to be interesting to see h...

Did some giant "stop-the-presses" event take place over the weekend? You wouldn't know it from looking at equity markets on Monday where it was business as usual.
The S&P 500 and Toronto were each up an unremarkable 0.3%.
TFI International was st...

The report on the Canadian wine producer Andrew Peller is updated and rated Weak Buy / Hold at $4.03.
Producing wine in Canada is a very tough business. The grape growing end of the business is particularly tough since as Andrew Peller says "The cost...

On Friday the S&P 500 and Toronto were each up about 0.55%.
Most stocks on our list edged higher and there were no particularly notable moves.
US companies have begun reporting Q2 results and that will likely be a focus of the markets next week.
...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was down 0.9% but Toronto was up 0.9%.
U.S. inflation numbers came in tame this morning with a small decrease of 0.1% in prices from May to June. That was the first such month-over-month decrease since May 2020. Inflation ...

Stocks markets continue to be basically on fire.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up another 1.0% and vaulting past the 5600 level for the first time. Toronto did even better this day, rising 1.4%.
Most stocks were higher on the day.
Cameco jumped 9...

On Tuesday the S&P was up 0.1% while Toronto was down 0.4%.
Starbucks was down 2.4% to $72.75. It's 52 week is $108 and it hit over $120 in 2021. The forward P/E ratio is 18.7. It's still a powerhouse world scale brand and I expect it will recove...

The report on WSP Global is updated and rated Weak Buy/Hold at $217. It's a profitable and steady business and likely to rise in the long term. But currently it is expensive in relation to earnings and its earnings growth, while still good,  has slow...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was up 0.1% and Toronto was up 0.3%.
Cameco was down 2.3%.
Starbucks was down 2.0%.
I was expecting Costco to release today the figures for same-store sales in June. But there was no release I believe their "months" always ...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up another 0.5% while Toronto was down 0.8%.
Apple was up 2.2%.
Linamar was down 2.6%.
Toll Brothers was down 2.3%.
Costco was up 2.7%. I believe it will report same-store sales tomorrow (Monday) after the close. In Jun...

The report on Dollarama is updated and rated (lower) Buy. Due to a high price / earnings level I could just as easily call it a hold. But its likely to continue to do well in the long term. If it does pull back noticeably that will be a buying opport...

The report on Costco is updated and rated Sell at $886.
This is a fantastic company but it seems to me that a trailing adjusted earnings P/E of 56 and a forward P/E of 49 is getting into the realm of irrational exuberance.
But be aware that of 27 ana...

The report on Alimentation Couche-Tard is updated and rated (lower) Buy at $78. This is a tough call at this time. On the one hand it has an absolutely fantastic track record and closed a large acquisition in Europe at the start of this calendar year...

On Thursday Toronto was up 0.1% while the U.S. markets were closed for the holiday.
AutoCanada was down 1.9%. I was going to say this was likely related to the cyber attack on its systems provider but that provider has said that all dealers that it s...

U.S. markets are closed for the holiday. Toronto is up 0.2% and there are no big moves in any of the stocks on my list.
I'm quite interested to see Costco's same-store sales report for June. I expect that to be reported by Monday.
I think at some poi...

Wednesday was another good day to be an investor.
The S&P 500 was up 0.5% and Toronto was up 1.3%.
Tesla was up 6.5% and has now gained about 24% in three days.
Stantec was up 3.2%.
Most of the preferred shares on our list moved a little higher.
...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.6% and Toronto was up 0.4%.
Tesla was up 10.2%.
Dollarama was up 1.9%.
Auto Canada reports that it has permission to relax the debt covenants on its line of credit until September 29 This is due to the unknown imp...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was up 0.3%. Toronto was closed for the holiday.
Tesla was up 6.0% "ahead of reporting its latest delivery numbers". Leak or wishful thinking?
Apple was up 2.9%.
U.S. Treasury yields were up somewhat noticeably.
By the way,...

In the first half of 2024 the S&P 500 is up 14.5%. It's a bit higher if you include dividends. That's hard to compete with.
The Toronto index is up 4.4% and the Dow is up 3.8%.
A reasonable benchmark to compare a typical retirement savings portfo...

Friday marked the last trading day of the first half of the yar.
On Friday, the S&P 500 was down 0.4% and Toronto was down 0.3%.
TFI International was up 2.7%. It's been a fantastic winner over many years.
lululemon was down 3.7%. The market like...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was up 0.1% while Toronto was up 0.7%.
The Enbridge rate reset share ENB.PF.A was up 3.3%. Most of the other rate reset shares were also somewhat higher.
Dollarama was up 2.3%.
I bought some Minto REIT units today after he...

On Wednesday the S&P 500 was up 0.2% while Toronto was about unchanged.
FedEx was a big winner rising 15.5% on cost cutting, higher earnings forecast and the possibility it will sell its ground freight division.
The 5 year government of Canada bo...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.4% while Toronto was down 0.3%.
Toll Brothers was down 2.3%.
After the close, Alimentation Couche-Tard reported Q4 earnings. Earnings were lower than last year and presumably lower than expected. Fuel margins were...

Most stocks were up today. But with Nvidia down 6.7%, the S&P 500 was down 0.1%. Toronto was up 1.4%.
After the close, AutoCanada announced that its dealers were being adversely affected by a cyber attack at its its system provider. This will alm...

Note that today (Monday, June 24) is the last day to sell before the higher capital gains inclusion rate kicks in. And that's becasue "settlement" is now down to one day. Selling today is cutting it very close but I understand qualifies for the lower...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was down 0.2% and Toronto was down 0.1%.
Canada is apparently considering massive tariffs on Chinese Electric Vehicles, which the U.S. and Europe are also doing. I don't know what the tariff is today but I suspect that ther...

The report on Uranium miner Cameco is updated but rated only a speculative Weak Buy.
This stock is up 114% since It was first added to the site on October 30, 2022 rated Highly Speculative Weak Buy as way to play the resurgence in the nuclear power i...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was down 0.25% and Toronto was up 0.30%.
There were no particularly notable moves in the stocks on our list.
Most of the preferred shares edged higher today.
 
...

On Wednesday, the U.S. markets were closed for the Juneteenth Holiday. Toronto was down 0.4%.
Statistics Canada released population estimates as of April 1. Canada's population grew by about 243,000 to 41.0 million.
Alberta gained 49,000 people.
This...

I received the following comment from a subscriber asking for my thoughts:
"The Melcor family owns most of the shares in MR.UN and MRD.  Thus they control the price it is at and keep it at a price that benefits the Melcor Family.  They are getting ol...

On Tuesday the S&P 500 was up 0.25% and Toronto was up 0.1%.
The Canadian Western Bank rate reset preferred share CWB.PR.B was up 3.15% to $23.26 (but some of that came in the last trade of the day). I don't know if the National Bank proposed acq...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was up 0.8% while Toronto was down 0.2%.
The Melcor REIT was down 4.5%. They have not released any recent news about their strategic review.
Apple Inc. was up 2.0%.
Starbucks was up 2.1%.
CMHA released housing starts for Ma...

As of 2:15 pm eastern the S& P 500 is up about 1% while Toronto is down 0.4%. And most of the stocks on our list are down modestly.
Very recently we rated RioCan a Buy at $16.88. Now it's down to $16.54 and I like it a bit more. I am buying some ...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was about unchanged while Toronto was down 0.3%.
Shopify was strong with a 4.6% gain.
Canadian Tire was down 2.3% after an analysts downgrade. And it may well be having a weak quarter. The Spring weather has been wet in Alb...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 managed a 0.2% gain although it looks like the majority of stocks were down. Toronto was down a noticeable 1.2%.
The Energy ETF, XEG was down 3.1%. It's an easy way to bet on the big Canadian oil and gas companies if you ...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up another 0.85% and Toronto was up 0.3%.
The big story for us was Canadian Western Bank up 68%. Not the hoped for 100%. But because this is an all-stock deal that could take 18 months to close and could face regulat...

Canadian Western Bank is trading up about 71% at $$42.77 abut 15 minutes after the open.
Since I was planning to sell I would have liked to see it trade up around $48 or more. The offer price yesterday was indicated to be worth $52.24. But that was b...

After the close today, it was announced that National Bank has agreed to purchase Canadian Western Bank in an all-stock deal. Bases on National Banks' price the premium could be 110%. But National Bank has just done a big subscription receipts sale w...

As of 10:20 am eastern time markets are down. Apple is notable with a 3.4% gain after its developer conference yesterday.
Statistics Canada released building permit data for April and the numbers are very strong with a reported 20% gain. That number ...

On Monday, the S&P 500 and Toronto were each up 0.3%.
There were no particularly notable moves in the individual stocks on our list.
I added a little to my RioCan position today. I like it at $17. But this may be a case of going after sort of nic...

Royal Bank of Canada is updated and rated (lower) Buy at $146.35 or U.S. $106.39.  It's a strong company and will continue to grow over the years. But the near term is uncertain given loan losses and a probably recession. It's had a huge recovery sin...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was about unchanged while Toronto as up 0.4%.
TFI International was up 3.4%.
lululemon was up 4.8% after its earnings release. It was unable to hang onto all the gains it had in after-hours trading yesterday. When compani...

Wednesday proved to be yet another day where it was good to be an equity investor. The S&P 500 was up a stout 1.2% while Toronto was up 0.8%.
Nvidia (not on out list) was up another 5.2%!
Stantec was up 2.2%. Toll Brothers was up 2.7%. AutoCanada...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 ended the day up 0.15% after gyrating around somewhat. Toronto was down 0.6%.
Metro was up 2.7%.
Costco was up 1.5% to yet another all-time high of $827. It will report May same-store sales growth in a day or so.
Toll Brot...

The report on Canadian Western Bank is updated and rated Buy at $25.33. The shares in many ways look very much under-valued. But they are forecasting no earnings growth in the next six months although they do forecast loan growth and higher lending s...

lululemon is updated adn rated (higher) Buy at $312. It's a high quality company. It's growth is lower now than its historic torrid pace but it looks to be attractively prices.
Last year on September 9 I updated it and rated it Speculative Buy at $39...

The report on RioCan is updated and rated Buy at $16.88
The unit price is down 9% this year to date. Yet the REIT in many ways is firing on all cylinders. It's occupancy is about 97%. On new leases where a tenant has moved out it has re-leased at an ...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was down 0.6% while Toronto was up 0.8%.
Royal Bank was extremely strong (for such a stable company) with a 5.2% gain after a strong earnings report.
Costco released a strong earnings report after the close but the shares...

On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.7% while Toronto was down a hefty 1.65%.
Canadian Western Bank was down 3.55% - pulled down by the weaker results and higher losses reported by Bank of Montreal. I'm expecting their earnings report to be good b...

I notice that RioCan has slumped to $16.90 down from closer to $19 early this year. The yield is 6.5%. They continue to report very high occupancy and management seems optimistic. They just issued $300 million of 7 year debt at 5.46%. That strikes me...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was about unchanged while Toronto was down 0.5%.
AutoCanada was down 4.6%.
Nvidia continues to soar.
The 5 year Canada bond yield is at 3.8% showing no signs that it expects interest rates to come down.
Oil is at $80.
The ...

The U.S. stock markets were closed for the Memorial Day holiday on Monday.
Toronto was up 0.2%.
Preferred shares mostly moved modestly higher.
Futures indicate that U.S. stocks will open modestly higher on Tuesday.
...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up 0.7%, but this simply recovered the decline on Thursday. Toronto was up 0.5%. - which did not quite recover the loss on Thursday.
Costco was up 1.8% to $810. At 53 times trailing earnings and 47 times projected earni...

Nvidia is the story of the day with another 9% gain after releasing earnings.
In more mundane news, New Home prices were up slightly for Canada overall in April versus March. The gains in Alberta were strong:
"The largest month-over-month increases i...

I've updated the yields and ratings on most of the preferred shares.
It was around this time last year that I became quite bullish on preferred shares. As of now the rate resets have given quite strong gains on top of paying their dividends. But ther...

Wednesday's session saw the S&P 500 down 0.3% and Toronto down 0.5%.
Starbucks was up 3.9%.
Shopify was up 3.3%
Toll Brothers was down 8.5% despite posting strong earnings.
I likely won't post my usual comment tomorrow evening due to traveling ba...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.25% while Toronto was unchanged.
Tesla (not on our list but I own a little) was up 6.7%.
Toll Brothers reported a 60% earnings gain after the close but is only up 1% in after-hours trading.
Housing starts in Canad...

Toronto is closed today but U.S. markets are trading.
On Friday, the S&P 500 was was up 0.2% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average popped over 40,000 for the first time ever. Toronto was up 0.7%.
Cameco was up 6.4%. It's been somewhat volatile but...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was down 0.2% while Toronto was up 0.1%.
WSP Global was down 5.3%. I did not see a reason for that - probably an analyst downgrade.
lululemon was down 2.5%
Toll Brothers was down 2.8%. I sold some (42%) of my Toll Brothers...

Walmart and a former Sears Canada CEO
Further to last evenings comment. I had noticed that a former Sears Canada CEO Mark Cohen who is now a retail professor at a university was commenting negatively about Walmart's strategy.
My recollection (and I m...

On Wednesday, stocks rose after U.S. inflation came in slightly tamer than feared.
The S&P 500 was up an impressive 1.2% but Toronto managed only a 0.2% gain.
Toll Brothers was up an impressive 5.9%. They have been doing fantastic but it might be...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.5% while Toronto was down 0.1%
There were no particularly notable moves in any of the stocks on our list today.
Okay, let see... GameStop is at it again.
GameStop GME was up 60% today to $48.75.
But let's look at ...

The report on AutoCanada was last updated on March 13 and rated Speculative Buy at $23.75.
Since then then they have released their Q1 results which was a loss for quarter and the price is now down to $21.33.
Overall, this is a tough industry. People...

Monday's session saw the S&P 500 about unchanged and Toronto down 0.2%.
Not a lot of movement in the stocks on our list. Stantec was one of the bigger movers up 2.0%.
I see news that Arthur Irving has died at age 93. I respect greatly respect his...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was up 0.45% and Toronto was up 0.6%.
Canadian Tire was up 6.9% despite slightly lower same store sales and higher credit card losses. Higher retail gross margins boosted earnings.
Stantec was down 3.6% despite posting hig...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was unchanged while Toronto was down 0.1%.
Shopify got hammered down 18.5% after releasing disappointing Q1 results. It's been a volatile stock in terms of price. My last update called it a "highly speculative hold". My ...

On Tuesday markets edged up once again with the S&P 500 and Toronto each up 0.1%.
Cameco was up 2.4%.
Costco was up 2% and is near it's all-time high. That's despite an forward P/E ratio of 43.7 And trailing P/E of 49.5%. The difference between t...

Markets had another strong day on Monday with the S&P 500 up 1.0% and Toroto up an impressive 1.4%.
Let the good times roll!
Cameco was up 4.7%
Shopify was up 3.7%
Toll Brothers was up 3.3%
There is always lots of gloom and doom but stock investo...

Stantec is updated but rated only a Hold at $114.52 or US. $83.73.
It's up a very impressive 45% since my last update in March last year when it was rated (lower) Buy.
It's up an incredible 9,062% since I first added it to this web site as a Strong B...

On Friday the S&P 500 was up a hefty 1.3% and Toronto was up 0.6%.
Apple was up 6.0% after its strong earnings release.
Shopify was up 3.4%.
I had the opportunity to listen to the entire 5 hour Q&A session lice streamed from Berkshire Hathawa...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was up 0.4% while Toronto was up 0.9%.
Stantec was up 3.4% but has yet to report Q1 earnings. It made what appears to be a modest acquisition of a U.K firm announced yesterday.
Apple was up 2.2% and then releases earnings...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was down 0.3% while Toronto was up 0.1%.
Starbucks got clobbered down 16% after reporting a weak quarter. "China comparable store sales declined 11%, driven by an 8% decline in average ticket and a 4% decline in comparab...

On Monday ... I forgot to make a comment... Tesla was up about 16%....
On Tuesday, markets were weak as the S&P 500 was down a hefty 1.6% and Toronto was down 1.4%.
I see some  Cannabis stocks which are tiny slivers of what they used to be were u...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up 1.0% and Toronto was up 0.4%.
Alphabet / Google (unfortunately not on our list) was up a huge 10.0% after releasing results.
Toll Brothers was up 2.4%
The prospect of lower interest rates continues to float out a lit...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was  down 0.5% while Toronto was roughly unchanged.
Meta was down 10.6% but of course remains a monster performer over the past couple of years and even more so in the long term.
Canadian restaurant and bar sales for Febr...

On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down just 0.1% while Toronto was down 0.7%.
Tesla, which is not on our list but which I believe I have mentioned in the comments was up 12%.
CN Rail was down 4.8%. This will likely prove to be a little buying opportun...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was up a hefty 1.2% while Toronto was up 0.6%.
Shopify was up 4.6%. American Express was up 2.6%
Toll Brothers was up 5.0%.
The majority of stocks were up.
CN Rail announced weaker results after the close.
 
...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was up 0.9% and Toronto was up 0.3%.
lululemon was up 2.6% and Restaurant brands was up 2.3%. Both are strong companies and long term keepers in my view.
That's it for this comment. I'll try to have something more substanti...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was down 0.9% while Toronto was up 0.5%.
Enbridge which I just updated was up 2.8%.
American Express was up a hefty 6.3% after releasing Q1 earnings.  It just over 10 years sicne U added it to this site and it's up 166% sin...

The report on Enbridge Inc. is updated and rated Buy at $48.
Really I probably did not need to do any analysis to conclude that this is a Buy given the 7.6% dividend yield and given its massive and important assets. But I went ahead and read the annu...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was down 0.2% while Toronto was up 0.2%.
A while back I mentioned I was buying a few shares in TH International which is Tim Hortons in I believe China. I don't know much about it at all but someone was recommending it and...

Wednesday's action saw the S&P 500 down 0.6% while Toronto was up 0.1%.
Let's see, oil is at $83 which is solidly profitable for the oil companies while not too hard on the consumer. (I mean it could be a lot worse for consumers, $120 oil is not ...

A big day today:

March inflation numbers came out and the the headline increase was 2.9% year over year (so still running hot). BUT key core measures used by the Bank of Canada were lower than expected at around 2%. Good news!
The federal budget cam...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was down 1.2% and Toronto was down 0.7%.
I don't see any news about the stocks on our list to speak of.
Tesla is doing layoffs but is also going to start bringing big revenue from subscriptions to its full self driving soft...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 was up 0.7% while Toronto was down 0.4%.
Apple was up 4.3%. Other than that no particularly noteworthy moves in the stocks on our list.
The new measures announced today for first time buyers of new homes and the enhanced ...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was down 0.95% and Toronto was down 0.7%.
Most stocks were down but Cameco was up 3.4%.
The Bank of Canada left interest rates unchanged today and seemed to signal that cuts might not come as soon as hoped and might ultima...

Monday's session saw the S&P 500 and Toronto both essentially unchanged on the day.
There were no particularly notable moves in the stocks on our lost.
Trudeau continues to dole out more borrowed money. Every incremental dolalr of spending is bor...

Today, I updated the Emera rate reset EMA.PR.H in the Subscriber home page to Buy at $22.46. The last update called it Strong Buy at a somewhat lower price. This preferred share has been quite volatile. It's been as low as $18.30 in October and was c...

The report for CWB.PR.B is updated and rated Buy at $21.81 to yield 7.3% and the report for CWB.PR.D is updated and rated Buy at $25.30 to yield 7.56%.
See the Subscriber Home page. Both of these have one more dividend at their former lower rates tha...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up 1.1% and Toronto was up 1.0%.
Dollarama was up another 3.7%.
Constellation Software was up 2.6%.
Canada's jobs survey was quite weak on Friday morning. Given this is a survey it is subject to statistical error. I'd w...

On Thursday, the S&P 500 fell sharply in the later part of the day and ended the day down 1.2%. Toronto was down 0.3%.
Dollarama was very strong with a 10% gain after posting strong earnings and boosting its dividend.
lululemon was down 4.4%.
Giv...

The report on Canadian National Railway Company is updated and rated (lower) Buy at $177 or US $131. It remains a great long-term hold.
...

Spruce Point Capital Management has issued a strong-sell report on WSP Global and they are "short" the company. The stock is down a relatively modest 5% to $210.
Listening to the Spruce Point founder this morning on BNN, I think he had some valid poi...

BHP Group is updated and rated Sell at $59 for the ADRs that trade on New York.
Due to a weak outlook and also due to its unpredictability and complexity we are rating this a Sell and this will be the last update for this company.
We have a capital g...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was down 0.7%  and Toronto was down 0.5%. The market is beginning to fear that interest rate cuts are not so imminent after all. The Canadian 5 year bond yield is at 3.67%.
Oil is strong at US $85 which is good news for Alb...

The report on Berkshire Hathaway is updated and rated and rated (lower) Buy. It is somewhat expensive in relation to earnings and book value. On the one hand if I had a large position I would be tempted to trim it. On the other hand selling Berkshire...

On Monday, the S&P 500 was down 0.2% while Toronto was up 0.1%.
Cameco was up 8.15%.
Oil is at $84 which is nice for Alberta.
...

CWB.PR.B will reset to pay 6.371% of $25 (2.76% spread plus today's 3.611% 5 year Canada bond yield) so $1.59275 per year. This is a 7.39% yield on today's price of $21.54. I believe this is attractive since it also seems likely that there will be a ...

After a disastrous attempt to move to a new host location, the site is back up, as you can see. I will resume updates and comments tomorrow. Looking forward to it. My apologies for this site being down so long.
...

U.S. markets were strong today with the S&P 500 up 0.6% while Toronto was down very slightly.
Auto Canada was strong with a 4.1% gain.
Canadian Tire has slipped under $130. It is suffering as people cut back on non-discretionary spending. But Can...

On Friday the S&P 500 was down 0.65% while Toronto was up 0.1%.
TransAlta was down 3.5%. It seems to be living up to its old reputation as a poor investment. I was hoping it was on better footing with new management and a lot of changes to its as...

Thursday's session saw the S&P 500 down 0.3% and Toronto down 0.6%.
AutoCanada was up 2.3%.
Toll Brothers was down 3.95%.
One of the larger investors int eh Melcor REIT (Firm Capital ) has written to the REIT Board asking tthat Melcor take the RE...

On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 0.2% while Toronto was up 0.6%.
West Texas Oil is just under $80 U.S. dollars.
After the close Melcor Developments released Q4 and 2024 earnings. The results seemed "okay" but for some reason they lowered the div...

The report on AutoCanada is updated and rated Speculative Buy at $23.75. Revenues have been increasing strongly. Earnings per share are volatile and have declined in recent quarters after very strong results in 2021 and 2022. The gross margin or mark...

Tuesday was a positive day for stocks as the S&P 500 rose 1.2% and Toronto rose 0.3%.
Toll Brothers was up another 2.4% and then announced a 10% dividend increase after the close.
Cameco was up 2.95%.
Costco was up 3.2%.
TransAlta went the other ...

On Monday the S&P 500 was down 0.1% while Toronto was up 0.15%.
West Fraser Timber was up 2.6%.
AutoCanada was up 11.4% in what seems to be a slightly delayed reaction to its Q4 earnings report. I will update the report on this company in the nex...

Aecon Group is updated and rated Sell at $17.03. This company has a volatile history and remains extremely unpredictable.
It has been very poorly managed resulting in huge cost over-runs and therefore losses on a number of major fixed price contracts...

On Friday the S&P 500 was down 0.65% and Toronto was down 0.3%
Costco finally has a little pull-back falling 7.6% after releasing earnings. But this just gives back a small part of its recent increases.
Cameco was down 6.2%. It remains long-term ...

Stocks were hot on Thursday as the S&P 500 rose 1.0% and Toronto rose by 0.9%
Linamar was up 11.4%. Cameco was up 5.4%. Aecon Group was up 4.8%.
Constellation Software was up 4.5%.
One of the rate reset preferred shares on our list and that I kee...

The Melcor REIT has suspended its distribution due to a cash crunch and is undertaking a strategic review. Meanwhile it is is still generating cash and it does not appear to be in danger of going broke. There's potential upside from the strategic rev...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.5% and Toronto was up 0.3%
Aecon Group was up 11.8% after reporting Q4 earnings. Perhaps it is finally doing better operationally after years of cost over-runs on projects.
The Melcor REIT bounced up 8% after re...

The Q4 results for the Melcor REIT show some continued weakness but were not dire.
The conference call was very brief and the two or three analysts that cover this are probably  not too interested in promoting it. They like all of us owners have been...

On Wednesday the S&P 500 was down 1.0% while Toronto was essentially unchanged.
West Fraser Timber was down by 3.0%.
Shopify was down 2.9%.After the close the Melcor REIT released Q4 and 2024 results. As expected profits and cash flows were down ...

On Monday, the S&P 500 and Toronto both ended the day down 0.1%.
West Fraser Timber was up 2.6% and continues to do very well.
Canadian Western Bank was up 1.6%.  After it released earnings on Friday the headlines said it has higher loan losses. ...

On Friday the S&P 500 was up 0.8% and Toronto was up 0.9%.
Cameco was strong with a 3.5% gain.
The Melcor REIT got hammered down 13% to $2.39. The market may fear that this is going to zero but that still seems unlikely.
Thinking about the Melcor...

CWB's results were "okay" as I expected. Headlines say their provision for loan losses was up year-over-year (also up from last quarter). But one year algo they had a negative provision for credit losses (income as opposed to expense). The provision ...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was up 0.5% and Toronto was up 0.6%.
The rate reset preferred share TD.PF.A was up 2.5% to $21.88. It's up 17% this year to date which is pretty darn good a preferred share. It resets on October 31 and the market may be pl...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was down 0.25 and Toronto was down 0.35%.
After the close Stantec and WSP Global were out with earnings reports. I believe WSP was a good report but a headline suggests that Stantec "missed Q4 estimates". Stantec itself ...

The report on TransAlta is updated. It's been "generating" attractive levels of free cash flow. It looks under valued. But it is a very cyclical and hard to predict business. It also has a weak balance sheet although the CEO claims it is a strong bal...

Tuesday's action saw the S&P 500 up 0.2% and Toronto about unchanged.
West Fraser Timber was up 4.3%. It continues to do well even while shutting and curtailing certain mills. It may be that the industry is being smart and refusing to under-cut e...

On Monday, the S&P 500 and Toronto were each down 0.4%.
Canada's big banks will be reporting earnings this week with two reporting tomorrow. It will be interesting to see the loan loss provisions and what percent of residential mortgages have amo...

On Friday the S&P 500 was about flat while Toronto was up 0.45%.
The Melcor REIT got clobbered down 23% after the news that I mentioned on Thursday. I'm hopeful that something good will come out of the review but there is certainly no guarantee o...

On Thursday the S&P 500 was up 2.1% and Toronto was up 0.7%.
Nvidia was the big news with a 16% gain in price which was a $277 billion dollar gain in wealth and market cap overnight.
I will admit to feeling left out of the gains of Nvidia and the...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up 0.1% while Toronto was down 0.2%.
Shopify bounced down 4.0%.
Toll Brothers was up 4.0% after posting another great quarter of earnings growth.
Trudeau was in Edmonton handing out $175 million to spur home building...

On Tuesday the S&P 500 was down 0.6% and Toronto was down 0.2%.
Canadian Western Bank was up 3.0% after upgraded their recommendation on it.
Couche-Tard was up 3.7%.
After the close, Toll Brothers came out with very good earnings.
Canadian inflat...

Markets are closed today for the holiday.
On Friday, the S&P 500 was down 0.5% while Toronto was up 0.2%.
Shopify (always volatile) bounced down 3.0% and lululemon was down 2.0%.
One of the worst performers that I have followed for quite a long t...

The report on Canadian Tire is updated and rated Hold at $140. It's Q4 earnings released last week were very disappointing.
Same-store sales were down 6.8% in Q4 And it appears that shipments to the Canadian Tire dealers were down double digits which...

As I have mentioned, I fully expect CWB to redeem their CWB.PR.D shares on April 30. Those shares would otherwise reset at a huge spread of 5.04% above the 5 year Canada bond yield.
I had thought that the CWB.PR.B rate reset preferred shares would no...

The various preferred shares have done well since I updated them in mid December. Today I updated the Enbridge's ENB.PF.A. It was rated Strong Buy on December 16 at $15.47 and is up 12% since then.
It will reset to a higher dividend on December 1 thi...

Markets gained ground on Thursday with the S&P 500 up 0.6% and Toronto up a hefty 1.6%.
Canadian Tire ended the day down only 0.3% after reporting a very weak Q4. The weakness is not shocking and it seems likely to persist for some time. Still, t...

On Wednesday markets recovered much of the ground lost yesterday.
The S&P 500 was up 1.0% and Toronto was up 1.5%.
There are lots of Q4 earnings reports coming in.
After the close, West Fraser reported a substantial loss but the stock was virtual...

The report on these shares is updated and rated Buy at $20.95. The last update was December 18 when they were at $17.76 and looked quite attractive. They are less attractive after the gain since then but are still reasonably attractive.
 
...

Tuesday was quite a negative day in the markets after U.S. core inflation came in hotter than expected. This means that interest rate cuts are not likely to happen as soon as was hoped.
The S&P 500 was down 1.4% and Toronto was down 2.3%.
Investo...

On Monday, the S&P 500 edged down 0.1% while Toronto as up 0.3%.
Toll Brothers was strong with a 4.4% gain.
AutoCanada bounced up 4.5%.
Andrew Peller was up 4.4% (to a pathetic $4.47) after its announcement yesterday about the big payout to John ...

The report on Linamar is updated and rated Buy at $65.33.
It looks quite cheap based on valuation and is very well managed. But it is in a tough and cyclical industry and the ROE is not as high as it was historically. I think its a good bet at this p...

On Friday the S&P 500 was up 0.6% and Toronto was up 0.4%.
Shopify was up another 3.3%. Amazon was up 2.7%.
On Friday afternoon Andrew Peller had some announcements: They are appointing five new directors. (On November 9th all four of its indepen...

On Thursday. the S&P 500 was up just 0.1%. I did officially poke it's nose over the 5000 level for the first time before closing at 4998.
Toronto was down 0.2%.
Shopify was up 3.1% after reports that it may raise some of its subscription prices.
...

Our reference article that gives a list of Canadian ETFs and their fundamental value ratios and comments on their attractiveness is freshly updated. This includes, ETFs for stocks, bonds and commodities (Oil, gold, silver and natural gas). This is a ...

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 was up another 0.8%. It touched 5000 (well 4999.9) for the first time ever.  Toronto was up just 0.05%.
TFI International was up 3.5%. What a winning company this has been over the years.
Shopify was up 5.3%.
Canadian Ti...

Tuesday's action saw the S&P 500 up 0.2% and Toronto up 0.4%.
I see news today that several regional bank share prices in the U.S. have declined. At least one bank, New York Community Bank could be facing a run on deposits and its share price is ...

The report on Starbucks is updated and rated Buy at $95.41. This is a very high quality company but it's valuation is arguably somewhat high. Overall, this is probably a good stock to take an initial position in with a view to holding for the long te...

On Monday the S&P 500 fell 0.1% and Toronto was down 1.0%.
Hopes for an imminent decrease in interest rates were further dashed by comments that the FED chair made in a television appearance on 60 minutes.
The yield on the five year government of...

On Friday, the S&P 500 was up a very hefty 1.0&% but Toronto was down 0.2% as oil prices were lower.
Shopify was up 8.7%.
The BIG story of the day was Meta (facebook) being up 20.3% and also Amazon being up 7.9%.
I will admit to being a littl...

On Thursday, markets recovered much of Wednesday's decline.
The S&P 500 was up 1.25% and Toronto was up 0.5%.
Aecon Group was up 3.8%. It has done well lately. I'll wait until I see its Q4 numbers before commenting on whether or not it has put it...

Markets were weak on Wednesday and the FED chair indicated that interest rate cuts are not as imminent as the market was hoping.
In response the S&P 500 was down 1.6%.
Oil was down about 3% and Toronto stock index was down 1.0%.
Accordingly the g...

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 was down 0.1% while Toronto was uo 0.1%
After the close MicroSoft reported what one analyst said was insanely high operating earnings growth. But in After hours trading the shares are down although only down 0.3%.
Meanwhil...

The report on Ceapro is updated and rated Highly Speculative Buy / Hold at $0.16.
This company has been quite a disastrous investment over the years. At the end of 2022 it looked like it might be set for much better days. Instead, revenue has plunged...

Monday was another positive day in the markets as the S&P 500 rose 0.8% and Toronto rose 0.35%
AutoCanada was notable with a 6.6% gain.
Restaurant Brands and Shopify and Visa were each up 2.1%.
The Melcor REIT was up 2.2% to $5.00 which is a good...