When it comes to investing, it’s important that you invest your time as well as your money. That’s particularly true of portfolio planning.

For example, if you invest solely in Canadian   Read More

Diversification is the best way to control risk in your portfolio of mutual funds. But there are several ways of achieving broad geographical diversification. A global fund may be the   Read More

If you’re looking for the best mutual funds to invest new money in right now, we suggest you add to conservative Canadian and foreign stock funds. As well, emerging markets   Read More

With lots of cash, Chou Associates is well positioned for a correction, whenever it happens.

If you believe global stock markets are due for a correction anytime soon, you may find   Read More

Most investors would consider a loss of, say, 30 per cent in a year a disaster. Many would be completely shocked to lose money over 10 years. But what about   Read More

Quick, now: can you name the new whipping boy in the investment world? If you said bonds, you’d be right. After last year’s “taper tantrum” — i.e., the sell-off in   Read More

Best Canadian Mutual funds’ Beutel Goodman Canadian is now a Top-40 fund

Our new addition to our Top-40 funds possesses many of the characteristics we like: a strong performance track record,   Read More

Equity funds with substantial cyclical exposure should do well provided that global economies continue to improve. Here’s an aggressive Canadian fund with cyclical exposure that makes a good complement to   Read More

Dynamic American Value Fund has lagged its category in recent years. But that may change as the U.S. economic outlook picks up steam, giving a boost to the fund’s cyclically-oriented   Read More

Continue to add to existing funds, especially those in your portfolio with weak short-term records. They’ll be back.

Our thinking: As long as you have your time horizons properly thought out,   Read More

The higher you set your return expectations from stock-based mutual funds, the more risk you take on. And taking higher risk does not guarantee the expected reward. Indeed, it may   Read More

What to do about common stocks

Many investors try to deal with the uncertainty of investing by diversifying. But there’s more to sound diversification than simply buying a variety of stocks.   Read More

Past performance may not be much of a basis for evaluating any mutual fund for future investment. As they say, “Past performance is no guarantee of future performance.” But past   Read More

Your house is likely your biggest investment. And your job is likely your biggest source of income. As a result, invest in a way that diversifies away from your house   Read More

In view of our previous recommendation to ETF investors that they buy unhedged ETFs when investing in the U.S., we now recommend such an ETF for investors seeking exposure to   Read More

Continue to pursue a dollar-cost averaging program, emphasizing conservative, diversified, large-cap funds. Emerging markets hold appeal for aggressive investors.

OUR CURRENT THINKING: Notwithstanding the possibility of a sharp market correction   Read More

Expanding valuation multiples have been useful fund strategy tools and played a primary role as stock-market drivers in recent years. As time goes on, however, multiples will have less room   Read More

Individual investors once had few asset classes (or types of investments) to choose from: There were common stocks, fixed-income investments (including preferred shares) and cash such as Treasury bills or   Read More

Specialty funds can be the most rewarding kind available. But they don’t necessarily stay that way for long. Astute, aggressive investors will recognize this and may move among specialty funds   Read More

Where to put new money now

Continue to add new money to existing positions. Emphasize those positions that have suffered relative short-term weakness. 

OUR CURRENT THINKING: Stock markets in North America and   Read More

One of the most important investment principles you can follow is to sidestep investments you don’t understand.

It’s a principle that some of the most successful, well-known investors, such as Warren   Read More

With all of our other investment choices, be it stocks or trusts or bonds or cash, we all make our own decisions on what and when to buy and sell.   Read More

If stock markets correct in the near term, we advise you to add to your holdings when prices are down. Among funds that make good candidates for buying during corrections   Read More

At the Money Reporter, we rely on mutual funds especially to cover off your U.S. and international exposure, but also to give you some diversity in your Canadian equity allocation.   Read More

Invest gradually. That way you’ll be in a position to take advantage of lower prices when stock-market corrections occur.

• Invest the core of your portfolio in conservative equity funds   Read More

Markets have behaved perversely in recent months. Good economic news was sometimes greeted with a selloff as investors feared better times would only encourage the U.S. Federal Reserve to begin   Read More

Mutual funds used to offer a way to simplify your investing. Instead of choosing from a multitude of stocks, you could choose one of a handful of funds. Today, however,   Read More

Though balanced funds are extremely popular with Canadian investors, we see little appeal in these investment products. A better fund strategy is to create your own balanced fund by selecting   Read More

Regardless of whether or not the U.S. stock market has another stellar year in 2014, we believe you should always have some exposure to U.S. equities. And if you’re an   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846
 
You may be thinking of buying a balanced fund sometime in the New Year. Rather than do   Read More

Money Reporter, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846
What to do about common stocks

We experienced a nice little year-end rally in Canadian stocks. Over the past   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

-  by Keith Richards
 
If you don’t want to buy individual names, consider iShares S&P/TSX Small-Cap Index fund.
  Read More

The MoneyLetter, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

- Keith Richards

As we begin the New Year, many of us find ourselves reflecting on past decisions we’ve made   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

Below, we discuss four equity funds we think you should consider investing in in 2014. They may   Read More

The MoneyLetter, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

 
If you want to include only exchange-traded funds for your portfolio, we’ve suggested in the past that you keep   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

Among resource issues, energy stocks have held up relatively well this year. That may reflect the   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

The Canadian stock market may yet catch up to the U.S. market. Or perhaps the U.S.   Read More

The Investment Reporter, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846
Small stocks do best in January. So if you’re in no hurry to sell, wait until January to   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

- Edited from an article by Sunil Vidyarthi, M.B.A., PhD
 
What’s your take on the umpteenth version of   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846
 

Recent market action indicates why it’s essential to hold Canadian
equity index ETFs as part of a   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

Critics of market cap-weighted indexes argue they overweight overvalued stocks while underweighting undervalued ones. This leads to   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

When a fund you hold loses more than 40 per cent in a year, it’s tempting to   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

Stephen Poloz, governor of the Bank of Canada, has painted a gloomy picture of the Canadian economy   Read More

The Investment Reporter,, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846
Rebalancing leads to trading costs. These include brokerage fees when you sell one investment and reinvest in another,   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

The U.S. stock market rose 13 per cent last year, and it looks like it may do   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

Interest rates have dipped in the wake of the government shutdown in the U.S. If you   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846
 

Many small-cap equity funds are highly volatile. But others are able to minimize volatility by emphasizing “quality”   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846- Edited from an article written by Brian Hoffman

In the months leading up to the October ’87   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

Though many investors believe that equities will, over time, outperform fixed-income investments, they still fear the stock   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

Investors who follow seasonal trends know that the best-six- month strategy begins in late October or early   Read More

Canadian Mutual Fund Adviser, MPL Communications Inc.
133 Richmond St.W., Toronto, ON, M5H 3M8. 1-800-804-8846

You may be disappointed if you plunge into the U.S. markets now expecting near-term gains similar to   Read More

Paying capital-gains taxes may be an inevitable result of successful investing. But the longer you can delay the inevitable, the greater will be your ultimate success.

Sector funds offer aggressive investors   Read More