With apologies to the “No Sex, Please—We’re British” playwrights,  The MoneyLetter’s behavioural finance analyst Ken Norquay takes a look at why people make seemingly irrational decisions about investment strategy. His   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada columnist Jeana Deal reveals some potential swing trades to make during the slow period of the year. Consumer goods stocks and tech stocks stand out among   Read More

Since 1802 the dollar has lost 95 per cent of its purchasing power. After inflation, a dollar invested in stocks in 1802 would’ve soared to $704,997 by 2012. A dollar   Read More

Voters in the United Kingdom have voted to leave the European Union. The U.S. Fed has signaled that U.S. interest rates will remain lower for longer, perhaps not rising until   Read More

Act like you own the company. Think about it. You’ve got the information about the company at your fingertips. Look it over, and figure out how you’d run the company.   Read More

Markets have hit some resistance as the weather has warmed and seasonality is a likely catalyst for the correction. The S&P/TSX Composite Index has found resistance just above 14,000. Technical   Read More

Technical analyst and portfolio manager Keith Richards says bonds, utilities and consumer staples tend to do well in the weaker market months of May to November. He names some favourite   Read More

Some new investors, when the time comes to actually buy stocks, practically need a straight jacket. They want it all, now. It must be how a gambling binge feels. They   Read More

Branch Rickey was a cigar-chomping Methodist who changed the face of baseball forever. He invented the farm system. He broke the colour barrier by bringing Jackie Robinson to the Dodgers.   Read More

When you buy stocks in sectors and sub-sectors of the market, keep your goals in mind. If you’re a conservative, income-seeking investor, focus on utilities, financial stocks and consumer stocks.   Read More

The MoneyLetter recently had an exclusive interview with John O’Connell, Chairman and CEO of Toronto-based Davis Rea Investment Counsel, which he bought in 2010. Before that Mr. O’Connell worked for   Read More

Watch the mutual funds outside your registered accounts. Otherwise, you may find yourself on the hook for taxes if you buy just prior to an end-of-year capital gains distribution. And   Read More

Investors building their wealth usually depend on stocks. Many studies have shown that stocks outperform bonds and cash over long periods of time. And the reinvestment of dividends is essential   Read More

‘What? Me worry?’ would be MAD magazine cover boy Alfred E. Neuman’s attitude about the stock market. But The MoneyLetter’s behavioural finance analyst, Ken Norquay, has his own take on   Read More

These days you hear a lot about “enhancing shareholder value”. That is, managements of many firms want their shares to perform well. Management, of course, has a fair bit of   Read More

In chemistry, ‘volatility’ refers to the ability of a substance to evaporate quickly—or, under the right conditions, to explode. In investments, it means much the same thing. Still, we don’t   Read More

Economist Paul Samuelson quipped: “The stock market has forecast nine of the last five recessions.” So, advises Toronto-based portfolio manager John Stephenson, dial down the noise about continuing market gyrations   Read More

Since the U.S. Federal Reserve’s 1913 creation, gold has retained its purchasing power while the U.S. dollar is worth 98.2 per cent less. Nick Barisheff, president and CEO of Markham,   Read More

Barrie, Ont.-based ValueTrend portfolio manager Keith Richards thinks so and he offers nine indicators as the evidence that convinced him to adopt a bearish market outlook and a defensive investment   Read More

Recurring seasonal effects can and do occur even in so-called efficient markets that are supposed to reflect all relevant news and information. (For example, the cost of heating your home   Read More

The Money Reporter currently recommends a 40-per-cent portfolio allocation to fixed income securities, and 55 per cent of that in corporates. It is worth considering using some preferred shares to   Read More

You must turn your RRSP into a RRIF or an annuity by the end of the year you turn 71. Otherwise you’ll receive all your RRSP money and have it   Read More

When stock markets turn volatile like they did earlier this year, many investors start looking for refuge — a place to put their money simply to preserve it and maybe   Read More

Mark Halpern, a Markham, Ont.-based certified financial planner and trust and estate practitioner, is a regular contributor to The TaxLetter. He says investment and tax planning strategies like the immediate   Read More

“…there are known knowns; …there are known unknowns; …there are also unknown unknowns.”–Donald Rumsfeld.  “Don’t pretend to know the unknowable.”–Ken Norquay.
Behavioural finance strategist Ken Norquay is a frequent contributor to   Read More

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant,   Read More

You should choose a systematic withdrawal plan carefully so your money doesn’t run out before you do. A 1997 book, Die Broke, advocated planning your finances so that “The last   Read More

The financial sector’s exposure to the energy sector is driving banking stocks down world-wide. John Stephenson is portfolio manager and President and CEO of Stephenson & Company Capital Management Inc.   Read More

Your best long term strategic investment plan is to balance your portfolio across the five main sectors of the economy: finance, utilities, consumer products and services, manufacturing and resources. Each   Read More

If you believe a continued market downtrend for the intermediate term is likely, then shorting the market with exchange traded funds, stocks, currencies and gold might be of interest to   Read More

Markham, Ont.-based Mark Halpern is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Trust and Estate Practitioner (TEP) with special expertise in tax planning for high net worth individuals and their families.   Read More

The Bank of Canada was right to hold off on cutting the prime interest rate but sunny government inflation statistics and industry forecasts are deceptive. Edward Gardiner, an Ottawa-based market   Read More

Ken Norquay is a Chartered Market Technician, author of the behavioural finance book Beyond the Bull and a regular contributor to The MoneyLetter. He is currently on a European reconnaissance   Read More

The crafters of the legislation creating the Tax-Free Savings Account obviously weren’t moved by Juliet’s lament to Romeo: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any   Read More

Index funds effectively own the same stocks in the same proportions as a market index. This means an index fund’s performance will always come fairly close to that of the   Read More

The U.S. federal government has over $19 trillion in funded debt, at least $6 trillion in off-balance sheet obligations, and staggering unfunded liabilities for Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, etc., which   Read More

The financial sector’s exposure to the energy sector is driving banking stocks down world-wide. John Stephenson is portfolio manager and President and CEO of Stephenson & Company Capital Management Inc.   Read More

Syvia Poon is a financial analyst and an avid market observer with a particular interest in stock options trading. She explains that beyond their use as speculative trading vehicles, stock   Read More

The market outlook suggests that U.S. markets are about to test their 2015 summer lows. If they don’t bounce back, the next level of support seems to be around the   Read More

Make rebalancing your portfolio a resolution for 2016. Consider your circumstances, set targets . . . and stick to them.
Rebalancing your portfolio is critical to successful investing. We advise you   Read More

Gold as an alternative investment provides important portfolio diversification because its price is least tied to traditional financial assets. Nick Barisheff, president and CEO of Bullion Management Group Inc., a   Read More

Canadian stocks are now in bear market territory. This setback gives you a chance to buy fine companies on the cheap. Follow our advice to invest both safely and profitably.   Read More

You regularly receive cash as fixed-income investments mature, takeovers occur, and you earn interest, dividends and capital gains. Rebalance your portfolio as you do your ordinary investing.
Studies show that your   Read More

A rational market strategy: Participate in uptrends, reduce exposure to downtrends. Right now, the signals are saying: ‘Sell’. They’re not as simple as ‘Buy Low; Sell High’, but they are   Read More

‘Melt and cascade’ describes what happens to a solid ice jam on a hot summer’s day: a fixed form becomes a fluid, more dynamic element. Mark Halpern, a Markham, Ont.-based   Read More

Rebalancing an investment portfolio makes intuitive sense. And it serves to take emotion out of the picture. But it also takes judgment out of the picture. And its benefits are   Read More

When you have a new lump sum of cash to invest, such as a bonus or an inheritance, it can be tempting to look for new mutual funds rather than   Read More

In theory, you own the companies in which you hold shares. The presidents, chief executive officers, chief financial officers and other top managers are your employees. But the reality is   Read More

Giving to others can benefit you, too. Toronto-based Kim Inglis is an investment advisor and portfolio manager with the Reynolds Inglis Group within Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management. Here she shows   Read More

It pays to buy companies with hidden assets and stay away from those with hidden liabilities. Hidden assets and liabilities, of course, are those that don’t show up on a   Read More

DRIPs (Dividend Re-Investment Plans) and cash option plans let individual investors build their wealth. That’s thanks to the dozen benefits that we outline below.
Dividend Re-Investment Plans (DRIPs) can build   Read More

Are you concerned about rising interest rates effect on stocks in the U.S.? Keith Richards, portfolio manager at Barrie, Ont.-based ValueTrend Wealth Management and a frequent contributor to The MoneyLetter,   Read More