Investing in stocks: The hidden drawbacks of split-share corporations

Members of Pat McKeough’s Inner Circle enjoy a double benefit when it comes to taking advantage of our investment research. They get to address investment questions directly to Pat and his research associates; AND they get to see all other members’ questions, and our answers (of course, we eliminate any personal information). Members usually ask about stocks they own or …read more »

Hidden value is one of the key factors we look for when we choose stocks to recommend in our newsletters and investment services, including Wall Street Stock Forecaster, our newsletter that covers the U.S. stock market.

By hidden value, we mean valuable assets that are not getting the attention they deserve from investors. When a company’s assets are wholly or partially …read more »

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are one of the more benign financial innovations to come along in the past few years.

ETFs are set up to mirror the performance of a stock-market index or sub-index. They hold a more-or-less fixed selection of securities that represent the holdings that go into the calculation of the index or sub-index.

ETFs trade on stock exchanges, just …read more »

Even though today’s house prices are high, mortgage interest costs are near historic lows. And owning your own home has a number of advantages.

For example, owning your house is a great tax shelter. That’s because gains on your principal residence are exempt from capital-gains taxes. However, this tax benefit only applies to your principal residence. You must still pay …read more »

In a recent TSI Network poll, we asked site visitors whether if trust the advice they get from their stock broker. Aside from a yes or no option, we gave visitors a third choice: “I trade online through a discount broker.” Seventy-five percent of the poll’s respondents selected this answer.

You can see the full results of this poll, and a …read more »

Now that the Olympic flame is out in Vancouver, the attention of the sporting world is starting to turn to the next winter games, in Sochi, Russia, in 2014.

That’s also true of the investing world, as companies line up to get a piece of the roughly $12 billion (Canadian) that is being spent to build the Russian Olympics in Sochi. …read more »

No matter what kind of investing approach you follow, we feel that you can improve your overall results — and cut your risk — by avoiding these 5 common investment errors.

1. Failing to follow a realistic stock market trading strategy: Some investors, particularly newcomers, plan to buy a few hot stocks (or funds, or options or futures), and double or …read more »

To cut your investing risk, we recommend following our three-part system: Hold mostly high-quality, dividend-paying stocks, spread your money out across the five main economic sectors (Manufacturing & Industry; Resources; Consumer; Finance; Utilities) and avoid or downplay stocks in the broker/public relations limelight.

How “in-the-limelight” stocks can hurt your portfolio

Even well-established large cap stocks (or shares of larger-sized companies) can stumble. …read more »

The p/e ratio (the ratio of a stock’s price to its per-share earnings) is one of many handy investing tools.

Typically, you calculate p/e’s using a stock’s current price and its earnings for the previous 12 months. The general rule is that the lower a stock’s p/e, the better. And a p/e of less than, say, 10, represents excellent value. …read more »

Discover how to structure your investment portfolio in a way that could save you thousands of dollars

Click here to immediately download our new free report, Capital Gains Canada: 7 Secrets for Managing your Canadian Capital Gains Tax Liabilities.

As you consider how to manage your tax bill for the current income-tax season, you really shouldn’t be without our new free report, …read more »