Pat McKeough

A professional investment analyst for more than 30 years, Pat has developed a stock-selection technique that has proven reliable in both bull and bear markets. His proprietary ValuVesting System™ focuses on stocks that provide exceptional quality at relatively low prices. Many savvy investors and industry leaders consider it the most powerful stock-picking method ever created.

As early as 1980, Pat was recognized as #1 in the world of published investment advice by the Washington, DC–based Newsletter Publishers Association, and he was the first multi-year winner of The Globe and Mail’s stock picking contest.

Both CBS MarketWatch and The Hulbert Financial Digest recognized Pat as one of North America’s top stock analysts. The Wall Street Journal called him “one of only four investment newsletter advisors who have managed to serve their readers well over the long haul.”

A best-selling Canadian author, he wrote Riding the Bull, his 1993 book that predicted the stock-market boom of the last half of that decade. Through his many television appearances, he is well-known to investors for his insightful analysis and his candid, unpretentious style.

Bottom line: Pat’s conservative, reduced-risk strategy is a proven approach to safe investing.

Posts by the author
The pendulum theory grew out of Sir Isaac Newton’s 17th-century studies of gravity and physics, particularly his second law of motion. Yet the theory turns up in discussions of all sorts of non-mechanical topics. This includes investors’ efforts at understanding the stock market.
Goldcorp has sold assets and cut its production and dividend to preserve cash until gold prices rebound
EBAY INC. $24 (Nasdaq symbol EBAY; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $28.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.3; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.ebay.com) operates online auction websites in over 30 countries....
PAYPAL HOLDINGS INC. $41 (Nasdaq symbol PYPL; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $49.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 5.4; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www. paypal.com) processes online transactions, including purchases made through eBay’s auction websites. In the past few years, it has expanded into retail stores and mobile payments. On July 20, 2015, eBay investors received one Pay- Pal share for each eBay share they held. They only become liable for capital gains taxes when they sell their new shares. Operating as a separate firm allows PayPal to pursue alliances with more retailers and cut its reliance on eBay. For example, it recently expanded its deal with Chinese online retailer Alibaba to include business-to- business transactions....
ALPHABET INC. (Nasdaq symbols GOOG $741 [class C: non-voting] and GOOGL $760 [class A: one vote per share]; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 688.3 million; Market cap: $517.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 6.8; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.abc.xyz) is the new holding company for Google’s Internet search business and its smaller, riskier operations....
AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES INC. $40 (New York symbol A; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 327.8 million; Market cap: $13.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.2; Dividend yield: 1.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.agilent.com) makes testing equipment for medical research labs. In November 2015, the company paid $242 million for Seahorse Bioscience. This firm makes equipment that lab researchers use to measure cellular response to new drugs. That helps pharmaceutical firms develop new treatments for cancer and infectious diseases. The company also enhanced its product line by purchasing Cartagenia, a Belgian firm that makes software for Agilent’s medical-testing equipment. It paid $60 million euros for this business....
KEYSIGHT TECHNOLOGIES INC. $28 (New York symbol KEYS; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 171.3 million; Market cap: $4.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.7; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.keysight.com) makes software for testing wireless equipment. Its clients include makers of computer chips (44% of total revenue) and communications gear (33%), as well as aerospace and defence firms (23%). Agilent (see page 33) spun off Keysight as a separate firm on November 1, 2014; shareholders received one Keysight share for every two shares they held. In August 2015, Keysight paid $588 million for U.K.-based Anite. This firm makes wireless equipment testing software. That should improve the performance of Keysight’s testing equipment....
>ISHARES S&P/TSX 60 INDEX FUND $20.64 (Toronto symbol XIU; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) is a good low-fee way to buy the top stocks on the TSX. The units are made up of stocks that represent the S&P/TSX 60 Index, which consists of the 60 largest, most heavily traded stocks on the exchange. Ex
The index mostly consists of high-quality companies. However, it must ensure that all sectors are represented, so it holds a few we wouldn’t include.

The index’s top holdings are Royal Bank, 8.1%; TD Bank, 7.1%; Bank of Nova Scotia, 6.0%; Suncor Energy, 4.3%; CN Railway, 4.0%; Valeant Pharmaceuticals, 4.0%; Bank of Montreal, 3.7%; Canadian Natural Resources, 3.4%; Enbridge, 3.0%; Manulife Financial, 3.0%; BCE, 2.9%; CIBC, 2.8%; TransCanada Corporation, 2.7%; Potash Corp., 2.5%; CP Rail, 2.1%; and Goldcorp, 1.9%.
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MTS SYSTEMS CORP. $59 (Nasdaq symbol MTSC; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 14.8 million; Market cap: $873.2 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.4; Dividend yield: 2.0%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.mts.com) makes equipment and software that manufacturers use to test the behaviour of materials, machines and structures. This helps its clients reduce errors and costs. The company also makes sensors for industrial equipment. MTS’s strong reputation continues to help it win new orders: in its fiscal 2016 first quarter, which ended January 2, 2016, new orders totaled $168.2 million. That’s up 24.3% from $135.3 million a year earlier. However, MTS’s sales declined 1.5%, to $140.5 million from $142.6 million a year earlier. If you exclude currency rates, sales increased 2.8%....
MCKESSON CORP. $157 (New York symbol MCK; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 229.0 million; Market cap: $36.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.2; Dividend yield: 0.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.mckesson .com) is buying the Rexall chain of 470 drug stores in Canada for $2.2 billion. The company expects to complete the purchase by the end of 2016. McKesson already distributes prescription drugs and other products to Rexall, and this familiarity helps cut the risk of an unpleasant surprise. Excluding integration charges and currency exchange rates, the company expects the new operations will add to its earnings in the first year. McKesson is a hold.