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

Energy Stocks

Should You Invest in Helium Stocks?

Helium stocks, often associated with balloons and airships, is not just about a light-hearted gas; helium is a vital element.

5 min read

Wealth Management

In Deciding When to Buy and Sell Stocks, Beginners Should Take Into Account These Key Factors

4 min read

Energy Stocks

ARC Resources’ Shareholder Returns Surge With Dividends and Buybacks

2 min read

How To Invest

ISHARES CANADIAN SHORT-TERM BOND INDEX ETF $28.69 - Toronto symbol XSB

ISHARES CANADIAN SHORT-TERM BOND INDEX ETF $28.69 (Toronto symbol XSB; buy or sell through brokers) mirrors the performance of the DEX Short-Term Bond Index. This index consists of a range of investment-grade federal, provincial, municipal and corporate bonds with one- to five-year terms to maturity. The fund holds 430 bonds with an average term to maturity of 2.98 years. The bonds in the index are 64.8% government and 35.2% corporate. The fund’s MER is 0.28%.

The iShares Canadian Short-Term Bond Index Fund yields 2.4%, but this high yield is due to the fact that some of the fund’s bonds pay above-market interest rates. As a result, they trade above their face value. When these bonds mature, holders will only get the bonds’ face value, meaning the portfolio will incur predictable capital losses. These losses will offset some of the appeal of the above-market yields.

The key figure when looking at the long-term return of this fund is yield to maturity. This yield takes into account the series of capital losses the fund will experience as its above-market-rate bonds mature. The iShares Canadian Short-Term Bond Index ETF’s yield to maturity is around 1.08%—less than the 2.4% yield but still higher than the 0.42% you’d earn by investing in, say, a one-year T-bill.

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1 min read

Dividend Stocks

BROOKFIELD RENEWABLE ENERGY PARTNERS L.P. $35.71 - Toronto symbol BEP.UN

BROOKFIELD RENEWABLE ENERGY PARTNERS L.P. $35.71 (Toronto symbol BEP.UN; Units outstanding: 265.2 million; Market cap: $9.8 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 6.1%; www.brookfieldrenewable.com) owns 209 hydroelectric generating stations, 38 wind farms and five natural-gas-fired plants. In all, it has over 7,000 megawatts of generating capacity.

Roughly 26% of that capacity is in Canada, with another 51% in the U.S. and 16% in Brazil.

In the three months ended June 30, 2015, Brookfield’s cash flow per share fell 28.4%, to $0.53 from $0.74 a year earlier. That’s because below-normal rainfall slowed the company’s hydroelectric production. The units trade at 15.5 times Brookfield’s forecast 2015 cash flow of $2.30 a share. They yield 6.1%.

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1 min read

How To Invest

INNERGEX RENEWABLE ENERGY $10.14 - Toronto symbol INE

INNERGEX RENEWABLE ENERGY $10.14 (Toronto symbol INE; Shares outstanding: 101.3 million; Market cap: $1.0 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield 6.1%; www.innergex.com) operates 26 hydroelectric plants, six wind farms and one solar power facility in Quebec, Ontario, B.C. and Idaho. The company gets 73% of its power from hydroelectric plants, 26% from wind and 1% from solar. In contrast to Algonquin, Innergex is growing slowly, mostly by building its own hydroelectric and wind facilities, rather than through acquisitions. Right now, the company has five projects under construction. But like Algonquin, Innergex makes sure it has firm long-term power-purchase contracts in place before it starts building new plants....

1 min read

How To Invest

ALGONQUIN POWER & UTILITIES CORP. $9.38 - Toronto symbol AQN

ALGONQUIN POWER & UTILITIES CORP. $9.38 (Toronto symbol AQN; Shares outstanding: 239.5 million; Market cap: $2.3 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 5.3%; www.algonquinpower.com) has used acquisitions to nearly triple in size over the past three years and is planning more purchases.

The company’s regulated utility businesses now provide water, electricity and natural gas to over 489,000 customers, up sharply from 120,000 three years ago. Its hydroelectric, thermal energy, solar and wind facilities now generate 1,050 megawatts, up from 460.

Emera (Toronto symbol EMA), a recommendation of The Successful Investor, our conservative growth advisory, owns 20.9% of Algonquin.

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1 min read

How To Invest

TRANSCANADA CORP. $43.86 - Toronto symbol TRP

TRANSCANADA CORP. $43.86 (Toronto symbol TRP; Shares outstanding: 708.9 million; Market cap: $31.2 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.7%; www.transcanada.com) wants to build the Energy East pipeline, which would pump oil from Alberta to Eastern Canadian refineries. The plan involves converting parts of its existing natural gas pipeline to handle oil.

The company recently signed deals with three major gas distributors (two in Ontario and one in Quebec) that ensure the project will not cut their gas supplies or increase their costs. As part of this agreement, TransCanada will add new, smaller gas pipelines to replace the portions of the main gas line it will convert to oil.

These deals help cut Energy East’s risk. The project faces strong environmental and political opposition, but if regulators approve the new line, it could start up in 2020.

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1 min read

How To Invest

GUGGENHEIM CHINA SMALL CAP ETF $22.04 - New York symbol HAO

GUGGENHEIM CHINA SMALL CAP ETF $22.04 (New York symbol HAO) aims to track the AlphaShares China Small Cap Index, which is made up of all Chinese stocks that are legal for foreign investors and have market caps between $200 million and $1.5 billion.

Chinese stocks have plunged since this summer. Chinese leader Xi Jinping seems focused on shoring up the Communist party and the Chinese stock market, rather than strengthening the Chinese economy.

Brazil has officially entered a recession with news that its economy shrank in the second quarter this year, at a faster rate than in the first. Brazil’s per-capita income has been falling since last year, and the Brazilian real has lost a quarter of its value in the year to date. State-controlled oil and gas giant Petrobras is also in the midst of a huge corruption scandal.

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1 min read

How To Invest

ISHARES MSCI EMERGING MARKETS EASTERN EUROPE INDEX FUND - New York symbol ESR

ISHARES MSCI EMERGING MARKETS EASTERN EUROPE INDEX FUND (formerly New York symbol ESR) has been closed by BlackRock, which manages the iShares funds. Investors were sent a final distribution of the fund’s net asset value, $16.17 per unit, on August 28, 2015.

The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Eastern Europe Index Fund had two-thirds of its assets invested in Russia, including stocks of major Russian firms, such as gas utility Gazprom, oil producer Lukoil and retailer Magnit PJSC.

Investor interest in the fund waned after Russia’s currency, the ruble, dropped to nearrecord lows against the U.S. dollar. The ruble’s fall comes in the wake of falling prices for oil and other commodities and Western sanctions after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

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1 min read

How To Invest

ISHARES MSCI AUSTRALIA ETF $18.19 - New York symbol EWA

ISHARES MSCI AUSTRALIA ETF $18.19 (New York symbol EWA; buy or sell through brokers) is an ETF that holds the 71 largest Australian stocks.

The fund’s top holdings include Commonwealth Bank of Australia, 11.3%; Westpac Banking Corp., 8.6%; National Australia Bank, 7.2%; BHP Billiton, 7.2%; Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, 6.9%; Wesfarmers, 4.1%; and CSL Ltd., 3.9%.

The iShares MSCI Australia ETF was launched on March 12, 1996. It has a 0.48% expense ratio.

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1 min read

How To Invest

ISHARES MSCI CHILE INVESTABLE MARKET INDEX FUND $34.71 - New York symbol ECH

ISHARES MSCI CHILE INVESTABLE MARKET INDEX FUND $34.71 (New York symbol ECH; buy or sell through brokers) is an ETF that aims to track the MSCI Chile Investable Market Index, which consists of stocks that mainly trade on the Santiago Stock Exchange.

The fund’s top holdings are Enersis SA (electricity), 10.5%; Empresas Copec SA (conglomerate), 8.6%; Empresa Nacional de Electricidad (electricity), 7.8%; Empresas CMPC (pulp and paper), 6.4%; S.A.C.I. Falabella (retail), 6.3%; Banco Santander Chile (banking), 6.0%; Banco de Chile, 5.0%; Colbun SA (utility), 4.4%; Cencosud SA (retailer), 4.2%; and LATAM Airlines, 3.4%.

The ETF’s industry breakdown consists of Utilities, 30.7%; Financials, 19.3%; Materials, 12.3%; Consumer Staples, 9.4%; Energy, 8.4%; Consumer Discretionary, 7.8%; Industrials, 6.8%; Telecommunications, 2.6%; and Information Technology, 2.0%.

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1 min read