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A rebounding global economy should continue to push up resource prices. That will help Canadian income trusts that serve the resource sector, including Precision Drilling Trust (symbol PD.UN on Toronto). Precision provides contract-drilling services to oil and gas producers, mainly in western Canada. In light of recent developments surrounding Precision, we’ve updated our buy/sell/hold advice on the trust in the current issue of The Successful Investor. (Read on to find out how you can get a free copy of this issue. Along with our latest buy/sell/hold advice on Precision, it contains our full analysis of 16 other investments that could be suitable for your portfolio.) ...

CGI GROUP INC. $15 (Toronto symbol GIB.A; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 297.0 million; Market cap: $4.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.2; No dividends paid; SI Rating: Extra Risk) is Canada’s largest provider of computer-outsourcing and information-technology services. It also operates in 15 other countries. Canada provided 57% of CGI’s revenue in its latest year, followed by the U.S./India (36%) and Europe/Asia (7%). CGI’s main businesses are: 1) Outsourcing: CGI takes over all or part of a client’s information-technology and related functions. That lets the client cut costs and gain ongoing access to the most current computer technology. Outsourcing accounts for 60% of CGI’s revenue. 2) Consulting: In addition to technical expertise, CGI aims to ensure that its consultants have knowledge of the business issues in their clients’ industries or sectors....

ROYAL BANK OF CANADA $56 (Toronto symbol RY; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.4 billion; Market cap: $78.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.1; Dividend yield: 3.6%; SI Rating: Above Average) is Canada’s largest bank, with total assets of $655.0 billion. Royal is seeing strong demand for loans because of low interest rates. As well, improving financial markets have helped its capital-markets division attract new business. This division, which Royal has steadily expanded in the past few years, helps companies raise capital by selling shares and issuing debt. It now provides 25% of the bank’s total revenue. In the year ended October 31, 2009, Royal’s revenue rose 34.9%, to $29.1 billion from $21.6 billion in the prior year. Earnings rose 6.7%, to $4.9 billion from $4.4 billion. However, earnings per share fell 3.0%, to $3.28 from $3.38, on 7% more shares outstanding. The 2009 figures exclude a $1-billion writedown of goodwill related to Royal’s U.S. operations. Its U.S. and international banking division supplies roughly 10% of its revenue....

TORONTO-DOMINION BANK $64 (Toronto symbol TD; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 858.8 million; Market cap: $55.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.2; Dividend yield: 3.8%; SI Rating: Above Average) is the second-largest Canadian bank, with total assets of $557.2 billion. TD has now fully integrated Commerce Bancorp Inc. with its other U.S. banking operations. The bank paid $8.5 billion for Commerce in May 2008. It now operates as “TD Bank,” and has 1,028 branches from Maine to Florida. The U.S. banking business provides 16% of TD’s overall profits. If you include $276-million in integration costs and $576-million of writedowns of securities, TD’s earnings in the year ended October 31, 2009, fell 18.6%, to $3.1 billion from $3.8 billion in the prior year. Earnings per share fell 28.7%, to $3.47 from $4.87, on more shares outstanding. Revenue rose 21.8%, to $17.9 billion from $14.7 billion, as low interest rates spurred strong demand for new loans....

BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $47 (Toronto symbol BNS; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.0 billion; Market cap: $47.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.9; Dividend yield: 4.2%; SI Rating: Above Average) is Canada’s third-largest bank, with total assets of $496.5 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia is the most international of the big-five banks. It gets about 30% of its earnings from its overseas operations, which are mainly in the Caribbean, Latin America and Asia. These businesses have struggled lately, as the global recession pushed up loan losses. But the rebounding world economy gives them long-term appeal. The bank earned $3.5 billion in the year ended October 31, 2009. That’s up 13.0% from $3.1 billion in the prior year. Earnings per share rose 8.5%, to $3.31 from $3.05, on more shares outstanding. If you exclude writedowns of securities, it would have earned $3.70 a share in 2009. Revenue rose 21.7%, to $14.5 billion from $11.9 billion....

BANK OF MONTREAL $54 (Toronto symbol BMO; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 550.5 million; Market cap: $29.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.9; Dividend yield: 5.2%; SI Rating: Above Average) is the fourth-largest Canadian bank, with total assets of $388.5 billion. The bank earned $1.8 billion in fiscal 2009, down 9.7% from $2.0 billion in the prior year. Earnings per share fell 18.1%, to $3.08 from $3.76, on more shares outstanding. Excluding writedowns and other unusual items, the bank would have earned $4.02 a share in fiscal 2009. Revenue rose 8.4%, to $11.1 billion from $10.2 billion. That’s mainly because low interest rates continue to push up demand for mortgages and other loans....

CANADIAN IMPERIAL BANK OF COMMERCE $66 (Toronto symbol CM; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 384.0 million; Market cap: $25.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.8; Dividend yield: 5.3%; SI Rating: Above Average) is Canada’s fifth-largest bank, with assets of $335.9 billion....

Sometimes a stock moves downward and creates what we consider a buying opportunity. We apply the term when we feel an attractive stock has dropped in price for reasons that are of a passing nature, or that are exaggerated in investors’ minds.

This shouldn’t be confused with “averaging down.” That’s when you buy more of a stock you own that has fallen in price, mainly to lower your average cost per share....

On January 15, Stock Picker’s Digest, our newsletter for aggressive investing, will unveil a stock that’s well positioned for explosive profits in 2010 — and if you hold it for a couple of years, there’s a great chance that it could skyrocket even further. In fact, we think this company’s prospects are so bright we’ve named it Stock Picker’s Digest’s #1 stock pick for the coming year. This Canadian firm has staked out a strong position in its industry. Plus, its low cost structure puts it in a strong position to profit as the economy recovers. And these advantages are only the beginning. The company has recently made a big investment in improving its computer systems. And it has a great reputation for customer service — an often underappreciated factor in attracting and retaining clients....

When you subscribe to The Successful Investor, our flagship publication, you get access to three high-quality portfolios we’ve built to help you profit over the long term. We update all three regularly, and keep them under constant review to make sure you always get our very best picks among high return investments. (We’ve updated our buy/sell/hold advice on a company we’ve covered in our Portfolio for Aggressive Growth below. Read on for further details.)...

Growth stocks are companies whose earnings growth is expected to be above the market average. These firms often pay little or no dividends. Instead, they invest any extra money in furthering their growth. These stocks are long-term investments. They can be well-known stars or quiet gems, but they share the common trait of growing at a higher than average rate within their industry, or within the market as a whole. (You can get all the details on how to select appropriate stocks for your portfolio in our new special report, “Canadian Stock Market Basics: How to Trade Stocks and Make Good Investments in Canada.” Click here to download this free report and get started right away.)...

Canada’s telephone companies continue to face rising competition. Along with wireless and cable companies, Internet-based phone services, such as Skype, have also gained in popularity. Now, three new wireless providers (Globalive’s WIND Mobile, DAVE Wireless, and Public Mobile) are set to enter the Canadian market. This new competition will put pressure on BCE Inc. (symbol BCE on Toronto), Canada’s largest telephone service provider. In light of this and other developments surrounding this conservative investing stock, we’ve updated our buy/sell/hold advice in the latest Canadian Wealth Advisor, our newsletter for safety-conscious conservative investing....

ALTAMIRA SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY FUND $7.59 (CWA Rating: Aggressive) (Altamira Investment Services, The Exchange Tower, 130 King Street West, Suite 900, Toronto, Ont. M5X 1K9. 1-800-263-2824; Web site: www.altamira.com. No load — deal directly with the company) mostly invests in U.S. companies in the telecommunications, biotechnology, environmental-technology, health-care and computer industries. Altamira Science & Technology’s top holdings include Apple, Microsoft Corp., Google, Hewlett-Packard Co., Oracle Corporation, Electronic Arts, Pfizer, Intel, EMC Corp., Cisco Systems, IBM, Qualcomm, Canon and Merck & Co. The fund’s MER is 2.35%. The $44-million fund gained 21.7% (in Canadian dollars) in the year ended November 30, 2009. The Nasdaq index rose 19.4% (also in Canadian funds) in the same period. Over the last 10 years, the fund has lost 11.3% annually, compared to a loss of 7.4% annually for the Nasdaq index....

ISHARES MSCI EMERGING MARKETS EASTERN EUROPE INDEX FUND $29.16 (New York Exchange symbol ESR; buy or sell through brokers), is an ETF that aims to track the MSCI Emerging Markets Eastern Europe Index. The fund’s geographic breakdown is as follows: Russia, 74.6%; Poland, 12.9%; Czech Republic 6.4% and Hungary, 6.1%. iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Eastern Europe Index Fund’s top holdings are Gazprom (Russia: gas utility), 22.4%; Lukoil (Russia: oil and gas), 10.9%; Sberbank (Russia: bank), 7.5%; MMC Norilsk Nickel (Russia: mining), 4.7%; Rosneft Oil (Russia: oil and gas), 4.3%; Mobile TeleSystems (Russia: wireless), 3.9%; CEZ AS (Poland: utility), 3.5%; OTP Bank (Hungary: bank), 3.0%; PKO Bank Polski SA (Poland: bank), 2.9%; and Surgutneftagaz (Russia: oil and gas), 3.7%. The fund’s industry breakdown is as follows: Energy, 49.2%; Banks, 20.4%; Materials, 11.9%; Telecommunication Services, 10.8%; Utilities, 3.5%; Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology and Life Sciences, 1.9%; Software and Services, 0.5%; Media, 0.5%; Food, Beverages and Tobacco, 0.5%; and Real Estate, 0.5%.The ETF has an expense ratio of 0.72%....

ISHARES MSCI BRAZIL INDEX FUND $77.79 (New York Exchange symbol EWZ; buy or sell through brokers), is an ETF that is designed to track the Brazilian stock market. The fund’s top holdings are Petrobras preferred shares (energy), 12.5%; Petrobras common shares, 10.2%; Cia Vale do Rio Doce (mining) preferred shares, 9.4%; Cia Vale do Rio Doce common shares, 7.0%; Itau Unibanco Multiplo SA (banking), 7.8%; Banco Bradesco preferred shares (banking), 4.7%; Cia de Bebidas das Americas preferred shares (beer and other beverages), 3.2%; Cia Siderurgica Nacional SA (steel), 3.0%; Gerdau SA (steel), 2.4%; and OGX Petroleo e Gas Patricipa (energy), 2.4%. The fund’s industry breakdown is as follows: Materials, 28.5%; Energy, 25.9%; Financials, 19.5%; Consumer Staples, 7.9%; Utilities, 7.0%; Telecommunication Services, 4.0%; Consumer Discretionary, 2.4%; Information Technology, 2.1%; and Industrials, 2.0%. The ETF has an expense ratio of 0.63%....

Members of our Inner Circle service ask us a lot of very interesting questions. For example, one member was buying a new home at what he considered to be an extremely attractive price. However, he had not yet sold his current home. He worried about the risk of owning two homes, even for a few months. He wanted to hedge against a drop in the value of his existing home in the period before it sold. To hedge against this Canadian real estate investing risk, his broker suggested that he buy some put options on Bank of Montreal stock....

We analyze a wide range of investments in Canadian Wealth Advisor, our newsletter for safety-conscious investors. These include the 19 common stocks we’ve selected for our “Safety-Conscious Stock Portfolio.” All these stocks are well-established companies with bright prospects and strong positions in healthy industries. As well, almost all offer dividend reinvestment plans, or DRIPs. DRIPs let shareholders reinvest dividends to buy additional shares (or fractions of shares) of the company. DRIPs bypass brokers, so shareholders save on commissions....

Today, many investors worry about a “W” shaped recession. That is, they worry that we are on the brink of a second recession that follows shortly after the first. Others are concerned that inflation will rise as the economy recovers. This explains the recent run-up in gold prices, for example, and the popularity of certain resource stocks (including crude oil stocks), which many investors see as a hedge against inflation. (See below for a full analysis of a diversified producer that’s been moving up recently.) ...

On January 8 The Successful Investor will unveil a stock that’s primed for explosive growth in 2010. In fact, we think this blue chip stock’s prospects are so bright we’ve named it The Successful Investor’s #1 stock pick for the coming year. More on how you can get all the details on this exciting #1 pick in a moment, but first we’d like to share with you... ...

Grocery retailer Metro Inc. (symbol MRU.A on Toronto) is a good example of a stock that has graduated from Stock Pickers Digest, our newsletter for aggressive investors, to The Successful Investor, which focuses on more conservative selections. Stock Pickers Digest is where we analyze stocks that are attractive but not yet suitable for The Successful Investor’s conservative investing focus. Ideally, many of our Stock Pickers buys will one day mature into investments that we can recommend in The Successful Investor. We first added Metro to the stocks we analyze in Stock Pickers Digest in June 1998. At the time, it was trading at around $10. In December 2007, when we moved it to The Successful Investor, it was trading at about $32, for a 220% gain....

In our new report, Mutual Funds Canada: Inside the Top 10 Canadian Mutual Funds, we spotlight the top 10 Canadian mutual funds for your portfolio. But that’s not all. We also show you how we selected these funds, and strategies you can use to find funds that are capable of weathering a market slump, and profiting anew when the market turns up again. Perhaps more importantly, we show you what danger signs to look for when investing in mutual funds. For example, we think you should avoid funds whose managers practice a sector-rotation approach....

Blue chip stocks are well-established companies that have demonstrated their financial strength through good times and bad. They typically pay dividends, and are considered to be less risky, based on their historical patterns. There are many blue chip stocks in the consumer sector. Typically, the strongest of these companies sell staples, like soap, beverages and soup, that consumers must buy no matter what the economy is doing. Strong consumer blue chip stocks share a number of characteristics. These include geographic diversity (which helps protect them from regional economic problems), a record of rising cash flow and a strong balance sheet....

We hardly ever recommend buying new issues when they are first sold to the public, and often stay away from them for months, if not years, afterward. That’s because new issues often come to market when it’s a good time for the company and/or its insiders to sell, but that’s not necessarily a good time for you to buy.

Spinoffs are in many ways the antithesis of new issues....

One way to cut your tax bill in retirement is for you and your spouse to arrange the family finances so that you each have equal retirement income. That’s because, if one spouse earns more than the other, the higher-income spouse would, of course, be in a higher tax bracket. That means that any extra money the higher-income spouse earns on investments, such as through capital gains, interest or dividends, would be taxed at a higher rate. So, you can lower your family’s overall tax bill by aiming to have both spouses in the same tax bracket. The Canada Revenue Agency won’t let you lower your income tax by simply giving invested funds to a lower-income spouse. “Attribution” rules apply if you do that. That means the higher-income spouse must pay tax on any gains or investment income from those funds....

We’ve analyzed junior gold and mineral stocks for many years in Stock Pickers Digest, our newsletter for more aggressive investors. Many of our picks have shot up during the recent rise in gold from around $700 U.S. an ounce in the fall of 2008 to a recent peak of above $1,200 U.S. Gold has since dropped by about $100. But we think that’s a temporary fluctuation. ...