canadian

CANADIAN TIRE CORP., $144.07, Toronto symbol CTC.A, is a buy.

Investors benefit from the company’s 502 Canadian Tire stores. They sell automotive parts and services, and household and sporting goods; franchisees run most of the locations. The company’s other operations also enrich its outlook....
Savers Value Village reported a 66% earnings increase after reporting rising sales, opening new stores and improving its efficiency while cutting costs.

Medium-sized companies are a bit like the proverbial middle child—they tend not to get as much attention from investors as the smallest or the biggest. But this creates opportunities for investors who are prepared to add the best of those stocks—or the ETFs that hold them—to their portfolios.


High-quality mid-cap stocks can offer the stability and balance sheet strength of large caps, while at the same time, they give investors growth potential similar to small caps.


What are mid-cap stocks?


Mid-cap stocks fall between large-cap stocks and small-cap stocks but the average size of mid-cap companies varies from market to market.


Index provider S&P ranks all U.S....
Many investors overlook mid-cap stocks, thinking that a combination of large- and small-cap stocks will provide their portfolios with all the diversification they need. However, as a group, U.S. mid-cap stocks have often performed better than large caps and are generally less risky than small caps....
Precious metals should let you profit over the next few years if interest rates begin falling (a clear possibility). That lowers the appeal of the U.S. dollar and increases the appeal of gold—and other precious metals—as a store of value. Here we look at three ETFs that aim to benefit from the long-term positive trends in precious metals (see the supplement on page 59 for more on precious metals and their role in your portfolio).


SPROTT PHYSICAL GOLD AND SILVER TRUST $29.44 (Toronto symbol CEF; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $6.2 billion) invests in physical gold and silver bullion held in the vaults of the Royal Canadian Mint....
Look for Canadian income trusts or REITs that focus on investment inputs as well as investment outputs. Here are 9 criteria.
Royal Bank recently completed its acquisition of HSBC’s Canadian operations. While big and complex acquisitions like this add risk, particularly if technical disruptions prompt HSBC clients to switch to a rival bank, we’re confident the deal will spur Royal’s profits higher over the next few years.


ROYAL BANK OF CANADA $140 is a buy. The bank (Toronto symbol RY; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.4 billion; Market cap: $196.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.4; Dividend yield: 3.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.rbc.com) is Canada’s largest by market cap....
Demand for electrical power in Canada continues to rise due to several factors. Those include an expanding population and the shift to electric-powered cars. Moreover, the construction of new datacentres to handle power-intense artificial intelligence will also spur electricity demand.


A good way for investors to tap those trends is with these three high-quality power utilities....
We continue to recommend all investors own at least one of Canada’s railways due to their importance to the national economy. While our top pick is Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. (Toronto symbol CP), we also like the outlook for its main rival, Canadian National.


After CN failed in its attempt to buy U.S....
We’ve said for a long time that growth by acquisition is inherently riskier than internal growth, since it carries an above-average chance of unpleasant surprises. Under the rules of financial physics, a buyer of something rarely knows as much about it as the seller.

Of course, some companies do a better job than others of choosing acquisition targets....