investment management

TORSTAR CORP. $0.38 (www.torstar.com) remains a hold, but only for highly aggressive investors. The COVID-19 outbreak has forced many businesses to temporarily shut down. As a result, they are cutting spending on advertising....

Loblaw’s supermarkets and its Shoppers Drug Mart stores continue to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic as governments consider them essential businesses. Despite additional payments to employees and costs for store cleaning, investors should expect the company’s earnings and dividend to rise in 2020.


The crisis is also drawing attention to the company’s new online ordering services, including home delivery and in-store pickup....

TELUS CORP. $23 is a buy. The stock (Toronto symbol T; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 1.3 billion; Market cap: $29.9 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.0; Dividend yield: 5.0%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.telus.com) lets you tap Canada’s third-largest wireless carrier after Rogers Communications (No....

ENBRIDGE INC. $40 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol ENB; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 2.0 billion; Market cap: $80.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.6; Dividend yield: 8.1%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.enbridge.com) operates pipelines that pump oil and natural gas from Western Canada to eastern Canada and the U.S....

These two utilities get nearly all of their cash flow from regulated power contracts. Both use that solid revenue to build up their operations, including cutting their reliance on fossil fuel projects. Those improvements should continue to fuel your long-term dividend increases.


EMERA INC....

HOME CAPITAL GROUP INC. $16 remains a hold for aggressive investors. The stock (Toronto symbol HCG; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 53.0 million; Market cap: $848.0 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.0; Dividend suspended in May 2017; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative; www.homecapital.com) lets you tap a mortgage lender serving borrowers who fail to meet the stricter standards of big banks and traditional lenders.


The company cuts its credit risk by identifying problem loans early and adjusting the repayment terms....

IMPERIAL OIL LTD. $18 is still a buy for the Resources sector of your portfolio. The integrated oil producer (Toronto symbol IMO; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios; Shares outstanding: 743.9 million; Market cap: $13.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.4; Dividend yield: 4.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.imperialoil.ca) is cutting its 2020 capital spending plans by about 30% due to sharply lower crude oil prices....

Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the Bank of Canada has cut its benchmark lending rate to just 0.25%. That will certainly hurt the interest income that Canada’s Big Five banks earn on their loans. The pandemic will also dampen demand for new loans, at least until the economy returns to normal....

The shares of CGI, Canada’s largest provider of computer outsourcing services, have dropped about 30% in the past month due to the COVID-19 outbreak. That in part reflects the pandemic’s role in limiting visits by the company’s representatives to both existing and prospective clients.


However, the company is in a strong position to survive the crisis, and thrive again when the economy rebounds....

As I’ve said since mid-March, I suspect the bulk of the damage to the stock market may already be behind us. Obviously, I could be wrong. I’ll explain why and say more over the next few weeks in our newsletters and weekly Hotlines.


Meanwhile, I advise against selling high-quality stocks, especially if they are part of a portfolio that’s diversified across most if not all of the five main economic sectors.


This issue highlights several high-quality stocks we feel are poised to deliver strong gains as the pandemic eases and the economy recovers.


Those include CGI, our top Aggressive pick for 2020....