investment

An investment is an asset or property acquired to generate income or gain appreciation. Appreciation is the increase in the value of an asset over time. It requires the outlay of a resource today, like time, effort, and money, for a greater payoff in the future or for generating a profit.

An investment involves using capital in the present to increase an asset’s value over time.

Investments may include bonds, stocks, real estate, or alternative investments.

Investments can be diversified to reduce risk, though this may reduce the amount of earning potential.

In business contexts, investments are financial; however, consider how some people spend time to make higher incomes in the future (i.e. invest in a college education).

Read More Close
BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS INC. $54 (New York symbol BR; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 118.6 million; Market cap: $6.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.3; Dividend yield: 2.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.broadridge.com) serves the investment industry in three main areas: investor communications, securities processing and transaction clearing. The company processes 90% of all proxy votes in the U.S. and Canada. Broadridge was a subsidiary of Automatic Data Processing until April 2007, when ADP spun it off as a separate firm. Acquisitions drive profits higher...
Wind power stocks offer a lot of conceptual appeal, but also harbour a number of unique risks.
The history of ETFs is one of the evolution of indexing and of market innovation.
Our view on Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan and whether its high dividend can stand up to weaker demand and lower prices.
A: NorthWest HealthCare Properties REIT, $8.10, symbol NWH.UN on Toronto (Units outstanding: 52.5 million; Market cap: $420.2 million; www.nwhp.ca), owns 123 properties, with a focus on medical office buildings and clinics (70% of its portfolio) and hospitals (30%). The real estate investment trust is Canada’s largest non-government owner and operator of medical office buildings.

In all, NorthWest’s properties contain 8.0 million square feet of leasable area. Its Canadian holdings are concentrated in Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City and Halifax. It also owns buildings in Brazil, Germany, Australia and New Zealand. NorthWest has a 95.8% occupancy rate.

The REIT first sold units to the public for $10 each and began trading on Toronto on March 25, 2010.

In the three months ended September 30, 2015, NorthWest’s revenue jumped to $63.3 million from $11.8 million a year earlier. That’s because it recently merged with its international affiliate in an all-stock transaction.

Cash flow jumped 67.4%, to $14.4 million from $8.6 million. However, cash flow per unit fell 20.0%, to $0.20 from $0.25, on more units outstanding after the merger.

...
BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS $54.44 New York symbol BR; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (201-714-3000; www.broadridge.com; Shares outstanding: 118.6 million; Market cap: $6.4 billion; Dividend yield: 2.2%) serves the investment industry in three main areas: investor communications, securities processing and transaction clearing. The company processes 90% of all proxy votes in the U.S. and Canada. Without one-time items, Broadridge earned $39.6 million in its fiscal 2016 first quarter, which ended September 30, 2015. That’s up 7.9% from $36.7 million a year earlier. Earnings per share rose 10.0%, to $0.33 from $0.30, on fewer shares outstanding. Revenue gained 7.0%, to $594.7 million from $555.8 million. The company continues to add new clients and is doing a good job of holding onto existing ones. Recurring fee revenue rose 10.0% in the latest quarter and accounted for 66% of the total....
CANADIAN REIT (Toronto symbol REF.UN owns 198 properties, including retail, industrial and office buildings, across Canada and in Chicago.
REITMANS (CANADA) LTD., $4.02, symbol RET.A on Toronto, owns 775 women’s clothing stores across Canada. The chain consists of 332 Reitmans, 136 Penningtons, 107 Addition Elle, 83 RW & Co., 68 Thyme Maternity, 17 Hyda and 32 Smart Set outlets. It also has 21 Thyme Maternity boutiques in Canadian Babies “R” Us stores. In the three months ended October 31, 2015, Reitmans’ sales rose slightly, to $240.3 million from $238.3 million a year earlier. Same-store sales gained 7.6%, with brick-and-mortar stores increasing 4.8% and e-commerce jumping 72.2%....
In addition to Loblaw (see first article), we think these three retail stocks have great long-term prospects. They all lead their markets and have strong brands and reputations that will help them grow. However, only aggressive investors should consider Metro and RioCan. CANADIAN TIRE CORP. $122 (Toronto symbol CTC.A; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 75.0 million; Market cap: $9.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.7; Dividend yield: 1.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.canadiantire.ca) has 495 Canadian Tire stores, which sell automotive, household and sporting goods. Franchisees run most of these outlets. Other operations include 297 gas stations and 91 PartSource auto parts stores....
iShares Core S&P 500 Hedged ETF aims to cut currency risk by hedging against movements of the U.S. dollar vs. the Canadian dollar. Our view.