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
LOBLAW COMPANIES LTD. $60 (Toronto symbol L; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 412.4 million; Market cap: $24.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.6; Dividend yield: 1.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.loblaw.ca) has sold 15 stores and one warehouse to Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (Toronto symbol CHP.UN).
Loblaw received $211.9 million, which is equal to 57% of the $371.0 million, or $0.90 a share, that it earned in the three months ended October 4, 2014. That total included $112.2 million of Choice Properties’ units. As a result, Loblaw now owns 83.0% of this REIT.
Loblaw is a buy....
Loblaw received $211.9 million, which is equal to 57% of the $371.0 million, or $0.90 a share, that it earned in the three months ended October 4, 2014. That total included $112.2 million of Choice Properties’ units. As a result, Loblaw now owns 83.0% of this REIT.
Loblaw is a buy....
CANADIAN IMPERIAL BANK OF COMMERCE $104 (Toronto symbol CM; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 397.0 million; Market cap: $41.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.4; Dividend yield: 3.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.cibc.com) is Canada’s fifth-largest bank, with $405.4 billion of assets.
CIBC prefers to focus on domestic banking instead of international expansion; Canada supplies about 85% of its revenue. The bank sold half of its Aeroplan accounts to TD Bank (see page 113) when TD took over the plan.
As a result, its earnings fell 2.5% in the three months ended July 31, 2014, to $908 million from $931 million a year earlier. Per-share earnings declined 1.3%, to $2.23 from $2.26, on fewer shares outstanding. These figures exclude unusual items, such as gains on investment sales.
...
CIBC prefers to focus on domestic banking instead of international expansion; Canada supplies about 85% of its revenue. The bank sold half of its Aeroplan accounts to TD Bank (see page 113) when TD took over the plan.
As a result, its earnings fell 2.5% in the three months ended July 31, 2014, to $908 million from $931 million a year earlier. Per-share earnings declined 1.3%, to $2.23 from $2.26, on fewer shares outstanding. These figures exclude unusual items, such as gains on investment sales.
...
BANK OF MONTREAL $82 (Toronto symbol BMO; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 649.0 million; Market cap: $53.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.5; Dividend yield: 3.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.bmo.com) is Canada’s fourth-largest bank, with $586.8 billion of assets.
In July 2011, the bank paid $4.1 billion for Milwaukee-based Marshall & Ilsley. The move doubled the size of its U.S. retail banking business, which now supplies 15% of its total earnings. Thanks to cost cuts and an improving U.S.
economy, this division will likely earn $686 million in fiscal 2014, up 8.7% from 2013. The bank aims to raise that to at least $750 million in 2015.
...
In July 2011, the bank paid $4.1 billion for Milwaukee-based Marshall & Ilsley. The move doubled the size of its U.S. retail banking business, which now supplies 15% of its total earnings. Thanks to cost cuts and an improving U.S.
economy, this division will likely earn $686 million in fiscal 2014, up 8.7% from 2013. The bank aims to raise that to at least $750 million in 2015.
...
TORONTO-DOMINION BANK $57 (Toronto symbol TD; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.8 billion; Market cap: $102.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.0; Dividend yield: 3.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.td.comtarget=”_blank”) is Canada’s largest bank, with $921.8 billion of assets.
TD continues to benefit from its recent deal with Aimia (Toronto symbol AIM) to become the main credit card issuer for the popular Aeroplan travelreward program. The bank’s insurance operations also benefited from a 32% drop in claims in the latest quarter.
As a result, TD’s earnings jumped 36.8% in the three months ended July 31, 2014, to $2.2 billion from $1.6 billion a year earlier. Per-share profits gained 40.2%, to $1.15 from $0.82. These figures exclude unusual items, such as costs related to the new Aeroplan business.
...
TD continues to benefit from its recent deal with Aimia (Toronto symbol AIM) to become the main credit card issuer for the popular Aeroplan travelreward program. The bank’s insurance operations also benefited from a 32% drop in claims in the latest quarter.
As a result, TD’s earnings jumped 36.8% in the three months ended July 31, 2014, to $2.2 billion from $1.6 billion a year earlier. Per-share profits gained 40.2%, to $1.15 from $0.82. These figures exclude unusual items, such as costs related to the new Aeroplan business.
...
SUNCOR ENERGY INC., $40.52, Toronto symbol SU, plans to spend between $7.2 billion and $7.8 billion to expand and upgrade its operations in 2015. To put these figures in context, the company’s cash flow was $7.6 billion in the first nine months of 2014. Suncor will invest 55% of the 2015 estimate, or $4.3 billion, in its oil sands and other growth projects. The remaining 45% will go to refineries and conventional oil and gas properties. The midpoint of the 2015 range is 10.3% higher than the $6.8 billion the company expects to spend this year—even though oil prices have fallen by more than 20% in the past six months. Suncor feels its new oil sands projects can still generate positive cash flow at today’s prices....
PETSMART INC., $78.70, Nasdaq symbol PETM, operates 1,387 pet stores in the U.S. and Canada. It also has 201 in-store PetsHotel boarding facilities for dogs and cats. In its fiscal 2015 third quarter, which ended November 2, 2014, PetSmart’s earnings declined 0.1%, to $92.16 million from $92.22 million a year earlier. However, earnings per share rose 4.5%, to $0.92 from $0.88, on fewer shares outstanding. Activist investment firms Jana Partners and Longview Asset Management each own about 9% of the company’s stock. Under pressure from these investors, PetSmart is now lowering its overhead and other costs, with the goal of cutting $200 million from its annual expenses by the end of fiscal 2016....
Pat McKeough responds to many requests from members of his Inner Circle for specific stock tips as well as questions on investment strategy and the economy. Every week, his comments and recommendations on the most intriguing questions of the past week go out to all Inner Circle members. And each week we offer you a report on one of the stocks profiled in these Q&A sessions. We give you Pat’s buy-hold-sell recommendation as well as his analysis of the stock. This is part of the specific buy, hold and sell advice we offer you in our daily posts. Every week you get “A Stock to Sell” on Monday, “Best Canadian Stocks” on Tuesday, and “U.S. Stock Picks” on Thursday.
This week an Inner Circle Member asked us about a Canadian company that’s an international leader in the aircraft parts industry. Héroux-Devtek is the world’s third-largest maker of landing gear for aircraft, with clients such as Boeing, Embraer and Bombardier. Pat considers the company’s rising earnings in light of a recent acquisition and a new contract with Boeing. He also looks at the impact of shrinking military budgets around the globe on Héroux-Devtek’s prospects.
Q: Pat: What is your opinion on Héroux-Devtek Inc.? Best regards.
...
This week an Inner Circle Member asked us about a Canadian company that’s an international leader in the aircraft parts industry. Héroux-Devtek is the world’s third-largest maker of landing gear for aircraft, with clients such as Boeing, Embraer and Bombardier. Pat considers the company’s rising earnings in light of a recent acquisition and a new contract with Boeing. He also looks at the impact of shrinking military budgets around the globe on Héroux-Devtek’s prospects.
Q: Pat: What is your opinion on Héroux-Devtek Inc.? Best regards.
...
Every Thursday we bring you our best U.S. stock picks. You get our specific recommendation on the stocks we profile, with a full explanation of how we arrived at our opinion. You will read about stocks making moves you should know about, most often from coverage in our newsletter on U.S. investing, Wall Street Stock Forecaster. Procter & Gamble’s sales have slowed in recent years, mainly due to competition from cheaper generic brands. In response, the company is eliminating less profitable household goods and cutting costs. It’s also doing a good job of developing new products and finding new markets for existing ones. These moves will give Procter more room to adjust its prices without hurting its profit margins. They’ll also provide more cash for share buybacks and dividend hikes....
WAL-MART STORES INC., $82.96, New York symbol WMT, rose 5% this week after reporting better-than-expected quarterly results. In the third quarter of its 2015 fiscal year, which ended October 31, 2014, Wal-Mart’s earnings fell 0.4%, to $3.71 billion from $3.73 billion a year earlier. However, earnings per share rose 0.9%, to $1.15 from $1.14, on fewer shares outstanding. That beat the consensus estimate of $1.12. Revenue rose 2.9%, to $119.0 billion from $115.7 billion, also exceeding the consensus forecast of $118.4 billion. If you disregard unfavourable currency rates, Wal-Mart’s sales would have risen 3.1% in the latest quarter....
Pat McKeough responds to many requests from members of his Inner Circle for specific stock investing advice as well as questions on investment strategy and the economy. Every week, his comments and recommendations on the most intriguing questions of the past week go out to all Inner Circle members. And each week we offer you a report on one of the stocks profiled in these Q&A sessions. We give you Pat’s buy-hold-sell recommendation as well as his analysis of the stock. This is part of the specific buy, hold and sell advice we offer you in our daily posts. Every week you get “A Stock to Sell” on Monday, “Best Canadian Stocks” on Tuesday, and “Our Top U.S. Stocks” on Thursday.
Recently an Inner Circle member asked us about Parkland Fuel, a company that sells gasoline and operates convenience stores through its own brands and under license to bigger companies like Imperial Oil. Parkland recently lost a major supply contract with Suncor Energy and Pat examines the company’s attempts to replace that business with new acquisitions. He also looks at the impact of lower oil prices on Parkland’s profits.
Q: Hi Pat: Could you give us an update on Parkland Fuels? They are continuing to make acquisitions, and the stock continues to rise. Would you consider it a buy now? Regards.
A: Parkland Fuel Corp. (symbol PKI on Toronto; www.parkland.ca) operates gas stations, convenience stores and a fuel distribution business, mostly in Western Canada and Ontario. It was called Parkland Income Fund before it converted to a dividend-paying corporation on December 31, 2010.
The company owns 144 rural gas stations and convenience stores. Brands include Fas Gas Plus, Race Trac Gas and Short Stop. Many of Parkland’s stations sell propane in addition to gasoline and diesel fuel. The company also operates Esso stations in Western Canada and Ontario under a licensing deal with Imperial Oil (symbol IMO on Toronto). It recently signed an agreement to use the Chevron brand in B.C.
...
Recently an Inner Circle member asked us about Parkland Fuel, a company that sells gasoline and operates convenience stores through its own brands and under license to bigger companies like Imperial Oil. Parkland recently lost a major supply contract with Suncor Energy and Pat examines the company’s attempts to replace that business with new acquisitions. He also looks at the impact of lower oil prices on Parkland’s profits.
Q: Hi Pat: Could you give us an update on Parkland Fuels? They are continuing to make acquisitions, and the stock continues to rise. Would you consider it a buy now? Regards.
A: Parkland Fuel Corp. (symbol PKI on Toronto; www.parkland.ca) operates gas stations, convenience stores and a fuel distribution business, mostly in Western Canada and Ontario. It was called Parkland Income Fund before it converted to a dividend-paying corporation on December 31, 2010.
The company owns 144 rural gas stations and convenience stores. Brands include Fas Gas Plus, Race Trac Gas and Short Stop. Many of Parkland’s stations sell propane in addition to gasoline and diesel fuel. The company also operates Esso stations in Western Canada and Ontario under a licensing deal with Imperial Oil (symbol IMO on Toronto). It recently signed an agreement to use the Chevron brand in B.C.
...