ENCANA CORP. $70 (New York symbol ECA; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 750.2 million; Market cap: $52.5 billion; WSSF Rating: Average) is a major North American producer of natural gas (about 80% of total production) and oil (20%).

EnCana prefers to focus on what… Read More

Most oil and gas stocks hit record highs earlier this year, but have dropped lately along with energy prices. However, energy prices will undoubtedly rise again over the next few years as developing countries continue to industrialize their economies. As well, wind, solar and other… Read More

Some investors worry that Washington’s $700 billion bailout of the banking industry is going to fall apart, and that this will lead to a rise in gold and a drop in the stock market. We think the bailout will go through. The only obstacle to… Read More

We’ve added seven new stocks to our Aggressive Growth Portfolio. While riskier than many of our recommendations, these seven are leaders in their fields, and attractively priced in relation to their prospects. Conservative investors should limit stocks like these to no more than a third… Read More

Some readers have asked when we plan to recommend some new stocks, to replace recent takeovers.

Regardless of takeover activity, we continually look for new stocks to buy. But a key part of our stock-picking philosophy is “win by not losing”. If we have any doubts… Read More

Holding companies tend to trade for less than the value of their various pieces (‘holding company discount’). Still, despite the apparent bargain, we only recommend the holding company over its subsidiaries when we have a high opinion of all the subsidiaries. A good example is… Read More