HEWLETT-PACKARD ENTERPRISE CO. $24 is also a hold. The company (New York symbol HPE; Conservative Growth Portfolio; Manufacturing sector; Shares outstanding: 1.3 billion; Market cap: $31.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.9; Dividend yield: 2.4%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.hpe.com) recently acquired Juniper Networks Inc. (New York symbol JNPR) for $14.0 billion in cash. Juniper designs and develops products and services for high-performance networks for the cloud, service providers and corporations. HP Enterprise expects the purchase will let it cut $600 million from its annual costs in three years.

PROCTER & GAMBLE CO. $148 is a buy. The consumer products giant (New York symbol PG; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 2.4 billion; Market cap: $355.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 4.2; Dividend yield: 2.9%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.pg.com) reported 3.0% higher sales in its fiscal 2026 first quarter, ended September 30, 2025, to $22.39 billion from $21.74 billion. Excluding currency and acquisitions/divestitures, revenue improved 2%.


Procter is now cutting 6% of its workforce as part of a new plan to streamline its operations and minimize the impact of tariffs. Excluding one-time items, it earned $1.99 a share (or a total of $4.85 billion). That’s up 3.1% from $1.93 a share (or $4.76 billion).

All three of the following consumer sector stocks have moved down lately as rising costs for ingredients have hurt their earnings. The uncertain economy is also prompting consumers to cut their spending.

In response, these three firms are cutting costs and improving the quality of their products. That should push their stock prices higher in 2026 and beyond.

FORD MOTOR CO. $13 is a hold. The automaker (New York symbol F; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 4.0 billion; Market cap: $52.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.3; Dividend yield: 4.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; www.ford.com) plans to cut the number of electric-powered vehicles (EVs) it produces in favour of gasoline-powered and hybrid (gas and electric) cars and trucks. That’s partly because the U.S. government recently eliminated the $7,500 tax credit for EV buyers.


As a result, the company will write down its EV operations by $8.5 billion. If you include related restructuring actions, the entire plan will cost $19.5 billion. Of that total, $5.5 billion are cash payments.

The shares of RTX have gained more than 50% since the start of 2025 and recently hit a new all-time high of $182.28.

That big jump is mainly due to rising air travel volumes and a slowdown in the production of new aircraft. As a result, airlines are spending more on the company’s replacement parts and maintenance services. RTX also continues to see strong demand for its Patriot missiles and other military hardware due to the Russia-Ukraine war and other ongoing conflicts.

We feel the stock can move even higher, given its large order backlog and strong position in its main markets. Investors will also continue to benefit from regular dividend increases and share buybacks.

A: The Desjardins Alt Long/Short Equity Market Neutral ETF, $22.27, symbol DANC on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 9.9 million; Market cap: $220.5 million; www.fondesjardins.com), holds a portfolio that consists primarily of pairs of Canadian stocks or ETFs in the same sector, one of which is a long position and the other a short.


For instance, the ETF might hold a long position in the pipeline utility Enbridge Inc., offset by a similarly sized short position in Pembina Pipeline.



This strategy is aimed at neutralizing market exposure by being long and short in exact amounts in the same sector.

A: Rocket Lab Corp., $54.85, symbol RKLB in New York (Shares outstanding: 534.2 million; Market cap: $29.6 billion; www.rocketlabcorp.com), is an integrated aerospace business headquartered in Long Beach, California.


Founded in 2006 in New Zealand by Peter Beck, the company has grown into a prominent player in the small satellite launch market. Beck is the current CEO and holds about 10% of Rocket shares.



The company designs and manufactures small and medium-class rockets, spacecraft, and spacecraft components, as well as related software and services, to support the space economy.



Rocket Lab went public in August 2021, when it combined with Vector Acquisition Corp., a SPAC (special purpose acquisition company).



The company’s key segments are:

A: Canada Packers Inc., $15.47, symbol CPKR on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 29.7 million; Market cap: $457.7 million; www.canadapackers.com) is a recommendation of our flagship publication, The Successful Investor.


Maple Leaf Foods (symbol MFI on Toronto) recently spun off its pork processing business, which raises and processes hogs, as a separate firm called Canada Packers Inc. After the spinoff, the new pork company has continued to supply meat to its former parent.



Canada Packers is now the subject of a “mini-tender” offer from TRC Capital Investment Corporation.



Mini-tenders typically bid for shares at prices below the market price, and the offers are highly conditional.

A: Huntington Ingalls Industries, $325.73, symbol HII in New York (Shares outstanding: 39.2 million; Market cap: $12.9 billion; www.hii.com), is the largest military shipbuilding company in the United States as well as a provider of professional services to partners in government and industry. The firm was spun out by Northrop Grumman in 2011.


Huntington has three main business segments:



Through its Ingalls segment, the company designs and constructs non-nuclear ships for the U.S. Navy, including amphibious assault ships, surface combatants, and national security cutters.



The core business of its Newport News segment is the design and construction of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines, and the refuelling, overhaul and inactivation of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.

Now is a good time for us to say “Thanks!” to all our Inner Circle and Inner Circle Pro members. It’s a pleasure to read and answer your questions every week. We enjoy and take pride in the many compliments and expressions of thanks we receive from you.


Your confidence in us is especially gratifying this year given the market volatility we’ve seen, kicked off by April’s sharp decline. For many of you, the even sharper increases that followed—the S&P/TSX Composite is now up a whopping 26% from January 1—have strengthened your appreciation of TSI’s investment philosophy.



Here, let me repeat our three-part Successful Investor approach to portfolio building. We think it always bears repeating, regardless of the market conditions:



1. Invest mainly in well-established, dividend-paying companies. Ideally, some of your picks should have hidden assets—that is, assets that many investors disregard or fail to appreciate.



2. Spread your money out across most if not all the five main economic sectors: Manufacturing & Industry, Resources & Commodities, the Consumer sector, Finance and Utilities.



3. Downplay or avoid stocks in the broker/media limelight, where a modest business setback can set off a deep, sudden and sometimes permanent drop in the stock.