A: Pacer U.S. Cash Cows 100 ETF, $57.17, symbol COWZ on the CBOE (Units outstanding: 386.5 million; Market cap: $22.1 billion; www.paceretfs.com) aims to provide capital appreciation over time by picking and holding the top 100 companies of the Russell 1000 based on free cash flow yield.

Pacer defines free cash flow as the cash remaining after a company has paid expenses, interest, taxes, and long-term investments....

Loblaw has come under fire in the past few months from politicians and consumer advocates complaining that it earned “excessive profits” during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the threats of new taxes and rules on how food sellers operate, the stock has gained an impressive 31% in the past year compared to the 13% rise for the S&P/TSX Composite Index....

SAVARIA CORP., $16.81, symbol SIS on Toronto, designs and builds mobility products for consumers. These include home elevators, commercial lifts, stairlifts, ceiling lifts, and adapted vehicles. The business has manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe, Mexico and China....

CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL INC., $2,882.04, is a buy. The stock (symbol CMG on New York) lets you tap this Mexican restaurant chain, headquartered in Denver. The company is a fast-food leader charging slightly higher prices than its competitors but offering better quality food, including naturally raised meat.

Chipotle now plans to split its stock on a 50-for-one basis....

ARCHER DANIELS MIDLAND CO., $62.00, New York symbol ADM, is still a hold.

The company processes corn, wheat, soybeans, flax seed and other crops into a variety of food ingredients such as flour, oils and sweeteners. It’s also a leading producer of ethanol from corn, a gasoline additive that reduces harmful emissions.

With the February 2024, payment, Archer raised your quarterly dividend by 11.1%, to $0.50 a share from $0.45....

FEDEX CORP., $284.32, New York symbol FDX, remains a buy.

The company delivers packages in the U.S. and 220 other countries.

The stock rose 13% this week after FedEx reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings (excluding unusual items)....

IMPERIAL OIL LTD., $92.16, Toronto symbol IMO, is still a buy.

The company gets over 90% of its production from oil sands operations in Alberta. Imperial also has conventional oil and natural gas operations in the West and holds stakes in offshore projects in Atlantic Canada.

Its other operations include three refineries (one in Alberta, two in Ontario) and a petrochemical plant in Sarnia, Ontario.

The company has shut down its Winnipeg Products Pipeline, which transports gasoline, diesel and jet fuel from the U.S....

You can’t fake a record of dividends....

MANULIFE FINANCIAL CORP. $33 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol MFC; Conservative-Growth Payer Portfolio; Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.8 billion; Market cap: $59.4 billion; Dividend yield: 4.8%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.manulife.ca) is Canada’s largest life insurer....

Bank of Nova Scotia is now cutting its exposure to the Pacific Alliance countries in Latin America—Mexico, Peru, Colombia and Chile—due to economic problems and political instability. That will let it invest more in its North American operations. We feel these moves will lead it to raise its dividend in 2024.


BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $68 is a buy. Canada’s fourth-largest bank by market cap (Toronto symbol BNS; Income-Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $81.6 billion; Dividend yield: 6.2%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.scotiabank.com) last raised your quarterly dividend by 2.9% with the July 2023 payment, to $1.06 a share from $1.03....