BCE Inc. (BCE.TO)

Dividends safe? Regulated businesses stand a better chance to keep dividends whole. BCE and ENB are both regulated entities. Canadian banks have had a history of not cutting dividends, but you never know. It will depend on how long COVID lasts -- if we are still locked down next year, he would be a seller.

telus vs bell He owns and likes both equally. Telus has less competition out west, so they enjoy a duopoly with Shaw. Telus has grown its subscriber base well. They will spin off their international division, maybe next year, and they made an acquisition in Germany. A great capital allocator. Bell has the media side, which distinguishes it from Telus. You can buy either now.

T-T, BCE-T, RCI.B-T, SJR.B-T. Telecom is the sector he is the most bullish on. It's his biggest position. It is the sector that is the most resilient. Online traffic has increased dramatically. T-T would not be the top of his telecom list. He would prefer SJR.B-T, BCE-T, and RCI.B-T because of their media businesses.

He likes telcos. Bond proxies have become overpriced, but telcos are less overpriced compared to REITs and utilities. They're stable with decent valuations. BCE is a good place to hide now. He's also long Rogers and Cogeco. Telcos can move lower, but less so in a market sell-off. When markets recover, though, telcos won't move up as much.

Buy the stock or ETF? Yes, buy the stock. He doesn't buy ETFs. He wants to own exactly what he wants. You can own this through XIC or XIU, but you'd be buying lots of other stocks you may not want. BCE isn't a bad stock, but it's slow-growing. It has most to lose as people drop landlines. Also, the CRTC is pressuring telcos to lower cell phone bills in two years. It's defensive and low yield. Safe in an oligopoly. There are better ideas out there.