Brian MaddenShopify Inc.SHOP.TOTOP PICKJan 11, 2017

200-day MA starting to trend a bit lower, price is also below that. High multiple at 60x forward PE, though growth rate is strong, but PEG a bit rich at around 2x. Leaves little room for error. Caters to economically sensitive small-middle companies. AI is both opportunity and risk.

Better opportunities elsewhere.

Under pressure with all software stocks, but not justified. It's an operating system for retailers, which is needed no matter what. Very attractive here. She prefers cyber stocks.

A great company. The issue was that the stock was very expensive, but they dominate the space with Amazon and continue to gain market share. SHOP could take market share in Europe. If this is not a buy for the next year, over 5-10 years, this is a magnificent stock.

Recent earnings saw sales growth of nearly 40% and management guided from slower growth, so shares go hit. Investors are reluctant because of SHOP's high PE. The fundamentals are there and they are poised for AI. Is solid for the long term.

Are different: CSU buys companies vs. Shopify which is a pure tech company. What PE do you want to pay for CSU? 25x? 20x? SHOP is great and continues to grow. The market perception of AI hurting these companies is wrong. Both are worth buying. He prefers CSU but buy it at a lower PE.

Is one of the Canadian tech stocks he does not like, and he likes Canadian tech. The chart fell late 2025 and has been basing this year. But will it move up? He prefers other tech stocks.

Has never owned. 200-day MA just started to roll over, and that's not positive. Price now below 200-day MA. It's always been pricey (9x forward price-to-sales). Tech and general market have been up, but this name's down 4.3% over 12 months. Catering to small-middle businesses makes it riskier vis-a-vis the economy.

If you're already in it, watch to see if it breaks recent lows of support. So many other names out there with much better valuations. 

Still some runway. Tarred with the software brush. A proud Canadian all-star. Buy in 3 tranches: here, ~$105, and ~$100 (that would indicate it's getting to the bottom). If you own now, add on weakness as outlined.

Note:  Not in his fund, but in some separately managed accounts.

Right here, right now is a good entry point for a long-term hold. Part of the AI witch-hunt trade. Competitive moat won't be eroded by agentic AI. People don't understand that writing code is not "one and done", not to mention cybersecurity concerns and complex payment systems.

Increasingly catering to larger customers. Continues to innovate and to add value to legacy markets.

Small home-office portion of the economy, which tends to be more volatile. A fundamental issue is that founder owns only a small bit, but wields outsized voting power. Good when it's good, and then really bad.

Everybody hates software now, because apparently AI will replace it. But SHOP was innovative, quick to roll out services to include AI. They are seeing some growth. Is a high-growth company. Doesn't worry much about it. Now is a good buying opportunity. Is a growth stock.

Very volatile. A great company with growth, but the valuation is too high and shares are priced to perfection. That decline just happened after reporting recently. Anything software has been hit by AI fears.

CEO is very focused and hands-on AI. In the future, a lot more commerce will be agentic. Revenue model will shift increasingly to subscription-based. One of the names in the space he likes. Founder led, and the guy knows AI.

Good products and growth. The numbers they reported last week were fine, but future growth is moderating, which the markets doesn't like, consider its high PE. 

Gets painted as sort of a software company, and those are out of favour. Price action is very difficult, and often feels like trying to catch a knife. His price target is ~$205. There are so many other clear opportunities out there than trying to wing it with this one.