Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO)

Had been hoping this would pull back one or two dollars, so he could Buy for new clients. At $52-$53, he would be all over it. Earnings are coming in August for banks. This one’s will be fine.

One of his favourite banks. Held it since day one. The US strategy is still in the works, but would not be surprised if they did not haul in a lot of profitability from it. Their asset management business is solid. The P & C business is suffering a little bit. The payout ratio is on the higher side. 7-8% appreciation including dividend for a year.

(A Top Pick June 27/13. Up 36.68%.) Thinks they continue to execute incredibly well. Made some very strong acquisitions that will not only help them in Canada, but also in the US.

(A Top Pick July 19/13. Up 29.24%.) Still likes this. Have managed to enter the US like other Canadian banks, but have made a success of it. Their technology is as good as anything you’ll find in the US.

Loan growth is slowing in Canada. You can only bring interest rates so low to attract loans. TD is 65% exposed to Canada and others are about 80+%. 12 times earnings is about norm. This is probably the one to provide the most dividend growth in the coming years. But he is shifting from Canadian banks to insurance or to US banks.

One of the better banks in Canada. He would diversify, however, with ZWB-T with a covered call overlay and 4.5% yield. This is where he would go with new money coming into the banks, or perhaps wait for a correction, but he has no issues with TD.

We have seen a strong bank reporting cycle and TD was no exception. Canadian retail did very well. Insurance did well. Aeroplan started to contribute. 3.5% yield. Not his favourite, however. Although they expanded rapidly in the US he is not sure return on capital is that high there. Owns RY-T, BNS-T and CM-T.

Likes it. Set up well for healthy growth, and dividend growth, but there is a lot of criticism of slowing US bank revenue. He would buy it, but BNS-T is a little bit better.

Stock is acting really, really well. Their US business is certainly coming along, and their Canadian business is really strong. Feels that some of the US banks could perform a bit better.

Valuation is quite decent at these levels. Good profit growth this year, and he thinks there will be another one as well. Have done a good job of improving and solidifying their US business.

For the next year doesn’t see much upside in Canadian banks. Wait for any kind of pullback in the summer. If you want the dividends, then go for ZWB-T to get more yield.

For banks it is really price to earnings as the metric for value. TD is at premier valuation and is a premier bank as well. All banks have slower mortgage growth and so growth will require more capital. This is a premier franchise that did a fantastic job of entering the US market. It is a good bank, but see his Top Picks today.

One of his core holdings. Canadian banks are stocks that you buy and you hold forever. Trading at around 12.5X this year’s earnings. Before 2008, they typically traded between 12 and 13.5 times earnings. Any time it gets down to 12 times, you Buy. Banks are due for a bit of a breather and he would probably wait until the fall.

(A Top Pick May 30/13. Up 31.83%.) Likes this and the Royal Bank (RY-T). Expects this will continue to do well. Has a great franchise in Canada, and a growing and good franchise in the US. Also, have a strong brand name in the US.

This is one of his core bank stocks. Stock has had a little bounce here. You can sit back and wait. The market will probably drift upwards, but he feels there will be some sort of correction in the next 2 to 3 months, so you can wait for a pull back, maybe to the $51 range This is one he would recommend for anybody’s portfolio.