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Stock Opinions by Lorne Steinberg

COMMENT
A Comment -- General Comments From an Expert
Markets.

Almost surprising that equity markets have held up this well with rates going up and all that's happening in the background. Everybody's focused on the Fed and interest rates. We heard from the BOC today.

The market's been pretty narrow on the upside with large-cap technology and communications stocks carrying the day. Interest-rate sensitives like consumer, utilities, and banks have lagged, and they can offer some value.

Unknown
COMMENT
A Comment -- General Comments From an Expert
Banks.

Embracing banks. If you wait until everything starts looking good again, the stocks will already have moved. Great dividend yields, so even if stocks don't go up for a while, you're still getting a decent return. The dividend's giving you so much advantage, you don't need much to go right with these stocks for the next number of years.

Unknown
DON'T BUY
Enbridge
Stock down, issuing new shares and adding to debt load.

Always a concern when companies crank up the debt, and using debt to continue to pay dividends. Does have cashflow, but it's leveraged and more so than peers. He'd be happier if it reduced debt. Yield is 7.8%, don't be seduced.

oil / gas pipelines
DON'T BUY

The takeover deal will go through. Nothing left in the stock. You wouldn't buy it to make a tiny, minimal percentage.

Energy Infrastructure, Industrials & Utilities
DON'T BUY
Laurentian Bank

Not very attractive as a bank, otherwise it would have been snapped up. Hasn't invested in IT, not efficient, no scale. Not sure of a sale. Very interesting asset in the US, an inventory finance company. It's possible someone in the US will buy that part, while someone in Canada buys the banking part. 

banks
BUY ON WEAKNESS
Intact Financial

Spectacularly well run. Only thing holding him back is the price, has to justify how he's going to get a good return. Hefty valuation, probably well deserved. He'd be interested at least 20% cheaper than today.

insurance
BUY
BCE Inc.

At the current dividend yield, you'll have a pretty good return even if the stock never goes up. An opportunity for a traditional widow(er)/orphan stock. Earnings are soft, cutting costs, CRTC focused on more competition. Hard to go wrong at this level.

telephone utilities
BUY
TC Energy

Dividend's not as high as ENB, but neither is the leverage. Suffered as interest rates have gone up, but interest rates have peaked and should come down somewhat sometime next year. Hefty dividend of 7.7%.

oil / gas pipelines
BUY
Goldman Sachs

Very low price to tangible book, and a really cheap 10x earnings. Stumbled in the consumer area, cleaning that up. Tremendous free cashflow, buying back shares, dividend increases will be ongoing. 

investment companies / funds
SELL
GlaxoSmithKline PLC

Big pharmas are all under pressure, growth is hard to come by and so they're cost-cutting. All have lots of free cashflow and reasonable dividend yields. He prefers JNJ. 

biotechnology / pharmaceutical
BUY
Royal Bank

Banks have performed poorly this year. Great dividend yield. Fears of recession are real, but won't be hurt too badly in mortgage market. Not expecting a big increase in non-performing loans. Loan books are in great shape, as regulations result in bigger risks shifting to non-bank lenders.

banks
BUY
Telus Corp

6% or so dividend yield. Earnings are soft. CRTC is determined to find a way to keep prices lower, a politically popular strategy. Still, these companies have an oligopoly. If they make less in one area, they'll increase earnings in another. All in cost-cutting mode.

telephone utilities
BUY

Almost 70% of revenue comes from US, less than 15% from Canada, the rest from Europe. Master acquirer and they execute extremely well. Quiet, not flashy, management. Not much of a yield, but free cashflow used to buy back shares and do M&As. Even after the runup, he'd buy.

food stores
SELL
UBS Group AG

In a good space. Bought good Credit Suisse assets for a song. Prefers large US investment banks like GS and MS, better upside. Yield of 2.1%.

banks
PAST TOP PICK
Amazon.com, Inc.
(A Top Pick Jun 21/22, Up 25%)

Poised to have double-digit revenue growth each year for the next 3 years. Jeff Bezos stepping away has been a positive. Purchases like that of Whole Foods likely in the past. Focused on where they can leverage their scale, and it will finally become more of an earnings stock.

specialty stores
Showing 1 to 15 of 1,608 entries