Brett Girard, CPA, CA, CFA

Not just in Canada and the US, but the world abroad too. Intersection of politics and investing seems to be at the forefront of everything right now.

If we walk through the markets he invests in domestically, we don't have a leader. We have the folks who are vying for leader, as well as the provincial premiers working together to try to put something together to counteract what might be tariffs coming as soon as February 1. Lots of moving parts there.

If you look at the data, and see some of the claims being made by the Americans, there's a $45B trade deficit (more goods coming from Canada and going to the US). But if you back out the cheap energy that we sell them, there's actually a $45B surplus. That will have to get negotiated.

Looking at the US we're 2 days into Trump 2.0, and we have interest rates, GDP growth, inflation, US dollar strength. A number of different issues, and it will take some time (6-12 months) before we know how this all shakes out. Investors needs to be cognizant of all the executive orders and what the impact can be over time.

Europe is another area he's actively investing in. France is going through political turmoil, and its stock market was quite challenging last year. But this year, 3 weeks in, it's the best-performing market in the developed world.

High-quality companies. In spite of all the things that could potentially change from a tariff perspective, look for companies whose business models are fundamentally strong. For those types of companies, there's probably room for them to outperform.

One example is CNQ, and what the impact of "drill, baby, drill" in the US will have on oil here. We'll get a lot of noise now. Executive orders are flying, but it will take time before we see the outcome of it all.

Strong dividend, but challenges on earnings. Recognize that dividend is only one part of overall return from a stock. A dividend that's too high for too long can be punitive to health of the business overall. Yield approaching 10%.

Money-laundering issues made them rethink their thesis. Limits on US personal banking growth mean it can't execute on expected numbers. Rotated out and into RY with its strong wealth management, giving their portfolio the needed US exposure.

Rotated out of TD and into RY with its strong wealth management, giving their portfolio the needed US exposure.

Best of the Nordic banks. Interesting way for Canadians to get exposure beyond NA. Also, it's not going to be correlated to a potential tariff war between Canada and the US.

Challenging 6 months. Price action is one thing, but if you drill down and look at the business, everything is going quite well. Recent manufacturer acquisition solidifies supply and shipping. US patent concerns, but to open that would open a Pandora's box on all patents, including domestic ones.

Very bright future. Opportunity to add.

A name you could look at, with the upcoming secondary and tertiary impact of explosive AI buildout of data centres.

Direct exposure to energy providers as his AI play. Largest renewable power provider in the US. Stock's done well, a bit of volatility. Data centres will need power. Nuclear is an option, but it's down the road; this name helps bridge the gap till we get there.

UL is his choice. Stock price was challenged, but look at the business fundamentals. 2024 was spectacular, with prices going up ~20-30%. Over 50% of revenues are from EMs. Pretty diversified and pretty safe way to get exposure to EM growth.

UL is his choice, as a pretty diversified and pretty safe way to get exposure to EM growth.

Pivot irrigation, which is the hardware component. The software component provides data analytics for crop moisture, alerts for leaks, etc. Very much domestic US sales, so will benefit from the America First policies.

Big numbers last night. Challenge with the streamers is that you're only as good as your last hit. Viewership is quite fickle, very hard to keep attention captured over time. Forward PE ~40x, very rich. 

Folks over 25 have some nostalgia for the brands. Product offerings to the market have been challenged. Consumer has evolved to be more health-conscious. Despite yield of 5.5%, stock price is more indicative of its future.