Big question for all oil sands companies has to do with getting their product to market. If the US president approves that Keystone pipeline, that will be very positive for these companies. Or if the outlet to the West Coast is approved. Absent that, we are going to see the discount on oil sands crude simply because of the transportation bottleneck.
US government is going to exit their position that they got during the TARP program in 2008. Doesn’t feel this company is the most inventive or innovative of the major carmakers. Feels Ford (F-N) is doing a better job right now. Toyota (TM-N) has regained a lot of the lustre that it lost during the accelerator recall.
Stock has come off quite a bit from its high and thinks it is really a bargain at this price. There are a lot of stores, but there is room to expand the menu, which is what they are working on. Also, the US is fertile ground. Have done better in the US than most Canadian retailers. Same-store sales have been okay, but not stellar, which pressured the stock. It is now a yield stock and a dividend grower.
Has had a terrific run. If he is correct about the US economy growing, that means more transactions and this company will make more money. The new technology, where you can use your smart phone, presents both challenges and risks for credit card companies. Feels the banks are going to find ways to bring that business in-house and separate from Visa and MasterCard (MC-N) and try to capture those transactions for themselves.
Big Pharma is somewhat of a crap shoot, because you never know what the FDA is going to do. Also you never know if a drug will have a problem with injury or death. Also, there is patent litigation. However, big Pharma has been marked down tremendously from 10-15 years ago. They are going to grow because the US healthcare system is an enormous consumer of medications. He prefers companies that not only have drugs, but over-the-counter medications and medical devices.
Commodities are not in favour right now. There is a weakness across the spectrum. A rebounding economy is good for the metal stocks but there is no shortage of aluminum right now. An energy heavy commodity that requires a lot of energy. If you own and want to get out, tomorrow is the day you have to sell.
Markets. The important market now for everybody to look at is in the US and he is seeing increased signs of economic growth. There were signs of very good growth of existing homes today and there were very low inventories of existing homes which will drive new home construction. Auto sales are almost double what they were in 2009. Unemployment claims today were close to a post recession low.