STRONG BUY

Down from $1.50 from $14.50 peak. Good company with good growth, including a fine dividend. Fine assets. In the final stages of a U.S. acqusition. Well-diversified.

DON'T BUY

Not for the faint of heart. Retail operations have been losing money in the past three years and same-store sales are down, but HBC has amazing real estate assets. They got a lot of debt while interest rates are rising. They need to make more real estate deals, but can they close them in time?

COMMENT

He's not a big owner of resources, but this is a good company with a fine balance sheet and cash flow that they will give back to shareholders through buybacks and dividend increases.

BUY

Pays a modest dividend. Stock has performed well. The auction business is performing well, while a good economy is helping them.

BUY

Scotia had good earnings. Their Canadian side fine and wealth management is growing. International side is coming back nicely after a tough period in 2008-9. There's some concern with their Mexican bank because of NAFTA troubles, but Scotia should overcome this. They will continue to grow their dividend.

HOLD

Holds Fortis and Northland Power instead. Hydro One's dividend is safe and will increase. Yes, they are expanding in the States, but they are beholden to the Ontario regulator. So one bad call from this regulator and they're in trouble. Stick with it if you own it. They're challenged like all utilities due to interest rates rising.

COMMENT

As long as oil stays above $50, their dividend won't budge, but it won't grow either. They're spending their cash flow on exploration and development.

COMMENT

A disciplined acquirer. They've bought several companies over the years. Yield will grow over time, but their more focussed on increasing their assets.

BUY

They increased their dividend. U.S. operations are attractive and they are expanding them. Better U.S. growth helps them. A good stock. Ranks BMO #4 of the big Canadian banks after TD, RBC and SB.

COMMENT

Bank of Canada not changing interest rates today We started the year thinking the BoC will follow the Fed's three rate hikes, but now we think one or two. The reason is that our economy is slowing quickly. Consumer debt is high, while new mortgage regulations are coming in and will effect the housing market.

COMMENT

Tariffs Trumps's proposed steel and aluminum tariffs don't make sense, but they could happen. He hopes this goes beyond a tit-for-tat tariff retaliation by Canada, and believes cooler heads will prevail. Steel tariffs are really a NAFTA bargaining chip.

HOLD

A core position for him. Enbridge will continue to be good with dividend increases for at least three more years at 8-10% annually. They made a big U.S. acquisition, so funding that has been problematic. They have to sell asets, but they've been slow to. Basically, they need a lot of cash. DRIP, issuing preferreds and hybrids help cash flow, but they still need to do $3-4 billion in asset sales. Definitely hold, though you could buy a little more here if you have a small position

BUY

A good, mistream company. Dividend safe and will increase. Earnings and cash flow are increasing at an okay pace. Good growth. Stick with it or buy a little.

DON'T BUY

He hasn't owned this for five years. The stock has come off a lot. Solid dividend though, but the outlook for uranium is mixed. Prices are low. Demand five years ago was strong with China and India building nuclear power plants, but demand is now modest.

COMMENT

He recently added at the $25 level. Their growth areas are in Asia and Canadian insurance, but face problems in the U.S. which accounts for the recent downturn in share price. They're grow their Asian assets and wealth management business. The stock will rise as interest rates do.