Prem Watsa is often described as the Warren Buffett of Canada. He is opportunistic, not afraid of taking risk. Some of his bets have not worked so well but many have. Insurance companies make money in two ways: core earnings from underwriting, and the investment returns from premiums. Warren Buffett initiated a different approach for investing insurance premiums. Rather than putting it into very safe, but low-yielding, bonds, he invested in stocks. Watsa follows this model and Fairfax has benefitted. The recent rises in interest rates are also very positive for all insurance companies because all of them still buy long-term assets. Fairfax has done nothing for investors for a long while, but he is proposing a top pick in the insurance industry today, and believes that the category has promise.

This is a terrific company and demographics for their artificial hips and knees are very positive. They are rumoured to be considering buying Boston Scientific. Because of the high rumoured price, Boston Scientific is up today, and Stryker is down. He thinks that this area is very investible because long-term growth is so good. People should have an investment in this area. The 10% drop in the stock price yesterday piqued his interest, at this price. Price at time of interview was $164.15.

This is the Lazarus story of 2018, back from the dead. They are not anyones favorite stock. Even though they have sold off a lot of assets, they still have a lot of debt on their balance sheet and he called their profitability dubious, going forward. They have cleaned up a lot of their mess but they have a long way to go before becoming the kind of stock that he would consider for his type of portfolio. The debt burden in a rising interest rate environment, with many maturities that must be rolled over, poses too much risk.

This is an interesting stock to consider in the face of current discussions of tariffs. The United States sugar industry is heavily protected, and Rogers is protected in Canada. It is one of two main producers, a duopoly behind a tariff wall. He has wondered how long that wall would stand. With Trump in power, he thinks this wall will stay up for longer, making this stock more attractive. However, sugar is a low-growth or no-growth commodity. The social trend is against it and the younger generation consumes less of it. The yield is high (about 6%) and will probably not come down, but it is strictly a yield play. (Analysts' price target is $6.25)

This used to be the 800 pound gorilla of the chip business but then chips became more commoditized. Now, Intel is getting its mojo back. They have rediscovered innovation, new products are gaining market share and the stock has risen sharply after doing nothing for a long time. He doesn't expect them to ever regain the iconic status that they had before because too many people now know how to make good chipsets. However, he thinks the stock today is worth considering.

Gold has always had an outsized place in Canadian investors' minds, even more than in the United States. However, gold now competes with other quasi-moneys, like crypto currencies. Many people prefer the newer alternatives, seeing gold as old fashioned, maybe even medieval. He has no use for gold in a portfolio and does not see it having much value as a hedging instrument. He has been zero-weighted in precious metals for a long time.

(A Top Pick May 17, 2017. Up 8%). They buy many label companies, consolidating the label business. They are smart acquirers and have a history of improving profitability of the companies they buy. Their stock split made shares easier to buy. He is still buying it.