David Cockfield.
David Cockfield is managing director and portfolio manager, Northland Wealth Management. His focus is Canadian equities and ETFs.
Top Picks:
BMO Low Volatility Canadian Equity ETF (ZLB.TO)
A Canadian ETF that allows investors to own a diversified portfolio of low beta Canadian equities. Low beta stocks are less sensitive to day to day market movements and have out-performed the broad market in recent years. The beta of the portfolio is 0.78, the yield is 2.38 per cent and the management fee is 0.35 per cent. This ETF has significantly out-performed the TSX over the last 3 years. Last purchased in March at $26.78.
BMO MSCI Europe High Quality Equities Hedged to CAD Index ETF (ZEQ.TO)
This ETF attempts to replicate the performance of the MSCI Europe Quality - 100 per cent hedged to Canada Index. The main geographic allocations are the U.K. at 43.8 per cent, Switzerland at 19.0 per cent and Germany at 9.5 per cent. The main industry concentrations are consumer staples at 30.9 per cent, health care at 17.4 per cent, consumer discretionary at 16.2 per cent and industrials at 16.1 per cent. We feel European equities offer good value, particularly in the countries and sectors represented in this portfolio. Considering the looming vote in the U.K. as to whether the U.K. remains in the E.U., investors might wait to see how this proceeds. A yes vote, causing the ETF to decline, could lead to a buying opportunity. The portfolio is dominated by high-quality multinational corporations that will not be that affected by the U.K. leaving the E.U. Last purchased in January at $16.87.
Brookfield Property Partners (BPY_UN.TO)
Brookfield Property Partners is a global property management company that owns and manages office, industrial, retail, hotel and residential properties worth some $50-billion. The high quality office properties are located in major cities in the U.S., Canada and Australia. The retail properties are mainly in the U.S. and Brazil. The residential properties are located in North America. Industrial properties are in North America, Europe and China. Hotel properties are in North America and Australia and include casinos. The stock has been a laggard but recently has had a strong uptrend. The yield is just under 5 per cent. Last purchased in April at $29.61.
Past Picks: April 10, 2015
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO)
Then: $55.29 Now: $55.75 0.83% Total return: +4.85%
Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG.N)
Then: $81.60 Now: $81.59 -0.01% Total return: +2.27%
BMO Low Volatility Canadian Equity ETF (ZLB.TO)
Then: $27.77 Now: $27.05 -2.59% Total return: -0.30%
Total Return Average: +2.27%
Market outlook:
Investors have enjoyed an equity market rebound in Canada and the U.S. Concerns about economic growth have subsided as economic reports continue to show steady but slow upward progress. Canada has seen strong performance in the manufacturing sector, employment and oil prices. With this encouraging background, we expect equity markets in both Canada and the U.S. to move higher during the quarter.