Tuesday, May 22, 2012 8:11 PM EDT
The year's top-performing global fixed income funds
SHIRLEY WON
What are we looking for?
Best returns among global bond funds over the past year.
Let’s see how the go-anywhere pros can do in an ultra-low interest rate environment.
| Top-Performing Global Fixed Income Funds for the Year Ended April 30 | ||
| Fund | MER |
Assets (in $ mil.) |
| Pimco Monthly Income | 1.25 | 162.7 |
| Standard Life Int'l Bond-A | 2.11 | 45.4 |
| CIBC Global Bond | 2.07 | 99.7 |
| Source: Globe Investor, BlackRock Canada, Pimco Canada | ||
Link to this postThursday, May 17, 2012 8:27 PM EDT
Chasing dividend yield: The double-edged sword
JODY WHITE
What we’re looking for
Dividend stocks, the juicier the better.
With Europe in a deep funk and the United States wrestling with a stubbornly anemic economy, many investors have embraced dividend stocks as a reliable source of income.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012 8:43 PM EDT
Beyond fear and greed: Contrarian stock plays
JODY WHITE
What we’re looking for
Contrarian plays from North America and Western Europe.
Knowing that fear and greed are the prime emotions that drive markets, learning how to view stocks from a contrarian perspective can be quite useful.
| Contrarian Plays from North America and Western Europe | ||
| Company | Ticker |
Market cap ($ mil.) |
| Iamgold Corp. | IMG-T | 3,613.3 |
| Alpha Natural Res. | ANR-N | 2,625.7 |
| Lundin Mining | LUN-T | 2,230.6 |
| Source: Bloomberg | ||
Tuesday, May 15, 2012 8:13 PM EDT
Amid macro turmoil, Canadian firms with highest risk of default
JODY WHITE
What we’re looking for
Canadian companies with the highest risk of default.
While Canada’s economy remains strong relative to those of the United States and Europe, our ties to these troubled areas expose Canadian companies to dangerous macro-economic forces. In the event of a serious economic downturn in these huge markets, which Canadian companies would be at most risk?
Monday, May 14, 2012 8:18 PM EDT
Canadian stocks with strong earnings and price momentum
IAN McGUGAN
What are we looking for?
Momentum. Academic research indicates that stocks that have been going up tend to keep on going up – at least for a little while. In light of the rocky turn that markets have taken, we thought it would be interesting to look at companies that have powered ahead in recent months.
Friday, May 11, 2012 8:49 PM EDT
Bullion and precious metal funds: 8 best and worst performers
SHIRLEY WON
What are we looking for?
How bullion and precious metals stock funds have fared over the past year.
Bullion has been on a roller-coaster ride with the price of gold rising, and silver falling over this period.
| Leaders and Laggards among Bullion and Precious Metals Equity Funds (Year Ended April 30, 2012) | ||
| Fund | Category | MER |
| Top 8 Gold Funds | ||
| Sprott Gold Bullion Fd-A | Misc. - Commodity | 1.1 |
| iShares Gold Bullion (Non-Hedged) | Misc. - Commodity | 0.56 |
| Source: Globe Investor | ||
Thursday, May 10, 2012 8:13 PM EDT
Companies geared up for future profit growth
DAVID PARKINSON
What are we looking for?
Yesterday, we presented a slightly modified version of a stock screen from Brockhouse Cooper global macro strategist Pierre Lapointe, looking at major global companies that have seen substantial increases in both their capital spending (or capex, for short) and their profit margins over the past year. Today, we produce a similar screen focusing on Canadian stocks, while adding a twist of our own – debt reduction.
Thursday, May 10, 2012 8:14 PM EDT
Looking for the kings of capital spending
DAVID PARKINSON
What are we looking for?
It’s little secret that publicly traded companies throughout the world have seen their cash coffers swell in recent years – a function of a post-recession surge in profit margins coupled with extreme caution among company management to spend in still-uncertain times.
| Firms with 1-Year Growth in Capex/Sales & Operating Margins of More Than 25% | ||
| Name | Ticker | Country |
| Aetna Inc. | AET-N | U.S. |
| Agrium Inc. | AGU-T | Canada |
| Canadian Pacific Railway | CP-T | Canada |
| Source: Brockhouse Cooper | ||
Wednesday, May 9, 2012 7:58 AM EDT
TSX stocks that beat the Street ... three ways
DAVID PARKINSON
What are we looking for?
To celebrate the busiest week in the Canadian earnings-reporting season, we’re looking for TSX companies that have pulled off the trifecta of earnings “beats” – exceeding analysts’ consensus estimates not only for profits, but for sales and cash flow, too.
| Companies that Surpassed Analyst Estimates for Profits, Sales and Cash Flow | ||
| Company | Symbol |
Price $ (May 7) |
| Methanex Corp. | MX-T | 32.95 |
| WestJet Airlines Ltd. | WJA-T | 14.84 |
| Corus Entertainment | CJR.B-T | 23.93 |
| Grades relative to 729 stocks in the CPMS Cdn. database (A = best; E = worst). Source: Morningstar Canada | ||
Tuesday, May 8, 2012 7:35 AM EDT
Shining stars since the dark days of 2009
SHIRLEY WON
What are we looking for?
Stars among Canadian stock funds since the market bottomed in March, 2009.
Let’s see which funds have managed to navigate through the wild market swings since the global credit crisis, and come up with sparkling returns.
| Best Performing Canadian Large-Cap Stock Funds for Three Years Ended March 31, 2012 | |
| Fund | Category |
| Trimark Canadian Endeavour | Cdn Focused Equity |
| iShares Diversified Monthly Income | Canadian Equity |
| Fidelity Canadian Large Cap-A | Cdn Focused Equity |
| Source: Globe Investor | |
Number Cruncher Contributors
Scott Adams
Scott Adams is the Executive Editor for Report On Business. He was previously the Managing Editor of Globe Investor. He has been a business journalist for more than 12 years and also worked as an associate analyst on Bay Street.
Rob Carrick
Rob Carrick has been writing about personal finance, business and economics for close to 20 years. He joined The Globe and Mail in late 1996 as an investment reporter and has been personal finance columnist since November 1998.
He writes the Saturday Portfolio Strategy column, is the host of the Let's Talk Investing video series, compiles a Personal Finance Reader newsletter two times per week, blogs daily, and is author of the annual Globe Investor Online Broker Rankings.
He also wrote Rob Carrick's Guide to What's Good, Bad and Downright Ugly in Canadian Investments Today.
Follow him on Facebook (www.facebook.com/robcarrickfinance) or Twitter (@rcarrick)
John Heinzl
John Heinzl has been writing about business and investing since 1990. A native of Hamilton, he earned a master’s degree from the University of Western Ontario’s Graduate School of Journalism and completed the Canadian Securities Course with honours. His weekly Yield Hog columns explore the world of dividend stocks, bonds and other income-producing securities, and his explanatory Investor Clinic columns and videos aim to inform and educate investors who want to take control of their money. He also writes the irreverent Stars and Dogs feature that appears every Saturday in Report on Business and contributes car reviews to Globe Drive.
David Parkinson
David Parkinson has been covering business and financial markets since 1990, and has been with The Globe and Mail since 2000. A Calgary native, he received a Southam Fellowship from the University of Toronto in 1999-2000, studying international political economics.
Shirley Won
Shirley Won covers the fund industry and investments. She joined the Globe and Mail in 1996, and has also worked at the Montreal Gazette and Canadian Press.
Simon Avery
Simon Avery has covered telecom and technology for the Globe since 2004. Previously, he was a staff reporter for The Associated Press in Los Angeles and for The Wall Street Journal in San Francisco. He covered the boom and bust in Silicon Valley for the Financial Post between 1998 and 2001. Mr. Avery holds a Master's degree in journalism from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts in English and political science from the University of Western Ontario.
Nicolas Johnson
Nicolas Johnson has covered global finance, markets and investing since 1998. He joined The Globe and Mail in 2011. He has worked as a reporter and editor with Bloomberg News in Paris and Tokyo, and also worked briefly in emerging-market debt at Société Générale. Nicolas has a Bachelor of Arts from Queen’s University and a Master of Arts from Sorbonne University in France.
Jody White
Jody White is a web editor for Globe Investor. He previously worked as a senior editor at Canadian Business Online and has written for Maclean's, the National Post, and other national newspapers and magazines on topics from business to human rights to institutional investing.
Darcy Keith
Darcy Keith has been a business journalist since 1992 and joined the Report on Business in 2010 from Yahoo! Canada, where he was the senior editor overseeing its finance site.
Previously, he was the business editor for CanWest News Service and a senior correspondent for Knight-Ridder Financial News. He has worked as a reporter and editor in three major Canadian cities, as well as in New York and Hong Kong. His stories have appeared in major publications across Canada and the world.
Sonali Verma
Sonali Verma is digital editor at the Report on Business. She has worked as a reporter, editor and producer of business news at Reuters, CNBC and Bloomberg News since 1995. Before moving to Toronto, she worked in New Delhi, London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Manila.
