Alex RuusTibor Kolley/The Globe and Mail
Alex Ruus is executive vice-president and portfolio manager at BluMont Capital and Northern Rivers Funds. His focus is North American equities.
Top Picks:
WellPoint Inc.
WellPoint is the leading U.S. health care insurer and the largest owner of Blue Cross/ Blue Shield brands. WLP offers an attractive vehicle to invest in the inevitable rise of spending in the U.S. health care system. The company is undervalued and offers access to a rising stream of dividends.
Horizon North Logistics
Horizon is a leading provider of critical logistics for remote development of resource and infrastructure projects. HNL is uniquely positioned to prosper from the entire spectrum of work-force accommodation demand in remote locations, especially in the growing Athabasca oil development and the coming LNG gas development programs in Western Canada. The company is undervalued with a rising stream of dividends.
Neptune Technologies & Bioressources
Neptune is a leading producer and developer of nutritional supplements and pharmaceuticals, with a focus on commercializing its proprietary phospholipid containing krill oil formulations. The company's majority owned subsidiary, Acasti Pharmaceuticals, is developing a potential blockbuster treatment for hypertriglyceridemia and cholesterol. The company currently is trading at a deep discount relative to the market opportunity should trials continue to show excellent results.
Past Picks: May 2, 2013
Magna International
Then: $60.86
Now: $83.80
Total return: +38.95 per cent
Alaris Royalty
Then: $27.64
Now: $34.40
Total return: +26.24 per cent
Philip Morris International
Then: $95.01
Now: $83.75
Total return: -10.99 per cent
Total return average: +18.07 per cent
Market outlook:
The markets will continue to rise slowly over the coming year as the global economy continues to recover from the great recession of 2008-09. Expect choppiness to continue with at least one correction creating panic among speculators. The best returns will be made by buying great businesses that are undervalued.