Watch for earnings, budgets and a key Canadian economic indicator

Prospects are looking brighter in the Canadian oilpatch as commodity price increases drive higher profits and afford companies room to offer dividend hikes and share buybacks — but slumping stock prices show that the oil and gas sector remains in the penalty box with investors.

Shot of young friends riding roller coaster ride at amusement park. Young people having fun at amusement park.
With a rocky start to Q1, the S&P500 has certainly shown some volatility in recent months, as evidenced by the orange line of the S&P 500 Composite against its moving averages over the last 18 months, below:

Despite this, on a trailing 12 month basis, the index still maintains a positive 17.1% total return. For investors who believe that the general trend of the market will continue in the positive direction, the recent volatility may provide an opportunity to find some value focused names with a long-term growth trajectory. To find these names, I used Morningstar CPMS to rank stocks on the following factors:

5 year Normalized EPS growth rate (this measures on average, how much earnings have grown each year in the last 5 years)
Deviation of EPS over 5 years (a risk metric that measures how stable companies earnings have been over the trailing 5 years, lower figures preferred)
Median Estimated EPS Growth Rate (how much analysts are expecting earnings to grow in the upcoming fiscal year)

To qualify in our strategy, companies must have Price to Earnings, Price to Book, and Price to Sales ratios less than the median of the sector to which it belongs…

It’s hard not to admire the way this generation’s emerging right-wing thought leaders have leveraged campus trolling in the pursuit of fame and wealth. Set up a YouTube channel, speak some scintilla of truth—usually with a hint of anti-feminist or white supremacist sympathies—appear on campus, tweet the chaos, upload the video. Profit.
The triggers are so obvious, the outraged crowds so easy to manipulate, the response so predictable, that I wonder if attempting to come up with somewhat original thoughts and opinions on a regular basis isn’t a mug’s game.
If I could bring myself to mouth nonsense about the glorious rise of white racial consciousness while wearing a Pepe-the-frog T-shirt at a university I’d have a book deal and a Patreon account by month end. Alas, unlike the darling fap-material currently making this circuit, I am just a boring married woman with a kid.
So I must admit a degree of perverse admiration for the sheer brazenness of, say, Faith Goldy, a journalist-activist who was fired from the Rebel after showing up on a white supremacist podcast and giving sympathetic coverage to the neo-Nazi protesters at Charlottesville…

HALIFAX _ Executives of DHX Media told its annual shareholders meeting in Halifax that they expect a strategic review of its options to be complete by June 30, at the end of its fiscal fourth-quarter and 2018 financial year.
Executive chairman Michael Donovan said DHX is evaluating multiple promising opportunities that he hopes will have a positive effect on the company’s share price.
He made the comment in response to a complaint about the DHX share price, which was described as “floundering.”
DHX Media shares opened at $4.01 at the Toronto Stock Exchange as the meeting was being held, about 26 per cent lower than it was a year ago and 45 per cent below its 52-week high in September.
Donovan and David Regan, the company’s executive vice-president for strategy and corporate development, said they were confident that the company’s financial performance will be improved by initiatives taken over the past year.
The biggest of these was the acquisition of rights to the Peanuts cartoon franchise, in a US$345-million deal that DHX management believes will create multiple opportunities to add to the company’s kid-oriented revenue streams…

A roundup of investment ideas for active investors

TORONTO _ Samantha Brookes has been warning Canadians to take a close look at the clauses in their mortgage contracts for years, but her refrain has become a bit more prevalent in recent months.
Since the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions’ mortgage stress test was implemented in January, the founder of the Mortgages of Canada brokerage has seen “a huge influx” of Canadians who fail to qualify for a bank mortgage turning to alternative lenders that range from risky loan sharks to larger, more conventional companies like Home Trust.
While alternative lenders can provide a lifeline for Canadians who have run out of other financing options, Brookes said they come with pitfalls for those who don’t bother looking at the fine print.
“You need to read those contracts,” she said. “(With an alternative lender), the interest rates are higher, the qualifying rate is higher than if you were going with a traditional bank and they are going to charge one per cent of the mortgage amount (as a lender’s fee) for closing, so that means your closing costs increase…

WINNIPEG _ Manitoba has appointed five new people to the Manitoba Hydro board after all but one member quit en masse earlier this week.
Crown Services Minister Cliff Cullen says three women and two men will join backbencher Cliff Graydon on the Crown corporation’s board.
He says Marina James, chief executive officer of a Winnipeg real-estate association, will be the chair. Michael Moore, who was recently head of the province’s home builders association, has been appointed vice-chair.
The other board members are Indigenous filmmaker Lisa Meeches, Bell Canada lawyer Melanie McKague and former aerospace operations director Wade Linden.
“Our government wishes to thank the outgoing members of the Manitoba Hydro board for their service and for the work they have done on behalf of all Manitobans, and recognizes the significant challenges that they were met with in terms of the financial position of the corporation,” Cullen said in a statement Friday.
The chairman and eight other board members quit on Wednesday…

The move was seen as the front runner to buy the assets, which include Advil painkillers and Centrum vitamins, after main rival Reckitt Benckiser quit the race on Thursday

The rise defied global stock markets, which slumped on worries about a trade stand-off between the United States and China

Fears of a trade war are roiling financial markets Friday, with stocks under pressure around the world and the dollar in retreat.

TORONTO _ Toy company executive Isaac Larian is hoping to keep Toys “R” Us’s Canadian operations from going out of business, but a $1 billion crowdfunding campaign he launched to rescue the company doesn’t include the country’s stores.
The executive behind California-based MGA Entertainment Inc., which makes Little Tikes, Bratz and L.O.L. Surprise! toys, announced on Thursday that he and some affiliated investors were seeking $800 million from toy lovers in hopes of acquiring “all or some” of Toy “R” Us’s assets, thus “saving the retail chain and preserving the Toys “R” Us experience for future generations.“
The efforts focus on Toys “R” Us’s U.S. stores and are separate from Larian’s attempts to buy the brand’s 82 Canadian stores, which 20 interested parties are vying for, said Toys “R” Us bankruptcy documents filed in the U.S.
“Toys ”R“ Us Canada is a good business,” Larian said in a statement previously…

Dow plunges more than 700 points while TSX suffers worst loss since 2016

CNN Chief Jeff Zucker Calls Fox News 'State-Run TV,' Blasts Facebook 'Fake News'NewsweekCNN President Jeff Zucker took several shots at cable news competitor Fox News on Thursday, labeling its programming as “state-run TV” and a “propaganda machine.” Speaking at the Financial Times Future of News conference in New York City on Thursday …and more »

TORONTO — Samantha Brookes has been warning Canadians to take a close look at the clauses in their mortgage contracts for years, but her refrain has become a bit more prevalent in recent months.
Since the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions’ mortgage stress test was implemented in January, the founder of the Mortgages of Canada brokerage has seen “a huge influx” of Canadians who fail to qualify for a bank mortgage turning to alternative lenders that range from risky loan sharks to larger, more conventional companies like Home Trust.
READ: Your mortgage is about to get more expensive
While alternative lenders can provide a lifeline for Canadians who have run out of other financing options, Brookes said they come with pitfalls for those who don’t bother looking at the fine print.
“You need to read those contracts,” she said. “(With an alternative lender), the interest rates are higher, the qualifying rate is higher than if you were going with a traditional bank and they are going to charge one per cent of the mortgage amount (as a lender’s fee) for closing, so that means your closing costs increase…

TORONTO _ North American markets closed down sharply as U.S. President Donald Trump stoked fears of rising protectionism by moving to impose tariffs on some Chinese goods.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index closed down 275.35 points to 15,399.93 in broad-based declines led by base metals.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average closed down 724.42 points to 23,957.89. The S&P 500 index was down 68.24 points to 2,643.69 and the Nasdaq composite index was down 178.61 points to 7,166.68.
The Canadian dollar closed at 77.47 cents US, up 0.30 of a US cent.
The May crude contract closed down 87 cents to US$64.30 per barrel and the May natural gas contract, which has become the new benchmark, ended down a penny at US$2.66 per mmBTU.
The April gold contract closed up $5.90 to US$1,327.40 an ounce and the May copper contract was down four cents to US$3.02 a pound.
The post North American markets plunge as Trump moves to impose China tariffs appeared first on Canadian Business – Your Source For Business News.

Leadership and morality have been part of business education for decades but the relevancy has increased in wake of financial, harassment and ‘bro culture’ scandals

MONTREAL _ BRP Inc. raised its dividend as it reported a drop in profit for its latest quarter compared with a year ago as revenue also declined.
The maker of Ski-Doo snowmobiles says it will pay a quarterly dividend of nine cents per share, up a penny from its previous quarterly payment to shareholders.
The increase came as BRP reported a profit attributable to shareholders of $115.2 million or $1.12 per diluted share for the quarter ended Jan. 31.
That compared with a profit of $136.6 million attributable to shareholders or $1.22 per diluted share a year earlier.
On a normalized basis, BRP said it earned 96 cents per diluted share compared with $1 per share a year ago.
Revenue in what was the company’s fourth quarter totalled $1.26 billion, down from nearly $1.31 billion.
The post BRP raises quarterly dividend, reports Q4 profit down from year ago appeared first on Canadian Business – Your Source For Business News.

Comments come after IMF said that Canada’s high debt levels leaves its economy more sensitive to tighter financial conditions and weaker economic activity

Luxury coat maker Canada Goose plans to bring more manufacturing in-house in a bid to boost margins and help it live up to lofty investor expectations as the most expensive stock among major luxury brands.

TORONTO _ Rising oil prices and optimism on NAFTA trade talks helped push the dollar and Canada’s main stock index higher while U.S. markets ended slightly down after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 58.92 points to 15,675.28, led by gains in the energy sector.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average closed down 44.96 points to 24,682.31. The S&P 500 index was down 5.01 points to 2,711.93 and the Nasdaq composite index was down 19.01 points to 7,345.29.
The Canadian dollar closed at 77.17 cents US, up 0.70 of a US cent.
The May crude contract closed up US$1.63 to US$65.17 per barrel and the April natural gas contract ended down four cents to US$2.64 per mmBTU.
The April gold contract closed up US$9.60 to US$1,321.50 an ounce and the May copper contract ended up two cents to US$3.06 a pound.
The post Oil, NAFTA trade talk optimism help boost loonie and Toronto market appeared first on Canadian Business – Your Source For Business News.

TORONTO _ Scotiabank’s chief executive says he disagrees with recent red flags raised over Canada’s high debt levels by an international body, and that he is “comfortable” with the lender’s risk profile.
Brian Porter told a University of Toronto conference that he had a “different perspective” from the International Monetary Fund’s recent warning and said they should look at the “other side of the balance sheet” which has “kept pace or outgrown the size of the debt.”
“I am very comfortable with our risk profile,” he said Wednesday.
His comments come after the IMF in October said that Canada’s high debt levels, and higher-than-average pressure on Canadian households’ ability to pay down that debt in the private non-financial sector, leaves its economy more sensitive to tighter financial conditions and weaker economic activity.
And last month, an international financial group owned by the world’s central banks said Canada’s credit-to-gross-domestic-product and debt-service ratios show early warning signs of potential risk to the domestic banking system in the coming years…

Also: U.S. Federal Reserve keeps stress-test clamp on banks amid Dodd-Frank rewrite

Long-awaited report says ‘sharp focus on sales’ increases risk of misselling but finds no evidence of widespread misconduct

Canada’s financial consumer watchdog says there are “insufficient” controls in place at the country’s biggest banks to prevent sales of financial products that are misrepresented or unsuitable for consumers, and the banks’ sales-focused culture elevates the risk that employees may flout consumer protection rules.

Canada’s financial consumer watchdog says there are “insufficient” controls in place at the country’s biggest banks to prevent sales of financial products that are misrepresented or unsuitable for consumers, and the banks’ sales-focused culture elevates the risk that employees may flout consumer protection rules.

Also: U.S. Federal Reserve keeps stress-test clamp on banks amid Dodd-Frank rewrite

Long-awaited report says ‘sharp focus on sales’ increases risk of misselling but finds no evidence of widespread misconduct

Q: Is there any real estate investment I could invest my capital gains in, without being robbed of paying 50% capital gains tax?
I understand there is an exception for the sale of commercial property.
—Dennis
A: One of the biggest deterrents I’ve observed with real estate investors is the dreaded capital gains tax hit. Your disdain, Dennis, is widespread.
Stock market investors don’t seem to be as patient. Real estate is generally a long-term hold, while stock turnover tends to be more frequent. Real estate investors often end up with larger capital gains as well because real estate is such a focused investment, worth as much or more than many investors’ stock portfolios.
Ask a Planner: Leave your question for Jason Heath »
If a rental real estate investor has claimed depreciation, also known as capital cost allowance (CCA), all past CCA gets “recaptured” and taxed in the year of sale in addition to capital gains tax payable.
A capital gain, Dennis, is 50% taxable. I want to clarify this because you referred to paying 50% capital gains tax…

Canada’s financial consumer watchdog says there are “insufficient” controls in place at the country’s biggest banks to prevent sales of financial products that are misrepresented or unsuitable for consumers, and the banks’ sales-focused culture elevates the risk that employees may flout consumer protection rules.

Mike Diddy, at his home in the lee of Vancouver’s Skytrain tracks (Photo: Jennifer Osborne)
Kevin Royes lives the Vancouver real estate economy.  At the end of a long day landscaping at a newly-built 18,000-square-foot mansion in West Vancouver, he catches a ride home to his 1973 Dodge Sportsman in a pop-up RV park tucked away in an East Vancouver industrial area.
He is one of a number of construction industry workers illegally camped within sight of downtown high-rises, which on a sunny afternoon gleam in the distance like unattainable beacons of wealth.
There are about 20 inhabited vehicles parked beneath the Skytrain line near Glen Drive. But in Vancouver and North Vancouver, where rents are among Canada’s highest and vacancy rates less than one per cent, there are at least seven other pockets where people live full-time in vehicles tucked behind shopping malls or big box stores. Some, like Royes and Mike Diddy, whose home is a converted school bus, are employed in the region’s booming construction trade…

A roundup of investment ideas for active investors

Election season is the time for politicians to throw out outlandish proposals to see what sticks. So it’s not entirely surprising that Ontario PC leader Doug Ford mused recently about abolishing the 15 per cent non-resident buyer tax on real estate, which was introduced last year by the Liberal government. But not only is such a move likely to win little popular support, it could also start re-inflating a housing bubble that policymakers have struggled to control.
“I just don’t like the government getting involved,” Ford told the Globe and Mail. “I believe in the market dictating. The market, no matter whether it’s the stock market or anything, it will always take care of itself—supply and demand.” 
It’s a puzzling statement. “How that can possibly be a top priority, especially given very compelling evidence that said tax played a huge role in deflating the Toronto housing bubble in the past year, is a mystery,” wrote BMO chief economist Doug Porter in a recent note to clients…

Owners of the Aeroplan loyalty program have struck a deal with online retailing giant Amazon that will enable the former’s five million members in Canada earn reward points while shopping online.

Thomas D’Arcy McGee and Jagmeet Singh (Photo credit: William Notman / Wikimedia Commons and Jennifer Roberts)
In a speech in the House of Commons in fall of 1867, during the very first session of Parliament after Confederation, Thomas D’Arcy McGee trained his famous oratorical ire on a St. Patrick’s Society meeting held in Montréal, his home city. McGee was outraged that the names and portraits of Fenians, the era’s Irish revolutionaries, were displayed on the walls, and warned that the radicals might bring violence to Canadian cities. A political rival later accused him of casting “a burning stigma on the Irishmen of Montréal for the sake of building himself up.”
Anybody following Canadian politics these days will immediately catch the present-day resonance. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has lately been embroiled in controversy, largely for participating in Sikh activist meetings where pictures of militant leaders were on show. Singh says he rejects all terrorism, but doesn’t apologize for having spoken at gatherings that venerated figures associated with separatist violence, particularly leaders of the movement to carve a Sikh state out of India that was most active in the 1980s…

A leading Canadian bank economist is pouring cold water on a recent report that sounded alarms about mounting credit risks to Canada’s banking system.

Continuing on the hot topic of No Foreign Transaction Fee credit cards, this episode of the Rewards Canada podcast is an interview with Scotiabank’s Brett Mooney, Senior Vice President, Credit Cards. Brett and Jeff discuss the launch of the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite card and look at some of the reasoning behind this new card and why Scotiabank took the leap to be the first major Canadian credit card issuer to offer a No FX fee card.Click Here to download the podcast  Or download/subscribe via: Links to this week’s topic: Introducing the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card – a strong well rounded no foreign transaction fee travel rewards credit card You can find this and all our other Rewards Canada Round Up Podcast Episodes here

Some good news from the fine folks at Aeroplan this week which is needed after the news of the breakup with Esso last week. Starting late in April, Aeroplan members will be able to earn miles for shopping online at Amazon.ca. Here are some excerpts from today’ press release:Starting April 24, 2018, Aeroplan Members who visit Amazon.ca through Aeroplan.com, will be able to earn at least 1 Aeroplan Mile for every $1 dollar spent.Aeroplan status members will earn even more miles when shopping at Amazon.ca.  Members with silver and black status will earn up to 2x the miles while members with diamond status receive up to 3x the miles per transaction. How it works:Aeroplan Members simply visit aeroplan.com/estore; Using the search function on the page, find Amazon.ca; Enter your Aeroplan Number and last name; Click on the ‘Shop Now’ button to be redirected to Amazon.ca.  Happy shopping!  Members will earn a minimum of 1 Aeroplan Mile per $1 spent.For me I like this news, my family does shop a lot via Amazon…