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Tag Archives investing for fun and profit

us politicians photo illustration
Columns, Global markets, Home Quarter Investing

The cycles within economic cycles

Investing for Fun and Profit: The economic cycle, presidential cycle and stock market cycle are separate entities that interact

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The S&P 500 — the market I’ll be referencing throughout this article — has been on a tear the past couple of years, leading many to wonder if the hot bull market can continue. It was up 26.3 per cent in 2023 and at time of writing is up about 23 per cent year-to-date. Let’s […] Read more
Governments have only a limited amount of sway over markets at large but can influence investor sentiment on different sectors, such as health care or alternative energy.
Columns, Global markets, Home Quarter Investing

Is it best, when investing, to stay politically agnostic?

Investing for Fun and Profit: Besides, how much influence do governments really have on the markets?

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I began this column the day after the great Harris/Trump debate. Based on the publishing schedule, you might be reading it just before the U.S. election. A lot can happen in both politics and the markets over a six-week period, but I thought it would be an appropriate time to review how politics may or […] Read more
Laval-based Alimentation Couche-Tard, which owns the Circle K and Couche-Tard convenience store brands, in August announced a “friendly, non-binding” merger proposal to Seven & i Holdings, owner of the 7-Eleven brand. The Tokyo company last month rejected Couche-Tard’s proposal.
Columns, Home Quarter Investing, Markets

Even in a weak economy, strong performers exist

Investing for Fun and Profit: We limit our exposure in some sectors, but ‘there’s more than one way to skin a cat’

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The saying “There’s more than one way to skin a cat” probably dates back to medieval times when both domestic and wild cats were skinned for their fur. A literal interpretation would be rather repugnant in modern times, yet the saying persists to represent multiple ways to achieve a goal. Two issues ago, I bemoaned […] Read more
Not long ago people carried Nokias, Motorolas and BlackBerrys. Ten years from now, will we still all have iPhones?
Columns, Home Quarter Investing

A brief history of market dominance

Investing for Fun and Profit: Is the publicly traded past a guide for the future?

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The largest 10 U.S. companies by market capitalization (number of shares, multiplied by price per share) currently represent about 30 per cent of the value of the entire U.S. publicly traded universe, and the U.S represents about 60 of the world market cap. Therefore these 10 companies represent about 18 per cent of the entire […] Read more
As I’ve already experienced with telcos, declining profitability often leads to declining service levels.
Columns, Home Quarter Investing, Markets

Can Canada’s banks and telcos maintain as reliable performers?

Investing for Fun and Profit: Also includes an update on the latest status of the Titanium Strength Portfolio

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This is my 100th column over the past six years for Grainews. I hope you’ve enjoyed the wit and wisdom, albeit limited, and that my musings helped your off-farm investing success. This is also the first column written following the May 15 anniversary of the Titanium Strength Portfolio (TSP). At its outset, the purpose was […] Read more
ho chi minh city vietnam
Columns, Home Quarter Investing

Energy reflections of our recent Vietnam vacation

Investing for Fun and Profit: In a country facing rapid growth and corresponding energy demand, every day is a smog day

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Vietnam is a fascinating country, rich with culture and history. We also visited Cambodia and its renowned ancient temples, the most famous being Ankor Wat, a UNESCO world heritage site. This was my first time in Southeast Asia. The contrasts are ubiquitous, with modern vehicles sharing streets with rickshaws, modern skyscrapers neighbouring hovels, and elite […] Read more
outdoor lighting
Columns, Global markets, Home Quarter Investing

How we choose highly profitable companies at reasonable valuations

Investing for Fun & Profit: It's both an art and a science -- but mostly science

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In previous articles I’ve frequently mentioned the importance of selecting highly profitable companies at reasonable valuations. I’d like to illustrate with a real-life example of a switch I made in our tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs) at the start of the year. Our TFSA performance has lagged recently even though since inception they are still running […] Read more
guy looking skyward holding sign proclaiming end times
Columns, Home Quarter Investing

Markets are dispassionate to our human disasters

Investing for Fun and Profit: While headlines may exalt a unique situation, to markets it's 'same as it ever was'

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The first public stock exchange opened in Amsterdam in 1611, trading one company, the Dutch East India Company. Twenty-five years later, coincident with tulip mania, the company had a market cap of 78 million Dutch guilders, which translates to $9.7 trillion current U.S. dollars, putting Microsoft’s and Apple’s near-$3 trillion valuations into perspective. The London […] Read more
If you manage to get timing right once and miss a big part of a bear market, you must again get it right to buy back at the very bottom.
Columns, Global markets

Trying to time the market can ravage a portfolio

Investing for Fun & Profit: A commitment to invest in stocks means acceptance of their inherent volatility

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Many things perceived as impossible are indeed possible — but some aren’t. I just finished reading a book about many of humanity’s greatest discoveries. A theme throughout was how these potential inventions were scoffed at, yet through persistence inventors accomplished the impossible. One of the most satisfying aspects of my agricultural career was proving the […] Read more
The stronger the consensus, the more wrong it usually becomes.
Columns, Global markets, Home Quarter Investing

‘Everybody’ is usually wrong — and why it must be so

Overwhelming strength of sentiment, when few buyers or sellers remain, can bend a trend

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Everybody is familiar with the colloquial term “Everybody is doing X.” By “X” we don’t mean “formerly Twitter” — everybody has been writing “X (formerly Twitter)” so I thought I would do the opposite. In this case you’re welcome to fill in whatever you wish for X. Salespeople often use the phrase to help sell […] Read more

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