Investing

For five years I attempted to beat the market with a portfolio of Canadian dividend stocks. As my investments grew, I began measuring my returns and comparing the results to a benchmark – an exchange traded fund from iShares called CDZ, which tracks Canadian dividend stocks. I wanted to know if my judgement as a portfolio…

Last year I invited 15 financial experts to share their thoughts on borrowing to invest. At the heart of the debate was a question I received from a reader about using leverage to invest in a single stock: “With Canadian Oil Sands (COS) paying a juicy 8 percent dividend, does it make sense to borrow…

So you have some money you want to invest but you’re worried because you keep hearing that there’s going to be a stock market crash. Isn’t it better to wait until after that happens so you can buy in when it’s safer? It’s true that the stock market will crash. In fact I guarantee it.…

The stock markets have shown some volatility this summer and this has concerned some investors who have been riding the latest “full steam ahead” bull market and think a market correction is imminent. These concerns have increased interest in investment products that have a principal guarantee. But are they worth it? These guarantees come with…

Even though I sold my dividend stocks and moved to a two-ETF solution earlier this year, I still believe that an investor with the right temperament and patience can succeed with a dividend growth (or value investing) strategy over the long term. With that in mind, I’m pleased to share this guest post from Dividend…

Target date mutual funds – also known as age-based funds or life-cycle funds – are low maintenance, retirement plan products that operate under as asset allocation formula, which adjusts itself as it gets closer to the year you will retire. You may be familiar with the concept if your employer pension plan participates in one…

The financial services industry would have you believe that individual investors don’t want to pay upfront for investment advice – in fact, the industry claims that investors prefer to pay for financial advice through fees that are part of their mutual funds. But we all know that mutual funds in Canada cost too much and…

The stock market has hit some all-time highs recently, which makes some investors nervous. Is it time to sell? Knowing when to sell, especially in a bull market, is the hardest thing about trading. It’s not an “all or nothing” decision. Don’t change a strategy that’s working for you. Ask yourself if the stock still…

Many investors – not happy with their advisers for whatever reason – feel they can do a lot better themselves, especially when the market is booming and their friends and co-workers are bragging about their winning investment performance. DIY investing can appear to make sense for a lot of people. However, studies have shown that…

Many investors eventually come to the realization that the mutual funds sold by their bank or investment firm come with unjustifiably high fees. Making the switch to low cost index funds or ETFs sounds like the easiest, most logical choice, however there is typically one final hurdle for investors to overcome. Deferred sales charges –…