WilliamMLeighty634 blog

Warren Buffett has built an incredible reputation and portfolio over the years, thanks to his impressive intelligence and investment savvy. However, another significant factor in Buffett’s success is the fact that he’s focused on long-term investing. That’s why any time you’re looking for the best stocks to buy now, taking a long-term approach like Warren Buffett is crucial. Over his decades-long career, Buffett has made several high-quality and noteworthy investments — from GEICO, one of his earliest investments and now a wholly owned subsidiary of his holding company, to Coca Cola, a stock that he may never sell. However, what might surprise some investors is that Buffett’s best and most consistent recommendation when asked about the best investments to buy now isn’t about individual stocks at all. Instead, for years, including during last year’s annual shareholders’ meeting, he recommended that investors put the majority of their capital in a low-cost index fund. Why does ...

2021 was a strong year for the stock market, but it ended in a state of volatility that has bled through to 2022. Just a few weeks into another year of trading, the S&P/TSX Composite Index has started going through another downturn. The Canadian benchmark index is down by 4.49% from its January 17th level at writing. If you are an investor keen on getting the most bang for your buck, but you’re unsure about which stocks to add to your portfolio, it is nothing to be ashamed of. Allocating your investment capital to a narrow portfolio of stocks could provide you with significant returns if your investments do well but result in losses if the risk doesn’t pay off. Investing in an exchange-traded fund (ETF) allows you to invest in a single financial instrument while diversifying your capital across a broad group of equity securities to mitigate capital risk. Today, I will discuss two of the best ETFs you could buy right now to mitigate the risk of individual stocks by diversify...

I’m a big advocate of passive investing using exchange-trade funds (ETFs), especially those that track broad market stock indexes. There is ample evidence out there that shows holding a low-cost, globally diversified stock portfolio will beat the majority of stock pickers and day traders. The lesson here is to keep your investing simple. My previous go-to advice was to purchase a global-ex Canada ETF and pair it with a Canadian equity ETF at ratios of anywhere from 90/10 to 70/30. That cuts our required holdings down to just two ETFs, which is quite simple. The one-ticket solution However, fund providers like Vanguard have come out with some excellent “asset allocation” ETFs that make the job even simpler. By buying and holding just one ETF, you’ll have a stock portfolio matches the market with zero effort. Vanguard All-Equity ETF Portfolio (TSX:VEQT) is possibly one of the best 100% equity ETFs available to Canadian investors. For a low management expense ratio (MER) of 0.24...

Canadian retirees have been worried about the performance of their investments ever since the pandemic struck. The volatility created by the pandemic-induced challenges has had a significant impact on stock markets worldwide. If you are a Canadian retiree or are nearing retirement, high-growth investments are too much of an unnecessary risk for you to consider. If you want to reevaluate your portfolio and gear it more towards supporting your retired life, dividend investing might be the right way to go. Today, I will discuss two top dividend stocks that you can add to your investment portfolio to generate a reliable and stable passive income that can supplement your retirement pensions through the Old Age Security (OAS) program and Canada Pension Plan (CPP). Fortis Fortis (TSX:FTS)(NYSE:FTS) is a no-brainer for many stock market investors seeking income-generating assets that can offer them a reliable and stable income stream. Fortis is a $27.95 billion market capitalization ...

The TSX continued to see major volatility last week. It seems like no matter where you look, share prices continue to drop. Yet there’s one area where it seems like there may be protection, and that’s gold. The major players in the gold industry have done reasonably well throughout all this uncertainty. But now Agnico Eagle Mines (TSX:AEM)(NYSE:AEM) is down about 36% in the last year on the TSX on Friday. Yet according to analysts, this drop is completely unwarranted. Furthermore, it’s a solid buying opportunity for Motley Fool investors. So let’s look at three reasons by Agnico stock might just be the best stock you can purchase on the TSX. gnico stock and its merger of equals The gold industry has been going through a period of consolidation. That included Angico announcing a “merger of equals” with Kirkland Lake on September 28, 2021, creating “the gold industry‘s highest-quality senior producer,” according to a joint statement. The newly formed company, upon approval, exp...

It’s been a brutal start to the year, with the S&P 500 now flirting with a correction. Indeed, those who were undiversified are now paying the price. With tech showing no signs of bottoming out, it may be a wise idea to pivot and look to the many passive income stocks that may be intriguing buys right now. Indeed, passive income and value are the polar opposite type of names that are being targeted by Mr. Market these days. And if you’ve got cash on the sidelines, check out the following on-sale names, which may be worth buying and holding, if not forever, for a pretty long time (think the next 10 or 20 years). Consider Quebecor (TSX:QBR.B) and Canadian Natural Resources (TSX:CNQ)(NYSE:CNQ), two stellar dividend stocks that could help power your passive income fund, even as volatility persists en route to higher rates. Quebecor Quebecor is one of the most underrated Canadian telecoms. Indeed, most Canadians have probably never heard of it. It’s not a member of the Big Three...

Investing in real estate offers many advantages for investors. That’s why any time you’re looking for some of the best Canadian stocks to buy now, or you’re looking to build your passive income stream, you should undoubtedly consider the top REITs. In addition to being generally defensive, high-quality real estate funds offer investors lots of growth potential. And because there are so many to choose from, you can find some REITs offering high yields, while others provide major growth. So if you’re a Canadian investor looking to increase your passive income and find some of the best Canadian stocks to buy now, here are three of the top REITs to consider. top dividend stock to buy for growing passive income If you’re a dividend investor focused on finding passive income streams that can offer consistent growth, one of the best REITs to buy now is Granite REIT (TSX:GRT.UN). Granite is an industrial REIT that’s been growing rapidly for some time. As more retail companies comm...

With February fast approaching, our focus naturally turns to RRSP investing. This is a good time to make note of the RRSP deadline. It’s also a good time to review our RRSP contribution limits for the 2021 tax year. An RRSP is a great way to save for retirement. All contributions are tax-deductible and your money can grow tax-free. So, maximizing your contributions is a great goal as we work to secure our financial futures. This leads us to many questions. What should we buy for our RRSP? Should we focus on bonds, stock, mutual funds, or ETFs? What has the best chance of helping us grow our money quickly without taking on too much risk? The answer will depend somewhat on the investor. But in this article, I would like to introduce you to a tech stock that could help you turn a $10,000 RRSP contribution into $50,000. top Canadian tech stock to anchor your RRSP Tech stocks have been really volatile in the last two years. They shot up to the moon during the pandemic. More recentl...

What are the best investing apps in Canada? Different people will tell you different answers, because they have different priorities when using investing apps. It would be best if you already know the functionalities that you need and what you’re looking for in an investing app. In any case, here are a few tips to help you decide. Does the best investing app in Canada offer $0 trading fees? If you trade a lot and cost is the number one thing you care about, then the best investing app for you would be Wealthsimple. The Canadian app offers commission-free stock trading. Other online brokerages cost up to $9.99 per trade. For example, it makes a huge difference when you have the habit of making multiple buys to aim for a lower average cost for a single position. However, Wealthsimple may not have all the tools you need to research your investments. You might need other investing apps to complement its offerings. The best investing app should be easy to use The reliability of th...

Elon Musk is worth around US$260 billion. To put that in perspective, Musk could buy Finland (GDP of US$252 billion), solve world hunger (purportedly US$6 billion), and still have enough to buy an NHL franchise team (around $934 million). But Musk wasn’t always this rich, nor was he always the face of the EV revolution. In fact, it wasn’t that long ago that Musk was selling computer parts from his college dorm room in Ontario and cutting logs with a chainsaw in Vancouver. So, how did this uber-wealthy entrepreneur make money before Tesla? According to his biography, Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future, here are just eight odd jobs Musk took. 1. Video game producer Once upon a time in South Africa, Musk made a PC video game. An odd mix between Space Invaders and Asteroids, the game’s objective was to destroy an alien freighter, which carried hydrogen bombs. Musk was only 12 years old when he made the game, and he supposedly earned $500 from the sale....

With information we can access through the internet easily at our fingertips, it has never been easier to learn how to start investing in stocks. Here are some tips to help you get started. Investing, not trading New investors might think of investing in stocks as trading in and out of stocks for quick profits. That requires short-term price volatility to cooperate, which we cannot control. In fact, it can be an easy way to lose money if new investors are thinking about taking profits quickly, especially if they plan to sell stocks within a day of buying them. When investing in stocks, we’re buying pieces or becoming a part-owner of businesses. By doing so, we’re sharing the risks and profits that the companies bring. In the long run, if the businesses do well, the underlying stocks will rise as well. If the stocks pay dividends, they’ll likely increase their dividends. For example, investors who have sat on Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY)(NYSE:RY) shares for about 15 years hav...

This year has been good for Canadian investors, as the S&P/TSX Composite Index is trading 23.6% higher to date. However, Magna International (TSX:MG)(NYSE:MGA) has underperformed the broader equity markets by delivering returns of only 16%. The decline in auto production due to semiconductor chip shortages has weighed on its financials and stock price. So, let’s assess whether Magna International would be an excellent buy right now. First, let’s look at its performance in the recently reported third quarter. Magna International’s weak third-quarter performance During the third quarter, Magna International’s top line declined by 13% on a year-over-year basis to US$7.92 billion. Amid the challenging environment this year due to the decline in vehicle production, the better comparison would be a quarter-over-quarter one. Sequentially, its sales have declined by 12% due to a negative product mix in North America and Europe, unfavourable currency exchange, and disinvestment in thr...

Investing in dividend stocks is one way to build a passive-income stream. Typically, dividend-paying companies pay their shareholders on a monthly or quarterly basis. The dollar amount of the dividend may change each quarter, but the dividend yield changes daily based on the stock’s share price.   Generally speaking, companies have full control of their dividends. They can increase or decrease the amount or cut the dividend altogether. For passive-income investors, a non-guaranteed payment may be concerning. The good news is that the TSX is full of high-yielding dividend stocks with payment streaks that have lasted for decades and longer.  It’s often more mature companies that pay a dividend, as opposed to companies still largely focusing on growth. Younger companies, still in the growth stages, usually prefer to use their capital by reinvesting back into the business, rather than pay a dividend to their shareholders. What Canadian investors need to keep in mind is that it’s no...

Airline stocks were a play for the economic rebound we were all expecting. These beaten-down corporations were on the verge of bankruptcy last year, but have seen a surge in demand this year. However, these stocks are still value traps despite their modest valuations. Here’s why.  Concerns on the horizon Airline stocks like Chorus Aviation (TSX:CHR) were off to a great start this year. Over the first three months of 2021, Chorus rose 45%. Since then, the stock has come under pressure. This is because oil prices have limited the industry’s margins despite growing sales. Meanwhile, sales haven’t been as great as initially expected anyway. Another, bigger concern is the new COVID-19 variant that has emerged in South Africa. The  B.1.1.529 variant (also known as the Nu variant) is said to be more resistant to vaccines. Some countries are already considering tighter border controls. If the variant spreads, the future could be bleak for the air travel industry. Chorus underperforma...

Dividend investing is for people desiring to earn extra income with minimal effort. With prices of goods and services expected to remain elevated this year and the next, Canadians can use their free or excess cash to purchase passive-income stocks. The TSX has dividend beasts like True North Commercial Properties (TSX:TNT.UN) and Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund (TSX:CHE.UN). Incidentally, the pair trades at nearly identical prices and offers almost the same generous dividends. Since the average yield is 8.315%, a $22,500 position in each will produce a combine monthly income of $311.81, or around $10.39 per day. Top-notch tenant base True North isn’t the largest commercial property landlord in Canada, but its quality tenant base makes it a top-of-mind choice of yield-thirsty investors. The anchor tenant of this $624 million real estate investment trust (REIT) is none other than the federal government of Canada. You can throw in the provincial governments of Alberta, British C...

When this year started, I’d discussed why the Canada housing bull market was well positioned to press on due to strong fundamentals and favourable monetary policy. Canadian real estate sales moved up again in the month of October 2021. Meanwhile, prices have steadily increased throughout the year. Today, I want to discuss why the market has caught fire once again and look at three TSX stocks to snatch up in this climate. Why Canada housing is gaining momentum in late 2021 Experts, analysts, and policymakers have consistently warned that the Canada housing market has veered into dangerous territory in 2021. Despite this, demand for Canadian real estate has continued to soar. The Bank of Canada (BoC) has warned that coming rate hikes in 2022 could punish overleveraged citizens. This has also accelerated the rush to get into the red-hot housing market ahead of the expected rate hikes next year. Earlier this month, I’d predicted that the Canada housing bull market would press on in...

Looking to earn copious amounts of tax-free passive income in retirement? If so, it pays to hold dividend ETFs in a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA). Stocks are usually taxable, but by holding them in a TFSA, you avoid all possible taxes. On top of that, if you were 18 or older in 2009 and you haven’t yet made any contributions to a TFSA, then you can contribute up to $81,500. You can probably shelter a very large portion of your savings in a TFSA! Now, you can always buy and hold individual stocks in a TFSA, but that takes a lot of research and time. What you can do instead is buy index ETFs. Index funds are ultra-diversified, so you don’t need any particular knowledge about individual stocks to invest profitably in them. Instead, you can just park your money in them and hopefully watch your money grow over time. In this article I will explore three Canadian index funds that can pay you tax-free passive income in retirement. iShares TSX Canadian Dividend Aristocrats ETF T...

Motley Fool investors aren’t necessarily used to the Big Six banks surging. Yet that’s exactly what happened during the last month with Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD)(NYSE:TD). Shares of TD stock have climbed 7% in the last month, jumping just as earnings come around the corner. What happened? The jump occurred after a slew of announcements from TD stock. The first was the announcement that earnings would be released Dec. 2, as predicted. But then several more announcements came down the line. The first two were normal, with TD announcing its ETF distributions and annual reinvestment. TD stock was also nodded at for four mutual fund awards and was one of the most sustainable companies. These are all great buzzwords, but the big push was likely a number of analyst upgrades. Shares of TD continue to trade at about $93 per share. However, many analysts started bumping target prices to the three-digit range. This would mark the first time TD stock reached the three-digit level! W...

Investors are concerned that the Federal Reserve could start raising interest rates as early as March. This skepticism has led to a selloff in the equity markets worldwide, including Canada. Although an interest rate hike could impact high-growth stocks more, I am optimistic about the following four Canadian stocks, given their healthy growth potential and discounted stock prices. BlackBerry BlackBerry (TSX:BB)(NYSE:BB) has lost around 14% of its stock value this year while trading at a $ 71% discount from its 52-week high. Meanwhile, investors should utilize this steep correction to accumulate the stock to earn superior returns over the next two years. The growth in digitization has increased cybersecurity spending, expanding the addressable market for the company. Meanwhile, the company is launching new innovative products and upgrading its older versions to drive its customer base and average revenue per customer. Further, BlackBerry’s intelligent vehicle data platform, IVY,...