Thursday February 28

Personal Investor: Financial statement red flags

Business Day: Norman Levine, managing director, Portfolio Management Corp.

Red Flags:

• Beware of changes in auditors
• Mergers and acquisitions should have clear reasons
• Be cautious when dealing with companies with a history of dishonesty or fraud

Wednesday February 27

Business Day: Pattie Lovett-Reid, chief financial commentator, CTV

Signs your advisor just isn’t that into you as a client: 

• Lack of communication
• Talk at you, not to you
• Focused on their goals, not yours
• Feel you are lucky to have them

Tuesday February 26

Personal Investor: How investment strategy changes as you age

Business Day: Andrew Pyle, wealth advisor, Pyle Wealth Management

• Ages 20 to 40 years can afford to take the biggest risk because they have time to recover
• Ages 40 to 60 need to move to more conservative investments to retain wealth
• Retirees need a steady flow of reliable income to meet current financial needs

Monday February 25

Personal Investor: U.S. stocks for Canadian portfolios

Business Day: Matt McCall, president, Penn Financial Group

• The Canadian equity market is too thin but U.S. equities can round out a portfolio
• The best non-Canadian sectors are consumers and technology
• ETFs are the best way to get exposure to U.S. sectors

Friday February 22

Personal Investor: The right mutual fund for the right portfolio

Business Day: Christopher Davis, director of fund analysis, Morningstar Research

• Mutual funds continue to lose market share to exchange traded funds
• Canadians pay the highest mutual fund fees in the developed world
• Investors can build their own mutual fund portfolios with proper asset allocation

Thursday February 21

Personal Investor: Ranking the best and worst discount brokers

Business Day: Glenn LaCoste, president and lead analyst, Surviscor

• Competition heating up in providing mobile brokerage services
• Scotia iTrade ranked 1st for the second consecutive review
• Former frontrunner TD Direct Investing losing ground to the competition

Wednesday February 20

Personal Investor: Expanding CPP to avoid a pension crisis

Business Day: Mark Grammer, VP of investments, Mackenzie Financial

• Sovereign debt issues will continue to dampen global growth
• Emerging markets will continue to outperform for the foreseeable future
• Investors should buy companies exposed to that growth

Tuesday February 19

Personal Investor: Hunting for Dividend Yield

Business Day: Winnie Go, senior wealth advisor, ScotiaMcLeod

• Investors in or near retirement need dividend income to supplement low bond yields and cash-rich companies are responding
• Best payout sectors are financials, telcos, utilities and technology
• Specific dividend stocks include Royal Bank, TD Bank, Rogers, BCE, Wells Fargo and AT&T

Friday February 15

Personal Investor: How ignoring diversification can rot your portfolio

Business Day: Karl Berger, Partner at Toron Investestment Management

• Investing exclusively in Canada does not provide enough diversification
• Investors should hold 35 to 40 stocks across all major asset classes
• Exchange traded funds provide balanced exposure to global markets 

Thursday February 14

Personal Investor: Avoiding the market herd with alternative investments

Business Day: Craig Machel, Investment Advisor at Macquarie Private Wealth

• Effective alternative investment strategies are moving away from Canadian resource growth to global growth
• One alternative strategy invests in commercial mortgages and private real estate for yield and a 6.3% tax advantaged yield.
• A second market neutral strategy holds 23 commodity ETFs. At least six are long and at least six are short at all times.

Wednesday February 13

Personal Investor: How to avoid investment fee traps

Business Day: Rob Carrick, personal finance columnist, The Globe and Mail

• Advisers should be providing on-going advice in return for the investment fee
• Make your adviser tell you what they will do to justify their fee
• Flat investment fees (like in the UK) offer greater transparency

Tuesday February 12

Personal Investor: How to build an ETF portfolio that's right for you

Business Day: Mark Yamada, president and CEO, PUR Investing

• Leveraged ETFs continue to flood the market but investors need to consider risk levels
• ETF fees are falling as competition heats up and every discount brokerage in Canada has slashed ETF fees
• Don’t buy ETFs in small increments. Flat fees reduce returns proportionally more—mutual funds may be better suited

Monday February 11

Personal Investor: Making Options an Option in Your Portfolio

Business Day: NICK PAPAGEORGIOU FROM THE MONTREAL EXCHANGE

• Options trading has skyrocketed since the 2008 financial meltdown as investors look to boost income and lower risk
• Covered call writing is the most popular options trade with retail investors because they can get extra income from stocks they already hold
• On the flipside, a protective put can act as a hedge against a drop in a stock you already hold 

Friday February 8

Taking the guess work out of retirement planning with an annuity

Simon Kay, president, IPS Insurance says:

• Annuities remove market volatility from retirement planning
• There are several types of annuities so make sure you get one that is right for you.
• An annuity is a great addition to an investment portfolio

Thursday February 7

Creating An Estate Plan For The Next Generation

Tom Junkin, senior vice president, Fiduciary Trust Company of Canada says:

• Discuss your estate plan with family
• Review and update the plan regularly
• Consider digital property such as websites and social media accounts

Wednesday February 6

The Overlooked Asset Class -- Bonds

Rock bottom bond yields have a lot of investors taking a pass on fixed income - but it is a vital component of any balanced portfolio, says personal investor Dale Jackson. Click on Watch Coverage to view.

Fixed income still matters when it comes to managing risk in your portfolio. Joey Mack, Director of Fixed Income at GMP Securities reveals fixed income strategies that produce the best returns

Tuesday February 5

How to keep more of your tax dollars in your pocket

Lorn Kutner, Tax Partner at Deloitte talks about tax strategies involving RRSPS, TFSAS and non-registered accounts.

Monday, February 4

David Trahair, chartered accountant and author, Crushing Debt: Why Canadians Should Drop Everything and Pay off Debt

• Paying down debt is better than investing in the market because it provides a risk-free, tax-free return equal to the compound interest rate on the debt.
• In some cases, especially for young people, paying down debt makes more sense than contributing to a register retirement savings plan.
• A great way to tackle debt is by consolidating high-interest debt into one low-interest loan.