October 2018 ~ BACK TO BACK LATEST NEWS

LATEST NEWS

With Face ID and a decent screen, this phone attempts a happy medium between quality and price – but £750 still isn’t cheap

The iPhone XR looks to offer most of what made the iPhone XS a knockout for £250 less – but with a colourful body and a slightly larger screen is this the iPhone to buy?

With the iPhone XS and XS Max starting at £999 and £1,099 respectively, Apple has room to shoehorn a slightly lower cost, but still expensive, model in underneath.

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Once again praised as a ‘voice of reason’ for his coverage of the migrant caravan, Smith just had his contract renewed for another three years

The story of how Shepard “Shep” Smith got his break at Fox News explains much of his subsequent career, both its longevity and its controversy.

A young reporter working for an affiliate station in Los Angeles, Smith was covering the OJ Simpson trial. But even this epoch-making legal soap opera had its lag times. In reporting these Smith was, as ever, honest.

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The struggles of the past teach us all about the present. Ninety years after Black History Month launched, this remains true

• Lonnie Bunch is founding director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture

One can tell a great deal about a people, about a nation, by what it deems important enough to remember: what graces the walls of its galleries? What elements of a country’s identity are featured in its national museums? What images appear on its currency and what holidays are celebrated?

I would suggest, however, that one learns even more by examining what a nation chooses to forget.

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Despite various investigations and potential leads, murder case has never been solved

On a sunny July afternoon in 1986 Suzy Lamplugh, the daughter of a solicitor and swimming instructor, vanished forever in one of the most notorious unsolved cases in recent criminal history.

The 25-year-old went missing after leaving the estate agency where she worked to meet a Mr Kipper at a house in Fulham, south-west London.

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Growing food without plants or animals sounds like science fiction. But it could stop environmental destruction

It’s not about “them”, it’s about us. The horrific rate of biological annihilation reported this week – 60% of the Earth’s vertebrate wildlife gone since 1970 – is driven primarily by the food industry. Farming and fishing are the major causes of the collapse of both marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Meat – consumed in greater quantities by the rich than by the poor – is the strongest cause of all. We may shake our heads in horror at the clearance of forests, the drainage of wetlands, the slaughter of predators and the massacre of sharks and turtles by fishing fleets, but it is done at our behest.

As the Guardian’s recent report from Argentina reveals, the huge forests of the Gran Chaco are heading towards extermination as they are replaced by deserts of soya beans, almost all of which are used to produce animal feed, particularly for Europe. With Jair Bolsonaro in power in Brazil, deforestation in the Amazon is likely to accelerate, much of it driven by the beef lobby that helped bring him to power. The great forests of Indonesia, such as those in West Papua, are being felled and burned for oil palm at devastating speed.

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This won’t be the first time a British coin has celebrated a schism with the rest of Europe

“Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations”: what a curious motto for the new 50p coin that the Treasury has announced will commemorate Britain’s exit from the European Union. It has an air of playground desperation about it – the neediness of a kid who, having wilfully pissed off all 27 of his friends, is slinking nervously back into the schoolyard looking for someone – anyone – to play with.

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The chancellor may have gambled with the UK’s cash, but at least his job is safe – for now

Shortly before she was due to address the Nordic Council in Oslo, Theresa May was asked if she was planning on calling a snap general election. “No,” she replied sternly. “A general election would not be in the national interest.” As this was precisely the same answer she had given seven times before calling last year’s snap general election, many MPs must have feared the worst.

Though one definition of insanity is repeating the same mistake and expecting a different result, it was still a fair question. Not least because no one can any longer count on the prime minister being sound of mind. How else to explain a budget in which the chancellor appears to have undergone a total personality change?

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The case of the 25-year-old estate agent, presumed murdered in 1986, still fills me with horror at the dangers women face

More than 30 years after her disappearance, police are carrying out yet another search related to the murder of Suzy Lamplugh. The news will send shivers down the spine of anyone who remembers the headlines in 1986, appealing for help in finding the missing estate agent. Smiling pictures of Suzy, a lock of brown hair falling over her forehead, were everywhere, but days lengthened into weeks and the woman herself was nowhere.

The fact that a 25-year-old woman could leave her office, head for a perfectly ordinary street in southwest London and never be seen again defied belief. On the day of her disappearance, she had been due to show a house to a client, a routine appointment none of us would have thought twice about in those days. It was only afterwards that the man’s name, “Mr Kipper”, started to look like an obvious pseudonym – and one that suggested a twisted sense of humour, assuming it belonged to her abductor.

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JK Rowling understands that the supernatural needs to be frightening. ‘Light parties’ to replace Halloween are absurd

The Church of England has just done another slightly silly thing. Senior figures, including Archbishop Justin Welby, are backing attempts to draw children away from the lure of Halloween into “light parties”, where they can share “fun activities” in church. It is suggested that attendees wear superhero costumes instead of dressing up as “scary witches and ghosts”. “Nowadays,” the church claims, “most people believe that you can’t fight evil with evil – you can only fight evil by doing good, and good will always win in the end.”

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Overrun on White Hart Lane has begun to affect an overachieving manager who may tire of austerity

Football fans. Save money on expensive TV subscriptions. Create your own Sky Sports Monday Night Football debate by standing behind a desk shrieking “Twenty‑nine million pounds net!” and “Five hundred million on a stadium!” in a voice so high-pitched it’s audible only to fish, dogs and snails, before almost coming to blows during a metaphysical debate over the meaning of success in an essentially meaningless world.

Among the many oddities of Tottenham v Manchester City at the Wembley multisport complex on Monday was the sight of Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher being drawn, with a commendable degree of feeling, into the general uncertainty around where exactly Spurs and their manager stand right now.

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Al-Jazeera’s second expose prompted a slanging match with authorities but the question should be not whether spot-fixing exists but who is doing it and how often

Seems like it was Mark Wood’s bad luck to draw a short straw last week. The day after al-Jazeera released the second part of their investigation into spot-fixing in cricket Wood was put up to talk to the press. He said the accusations reminded him of “the boy who cried wolf”. Maybe Wood always used to fall asleep before his parents made it to the end of the book. Right now, five months after the first part of al-Jazeera’s expose, we are still waiting to see whether the danger they are shouting about really exists, but Wood, like everyone else in English cricket, will hope this story does not end with everyone looking the other way while the wolf eats up the sheep.

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The Tour de France winner on overcoming frustration with Team Sky, meeting Lionel Messi and why he cannot wait for next year

Geraint Thomas has already told me about the night he and Lionel Messi met in an underground car park and how it feels to have won the Tour de France. He has considered public suspicion of Team Sky and explained his long battle to be accepted as their leading rider in this year’s race ahead of Chris Froome. Thomas pauses briefly now and, stepping away from the whirlwind of the last four months, looks ahead.

“I’d love to win it again,” he says. “Each year’s different but I still feel I’m improving even though I’m 32. I still have the motivation and commitment where I think Brad Wiggins, once he’d won it [in 2012], didn’t have 100% motivation. I’ve still got the appetite. I enjoyed the whole race – not just the end.”

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• Full-back omitted for first time in the Jones era
• Brown has been a virtual ever-present since 2012

Eddie Jones has omitted Mike Brown, Ben Morgan and Michael Rhodes from his England squad to face South Africa on Saturday, with Courtney Lawes also ruled out through injury.

Bath’s Zach Mercer and Ben Moon of Exeter are in line to play in a Test for the first time, with the New Zealand-born back-row Brad Shields also on course for a Twickenham debut. Chris Ashton and Manu Tuilagi are poised for their first Test involvements since 2014 and 2016 respectively but there is no room for the 33-year-old Brown, who has never previously been dropped by Jones when fully fit.

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• Leicester feel an away game is best way to restore normality
• Book of condolence honours Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha

Leicester have made the difficult decision to play their Premier League game at Cardiff on Saturday, following the death of their chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and four others in the helicopter crash at the King Power Stadium.

A minute’s silence will be observed before kick-off at Cardiff and the players will wear black armbands in honour of those who died when a private helicopter carrying Vichai, two members of his staff and two flight crew came down and exploded after Leicester’s match against West Ham.

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LATEST BUSINESS NEWS

The CERC will take views of all the stakeholders to revise tariff of imported coal-based power projects in Gujarat

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The show was originally shown on Thursday. But the remarks, which were linked to anti-Semitism, created a firestorm online when the show was shown again on Saturday.

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The bank had reported a net loss of Rs 15.3 billion in the July-September period of 2017-18

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LATEST STOCK MARKET NEWS

Traditional retail stocks have acquired a reputation in recent years. For some, that reputation is one of where retailers are surviving on borrowed time, as the onslaught of mobile commerce alternatives continues to chew away at the earnings and foot traffic at traditional brick-and-mortar stores.

To others, the growing shift to online and mobile shopping represents an opportunity for change that should be embraced and met head-on rather than completely ignored.

Here are two stocks that are arguably the best the retail stocks in the nation, and how they plan to (or have already dealt with) the mobile threat.

Canadian Tire (TSX:CTC.A) is one of the most iconic brands in the country, but that alone would not save the company from the changing shopping habits of consumers. Just a few years ago, Canadian Tire had a branding and revenue problem, with lacklustre sales, declining traffic at stores, and little vision for the future.

To counter that threat, the company invested heavily into technology and made it part of the buying process. Customers can don a VR headset to see how patio furniture would fit in their yard, or run on a special treadmill to help recommend the perfect shoe. These may sound more like sales gimmicks, but they were instrumental in the first part of the company’s transformation.

The second part has to do more with the brands that Canadian Tire sells, specifically its house brands. Canadian Tire has made a number of acquisitions over the years that have all become integral parts of the company’s brand portfolio. These popular products are available at Canadian Tire stores and online, providing yet another moat around any potential mobile threat.

In terms of a dividend, Canadian Tire offers a quarterly dividend that pays a respectable 2.40% yield.

Dollarama (TSX:DOL) is often noted as one the most lucrative retail opportunities in the market. In recent years, the stock has shot up as the company continues to roll out more dollar store locations across the country, satisfying an insatiable appetite by consumers to purchase a variety of goods at fixed price points that max out at $4.

The changing face of retail has slowly begun to penetrate Dollarama’s model, which has so far largely escaped online competitors owing to its unique mix of goods that are priced much lower and therefore not likely profitable for individual shipments. Still, Dollarama has been adapting to this change, with the company beginning to accept credit cards at locations as well as trialing online ordering and shipments of some items in selected regions of the country.

With over 1,000 locations across the country, critics of the stock point to slowing growth in recent quarters as well as the entry of several foreign competitors in the market as reasons to remain cautious.

Fortunately, the Canadian dollar store market is neither currently saturated nor about to become saturated anytime soon. The market can support additional locations and competitors to Dollarama, which can only lead to more innovative products and offerings in the future. Additionally, while growth may have slowed in recent quarters, it is still an impressive level of growth that most of the other traditional retailers in the market would be more than satisfied with.

While Dollarama offers a dividend to investors, the paltry 0.41% yield is hardly reason enough to consider this stock on its own. Instead, investors should be focused on the potential growth of the stock over the long term, which remains significant.

This Stock Could Be Like Buying Netflix for $1.87

If you’ve ever had to spend any time on the phone with your cable company…you won’t be surprised to hear that Canadians are abandoning cable in droves.

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Fool contributor Demetris Afxentiou has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

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What with the IMF downgrading the global growth outlook, ongoing trade war machinations between East and West, rising interest rates, and any number of other economic stressors, a nervous investor might be starting to wonder whether it may indeed be time to get out of stocks.

But before you rush to sell everything you have ahead of a fiscal storm, bear in mind that even in the most dire of crashes, the stock markets have survived. Losses will be incurred, fortunes lost – but value opportunities will also open, and the sturdiest of tickers will go on ticking.

Below you will find one of the best – a favourite of the TSX index, a solid dividend payer, and one of the most defensive stocks that Canadians can get their hands on. It’s one to buy and hold long-term, even after other stocks have seen massive sell-offs, ideal for a TFSA, RRSP, or other life-long savings account.

Suncor Energy (TSX:SU)(NYSE:SU)

If you take a beefy market cap of $72 billion and mix in a solid one-year past earnings growth of 63.5%, you’ll have the basis for a truly defensive dividend superstar. That past growth beats a five-year average past earnings contraction by 3.4%, and goes nicely with a PEG exactly equal to growth, and an acceptable debt level of 39.8% of net worth.

So far as value goes, I use a mix of variables and dividends when I assess long-term defensive buys to hold for passive income. Value is one factor in a three-factor system I use to decide whether a stock is worth buying; it’s not dissimilar to some of the tools used in stock screening. Suncor Energy looks good with a P/E of 16.5 times earnings, P/B of 1.6 times book, and a steady dividend yield of 3.25%, with verifiable stability over the last ten years.

Quality is the second factor taken into account when a screening is undertaken: a ROE of 10%, reasonable EPS of $2.69, and 17.2% expected annual growth in earnings make for a decent score in this department. With momentum as a third factor, we can see that Suncor Energy’s five year beta of 1.3 relative to the market indicates low volatility.

However, it has also shed 5.31% in the last five days as part of a market-wide sell off that has seen many stocks slide post-July. Unique or not, this percentage must be factored into the overall momentum score, though bear in mind that this October has seen a general skewing of that factor across the board. Throw in a share price discounted by 16% compared to its future cash flow value, and Suncor Energy is looking a bit wobbly on momentum.

The bottom line

While any big energy company on the TSX or NYSE counts as a competitor for Suncor Energy, the fact is that this is a stand-out gem of a defensive Canadian dividend stock. The above data-wrangling gives a moderate to strong buy signal, which in today’s far from certain economic climate is about as positive a recommendation as one can hope to get.

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Fool contributor Victoria Hetherington has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

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There’s been plenty of red on the markets lately, but there could be more bad news coming for airline stocks. While Air Canada (TSX:AC)(TSX:AC.B) has been doing well over the past few years, there are some significant headwinds the airline is facing that could see the stock start to drop in price.

The first issue facing it and other airline stocks is a higher price of oil. Oil prices have been rising for much of the year, and although they are down over the past month, they are still well above last year’s levels. And not only are there no signs of a big correction coming, there’s a possibility that prices could rise amid geopolitical issues.

An elevated price of oil means higher input costs, which is going to result in smaller profits for the big airlines.

Another big headwind is the impact that rising interest rates will have on travel volumes. Higher interest costs for businesses and less disposable income for travelers will likely result in less business and leisure-related travel.

We’ve already seen things to start to slow down for Air Canada. In 2017, the airline generated an impressive $2 billion in profit in 2017, although in recent quarters the company has found its way back into the red, despite sales continuing to climb.

Earnings coming up

Air Canada is expected to release its earnings this week, and with the company recording an impressive $4.9 billion in sales and over $1.7 billion profit last year in Q3, it will have a tall task in not only beating those results, but even just matching them.

Given commodity prices and current economic conditions, I wouldn’t be overly confident that the airline will be able to impress investors when it comes time to report.

Year to date, the stock has been down, and it is nowhere near the highs it reached earlier this year when it peaked at over $29 a share. A disappointing earnings result could send the stock reeling even further.

Bottom line

Investors that have owned Air Canada stock over the past few years have generated significant returns, but now might be the time to cash out. I suspect the stock has run out of steam, and it seems unlikely that we’ll see it return to its previous highs.

There are simply too many factors working against the airline stock, and even though it may not be an expensive buy from a valuation perspective, history has shown us that this is not a stock nor an industry that investors are willing to a pay any kind of premium for.

A big reason that the stock doesn’t often trade at a big multiple to earnings is due to the volatility and the various factors outside its control that can impact the company’s overall performance.

Although Air Canada is a dominant player in the industry with little competition, don’t expect investors to get bullish on this stock, even if it has a good result. There are simply many better opportunities out there for investors to put their money in.

This Stock Could Be Like Buying Netflix for $1.87

If you’ve ever had to spend any time on the phone with your cable company…you won’t be surprised to hear that Canadians are abandoning cable in droves.

And it’s setting up an enormous opportunity for investors smart enough to act now.

And today is your chance to find out all about this remarkable moment in media history… Because some investors believe one tiny company is poised to profit no matter who wins.

Could this stock be the next Netflix? Click here to Learn More

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Fool contributor David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

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The pullback in the TSX Index over the past few weeks is giving TFSA investors an opportunity to pick up some of Canada’s best stocks at reasonable, or even dirt-cheap, prices.

Income investors can now lock in attractive yield from top-quality dividend payers and those who are setting cash aside for their retirement can add top buy-and-hold industry leaders that should deliver solid returns over the next few decades.

Let’s take a look at three market leaders that deserve to be on your radar right now.

Royal Bank (TSX:RY)(NYSE:RY)

Royal Bank’s stock price is down from its 2018 high of $108 to just under $94 per share. The stock was arguably getting a bit expensive at the top, but the current trailing 12-month price-to-earnings ratio of 11.7 is reasonable.

The company expects to generate annual earnings-per-share growth of 7-10% over the medium term. This should easily support ongoing dividend increases in the same range and provide a nice tailwind for stock price appreciation.

Fears about a meltdown in the Canadian housing market are probably overblown, and Royal Bank’s U.S. operations should see margins improve as interest rates rise. Lower taxes south of the border should also be positive.

Royal Bank’s dividend provides a yield of 4.2%.

Canadian National Railway (TSX:CNR)(NYSE:CNI)

CN is already starting to recover from the latest dip. The stock is back up to $110 per share from $105 just a few days ago, but is still off the high of $118 it hit in early October.

The Canadian and U.S. economies remain healthy, and that should continue, as long as interest rate hikes don’t derail the party. A recession will arrive at some point, but CN makes good money, even when there is an economic slowdown, and the company generates carloads of free cash flow to support steady dividend growth.

The oil bottlenecks in Canada bode well for demand to transport oil by rail. In addition, CN’s extensive operations in the United States help offset any weakness in Canada and can provide a nice boost to earnings when the American dollar rises against the loonie.

CN raised its dividend by 10% this year and is spending a record $3.5 billion on upgrades, new locomotives, and additional car capacity.

Enbridge (TSX:ENB)(NYSE:ENB)

Enbridge has fallen out of favour in recent years, but a transition program is well underway, and investors might not be appreciating the progress management is making to turn the company around. Enbridge has taken the necessary steps to streamline and simplify the corporate structure and is selling non-core assets to pay down debt faster than anticipated.

The company continues to work through a large portfolio of capital projects that should boost cash flow and drive ongoing dividend growth. The stock is down below $40 from $50 per share at this time last year. The existing dividend provides a yield of 6.8%.

The bottom line

Royal Bank, CN, and Enbridge might see additional near-term downside, but the three stocks are starting to look oversold and should be solid buy-and-hold picks for a TFSA portfolio.

Other top picks are also worth considering today.

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David Gardner owns shares of Canadian National Railway. The Motley Fool owns shares of Canadian National Railway. Fool contributor Andrew Walker owns shares of Enbridge. Canadian National Railway and Enbridge are recommendations of Stock Advisor Canada.

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Bombardier (TSX:BBD.B) continues to lose altitude, and the share price is threatening to take out its 2018 lows.

Investors who’d hopped aboard in the summer are probably feeling a bit uneasy, while those who missed the big recovery over the past couple of years are wondering if this might be a good time to start a new position in the company.

Let’s take a look at the current situation to see if Bombardier’s stock should be on your buy list today.

Big reversal

Bombardier traded for more than $5.40 per share in early July and was close to $4.70 a month ago. Today, the stock is testing the $3 level, putting recent investors heavily under water.

This is a very different mood than we’d witnessed in the past two years, when Bombardier staged an impressive recovery that effectively saw the company come back from the brink of bankruptcy. At one point in early 2016, the stock traded for close to $0.80 per share amid fears that a lack of new CSeries jet orders and mounting debt pressure would be too much to handle, despite US$2.5 billion in commitments from Quebec and the province’s pension fund.

The board brought in a new CEO and shelved the dividend to try to reverse the negative sentiment. In the end, a last-minute deal with Air Canada followed by a large order from Delta Air Lines saved the day. The stock recovered above $2 per share by the spring of 2016 and gradually drifted higher until it peaked this summer.

Interestingly, the rally received its second wind as a result of trouble that arose around the Delta Air Lines order. The U.S. government slapped tariffs of close to 300% on the CSeries jets that would be shipped to Delta Air Lines. The move came after an investigation that concluded the price being paid for the planes was substantially below the normal range of discounts in the industry. The U.S. determined Bombardier was effectively “dumping” the jets.

To skirt the issue, Bombardier negotiated a deal to sell a 50.1% stake in the CSeries business to Airbus, who would in turn build the planes destined for U.S. buyers at a factory in Alabama. The U.S. dropped the tariffs shortly afterwards, and Bombardier saw its stock catch a tailwind leading up to the July 1st takeover of the CSeries by Airbus.

Unfortunately, an expected surge of new orders for the jets, now called A220, has not materialized, and investors are bailing.

Transport

Bombardier Transport, which is the side of the business that builds trains and light-rail projects, is also facing some difficult times. The company just announced it will have a new president for the Americas region after the existing leader asked to be replaced for personal reasons.

The news adds more uncertainty for investors who are concerned about Bombardier Transport’s ability to compete on the global stage. The company has lost key U.S. contracts to Chinese companies in recent years, and a planned merger of the rail divisions of European giants Alstom and Siemens could leave Bombardier in a tough spot.

Should you buy?

The debt position remains an issue and Bombardier continues to burn through cash. If the global economic situation starts to look a bit messy next year, Bombardier could see some anticipated orders for new planes or commuter trains get delayed.

The huge drop in the share price might look tempting, and any good news could trigger a sharp rebound. However, I would probably look for other opportunities in the market today. The recent pullback across the TSX Index is serving up some interesting deals.

Our #1 Stock to Buy in 2018 (and Beyond!)

When you buy heavily cyclical stocks at low prices… and then hold the shares until the cycle reaches its peak… you can make a very healthy profit.

Every investor knows that. But many struggle to identify the best opportunities.

Except The Motley Fool may have a plan to solve that problem! Our in-house analyst team has poured thousands of hours into their proprietary research – and this is the result.

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Fool contributor Andrew Walker has no position in any stock mentioned.

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LATEST STOCK MARKET NEWS

The S&P/TSX Composite Index has now dropped 9% in 2018 as of close on October 29. This month’s pullback has spooked investors across the developed world and may be inspiring Canadians to rethink their strategies as we head into the final two months of the year.

Last week, I’d discussed a balanced strategy for RRSP investors that involved stashing equities that offered both growth and income. Today, we will look at high-yield dividend plays for TFSA investors. Many Canadians have feasted off the gains provided by the young cannabis sector over the past several years. Those who have taken tidy profits from those stocks should consider reinvesting into equities that offer attractive income, especially as economic headwinds build.

We are going to look at five stocks that such an investor can target in November.

Fortis (TSX:FTS)(NYSE:FTS)

Fortis was my top stock pick for the month of October. Shares have climbed 2.6% month over month as of close on October 29. The company is set to release its third-quarter results in early November.

Fortis last paid out a quarterly dividend of $0.425 per share, representing a 3.9% yield. The company has delivered dividend growth for 44 consecutive years.

National Bank (TSX:NA)

Canadian bank stocks have taken a beating in October, and National Bank is no different. The stock has dropped 8.6% over the past month. This pushed the stock into negative territory for 2018.

National Bank is projected to release its fourth-quarter and full-year results in early December. The board of directors last announced a quarterly dividend of $0.62 per share, which represents a 4.1% yield.

Cineplex (TSX:CGX)

The month of October put a halt to some great momentum for Cineplex stock. Shares are still up 19.6% over a three-month span as of close on October 29. The stock is down 0.7% month over month.

Cineplex last announced a monthly dividend of $0.145 per share, which represents an attractive 4.9% dividend yield. The company has benefited from a nice rebound for the film industry in the summer of 2018 compared to the worst numbers in two decades in the prior year.

TransAlta Renewables (TSX:RNW)

TransAlta Renewables stock has dropped 6.7% month over month. Shares are down nearly 20% in 2018 so far. In the second quarter, the company reported adjusted funds from operations of $73 million, which was up 14% from the prior year. Renewable energy production has dipped marginally from the first six months of 2017.

On August 2, the company declared a monthly dividend of $0.07833 per share, representing a monster 8.7% yield. Renewable energy companies are a greater risk, as the green energy push has lost political ground, while rising interest rates have also broadly hurt income plays in the utility sector.

Suncor (TSX:SU)(NYSE:SU)

Suncor stock has dropped 13% over the past month. October pushed Suncor stock into negative territory for 2018 after what had been a very solid year. Suncor had been the beneficiary of rock-solid earnings and a bounce back for oil and gas prices in the spring of this year.

Suncor is expected to release its third-quarter results tomorrow. The company last paid out a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, which represents a 3.2% yield. Suncor has delivered dividend growth for 15 consecutive years.

Motley Fool Canada Issues Rare “Double Down” Buy Alert

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The S&P/TSX Composite Index suffered another steep loss on October 29, shedding 165 points. Major indexes in Canada and the United States rallied in early trading, but this fizzled out in the afternoon. Investors now enter the final two trading days in what has been a brutal October.

Back in late September, I’d discussed whether a collapse in trade talks between the United States and Canada could result in short-term losses for bank stocks. Canada and the United States managed to come to a tentative agreement. Unfortunately, bank stocks have still suffered a significant pullback over the course of this ongoing correction.

Today, I want to focus on my top bank stock to scoop up in this dip. That stock is Scotiabank (TSX:BNS)(NYSE:BNS). Let’s go over three reasons why investors should look to stash it in their TFSAs before 2018 comes to an end.

Scotiabank is discounted due to the market pullback

Shares of Scotiabank have dropped 9.7% month over month as of close on October 29. The stock’s pricing was favourable before this dip and has dropped 14% in 2018 so far. Its price/earnings and price/book ratios have climbed past the industry average in 2018. Shares have been driven below the $70 mark for the first time since October 2016.

Rising rates will continue to boost banks in the near term

The Bank of Canada elected to raise the benchmark rate to 1.75% on October 24. The central bank was optimistic about fundamentals, but this did not ease market turbulence. On the contrary, the TSX suffered its largest single-day drop in three years on the same day the rate hike was announced.

The rate-tightening environment has many analysts and economists spooked after nearly a decade of historically low interest rates and easy monetary policies in the developed world. Canadian banks have benefited from this environment so far. In the second quarter, Scotiabank reported adjusted net income of $1.14 billion in its Canadian Banking segment, representing a 9% year-over-year increase. One of the major factors for this increase was margin expansion on the back of higher interest rates.

Scotiabank is expected to release its fourth-quarter and full-year results on November 27. Investors have good reason to expect a strong finish to 2018.

Big moves in emerging markets should be a boon to Scotiabank’s business

Scotiabank boasts one of the top emerging market portfolios of the Big Six Canadian banks. Adjusted profit in its International Banking segment rose 15% year over year in Q2 2018 to $715 million. This was primarily due to strong loan and deposit growth in Latin America.

Scotiabank is the only Canadian financial institution operating with a full banking licence in Brazil since 2011. On October 29, Brazil held an election that saw Social Liberal Party leader Jair Bolsonaro come to power. Bolsonaro has promised several pro-market reforms, including independence of the central bank, sweeping privatization, pension reform, tax simplification, and reduction in tax exemptions to businesses.

Brazil is the largest economy in Latin America and one of the top 10 largest economies in the world. Reforms in Brazil could lead to improved economic activity, which should bolster Scotiabank’s Latin America-focused emerging market portfolio going forward.

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At a market capitalization of just a little more than a billion dollars, HEXO (TSX:HEXO) is one of the smaller cannabis companies listed on the TSX Index. Granted, it’s not as small as VIVO Cannabis, which trades at under $1 per share.

But HEXO remains significantly undervalued compared to rivals Aphria, Aurora Cannabis, and Canopy Growth, each of which are at least three times its size; Canopy is valued at a nearly 10 times premium in terms of market capitalization.

One reason I like HEXO right now compared to the other larger incumbents is, in fact, its smaller size.

I’ve invested in Canopy and Aphria in the past, but at current valuations I’m just not sure how much room they have further to run.

HEXO, meanwhile, states that its plan is to continue to establish itself as a strong regional leader within the Quebec market and build off that success to become the second-largest cannabis company in Canada by market share.

Those are bold dreams, but this is a company that did, after all, enter a landmark agreement with brewer Molson Coors to develop some of the world’s first cannabis-infused beverages.

And according to the company’s website, the Molson deal could just be the beginning of a series of deals the company looks to make with other major strategic partners to develop, market, and sell a whole host of premium cannabis products.

HEXO already has a line of peppermint oil cannabis-infused sublingual sprays, and its says it hopes to introduce more new products to its line, including vapes, cosmetic products, and a food line ranging from edibles to baked goods and even dairy products.

And it says it plans to employ the same JV model that used to ink the Molson deal with other Fortune 500 companies as it expands its product line.

That makes perfect sense to me; even though HEXO has a very solid balance sheet in its own right ($250 million in cash and equivalents and no debt), its multi-billion-dollar partners will have even greater financial resources to draw on as they invest in R&D, production, and marketing. Not to mention the skills and expertise that companies like Molson and other Fortune 500 companies bring to the table.

HEXO will be free to focus on its core competency of producing the actual cannabis itself.

HEXO realized an average cost per gram of less than $1, which is right up there with the best of its competitors; meanwhile, it realized an average sales price north of $9 per gram, as it benefited from the sales of premium-branded products.

Bottom line

On the heels of the ban on prohibition, there’s no question that cannabis right now is a hot commodity.

But as more and more players enter the market, it will become just that — another commodity.

HEXO is doing the right thing in branching out from what will more than likely soon be an over-saturated market for the dry cannabis flower.

Markets, after all, are in the business of paying for added value.

HEXO’s strategy to partner with established mega brands to create and develop an expanded line of products shows the company’s head is in the right place.

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Fool contributor Jason Phillips owns shares of MOLSON COORS CANADA INC., CL.B, NV. The Motley Fool owns shares of Molson Coors Brewing.

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The retail industry is an infamously cyclical one — a fact that we may have forgotten as a result of the seemingly never-ending upside that the consumer-led economic rally has brought us.

Well, times are changing.

This consumer-led economic boost was brought to us courtesy of record-low interest rates.

And while interest rates are still low relative to history, the most recent 25-basis-point increase in the Bank of Canada’s benchmark rate brought it to 1.75% — a whopping 125-basis-point increase from 2017 levels.

It’s a big move that will invariably put the consumer at risk, especially considering their record-high household debt levels, as debt becomes more expensive, eating away at disposable income — hence, eating away at consumer spending and retail sales.

Canada Goose Holdings (TSX:GOOS)(NYSE:GOOS) stock is trading 28% below highs that were hit earlier this year, and while this is a sharp drop, the stock is still trading at sky-high valuations that are not sustainable in my view, especially considering a weakening consumer spending environment and the company’s increased investments in China.

Canada Goose has been very successful in establishing its premium outerwear brand, with consumers paying upwards of $800 for their Canada Goose jackets, but going forward, key risks remain.

The company has been expanding globally, but 39% of its revenue still comes from Canada, and as such, it is still vulnerable to a weakening in Canadians’ purchasing power.

Roots (TSX:ROOT) stock is trading below its IPO price once again — more than 50% lower to be more precise — as the stock continues its volatile ride.

Challenges remain, and with second-quarter results that have come in below expectations, as same-store sales increased a very modest 1.1%, the future is unclear.

With slowing consumer spending, the company will have added difficulties with its expansion to the U.S., which has proven to be a very risky move even in the best of times.

Aritzia (TSX:ATZ) stock is 17% higher than its 2016 IPO price of $16 and 80% higher than year-ago lows, as the stock continues its volatile ride.

The company achieved same-store sales growth of 10.9% in the latest quarter, with a 22.2% increase in net income, as the retailer opened two new stores and expanded two existing stores.

Results continue to look good, but the macro environment makes me leery of luxury retailers.

Indigo Books and Music (TSX:IDG) offers a more diversified business than the other retailers discussed here, and as such, I am more positive on Indigo stock.

Management’s goal is to position Indigo as the department store of the future, and given the shake-up in the Canadian retail industry, we can see that there is demand for something different.

With newly renovated stores continuing to deliver double-digit same-store sales growth, and continued strong online growth, the company is capturing market share at a feverish pace.

The retailer’s U.S. expansion is moving forward, with the first store open in New Jersey.

This presents a big risk but also big potential return, and given that the company is moving slowly with this expansion, the hope is that the risk is kept to a minimum.

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Fool contributor Karen Thomas owns shares of INDIGO BOOKS & MUSIC INC.

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The saying “cash is king” exists for good reason.

It’s the cash from a company’s operations that gets paid, or returned, to shareholders in the form of dividends or share buybacks. It’s also cash that’s needed to retire a company’s outstanding financial obligations. Ideally, it’s also cash that’s used to finance capital expenditures and acquisitions that the company hopes will be accretive to earnings in future periods.

If a company is unable to sustain its operational objectives through its own cash flows, it’s forced to rely on the debt and equity markets to make up the deficit. That can ultimately lead to the dilution of the firm’s existing shareholders and, in extreme cases, insolvency.

The last 10 years have been a bit of anomaly for investors compared to the rest of financial history in that we are only now beginning to exit a period of historically low interest rates.

Because interest rates have been depressed for most of the past decade at, some would argue, artificially low levels, many companies have taken advantage — to their own credit, frankly speaking — knocking on the credit window time and again, asking for another round of “cheap money.”

And that reality has helped investors to forget perhaps how markets actually work.

Companies that can’t sustain themselves organically are perennially at a disadvantage to those that can.

If we are indeed embarking on a fresh, new era of returning to “normalized” interest rates, one can expect that cash once again, will ascend to the throne. These three TSX companies stand to benefit handsomely if that forecast ends up proving accurate.

Suncor Energy (TSX:SU)(NYSE:SU) generated in excess of $2 billion in free cash flow during 2017. Most of that cash was returned to shareholders via dividends.

Suncor currently yields investors 3.25% annually following a 12.5% dividend increase announced almost exactly a year ago.

Suncor’s management and board of directors have a solid reputation as stewards of capital, which — along with significant assets in the oil sands — should set the company’s shareholders up for a string of consecutive dividend hikes for years to come if all goes right.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSX:CM)(NYSE:CM) is the smallest of the Big Five banks, but CIBC’s stock has far from the smallest dividend.

CIBC ranks second only to Scotiabank in terms of its annual dividend yield, paying out 4.84% compared to Scotiabank’s 4.89% yield.

Yet it’s the firm’s above-average returns on equity combined with its dividend-payout ratio, below 50%, that give me more confidence in its ability to sustain and grow its payout over time.

CI Financial (TSX:CIX) yielded a free cash flow yield in excess of 12% heading into Tuesday’s trading, meaning the company could sustainably afford to pay a 12% dividend yield off current earnings if it wanted to.

Yet the firm recently cut its payout in a move that may have come as a bit of a shock to some investors.

Instead of maintaining the payout at prior levels, the board of directors decided to cut the dividend in half to free up more cash to buy back its own stock.

CI feels that at current levels its own stock represents a better use of cash.

Either way, the company is still returning cash to shareholders, which should not only help to bid the share price of CIX stock up in the near term, but additionally retire outstanding shares that will lower its dividend obligations for the foreseeable future.

Our #1 Stock to Buy in 2018 (and Beyond!)

When you buy heavily cyclical stocks at low prices… and then hold the shares until the cycle reaches its peak… you can make a very healthy profit.

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Norwegian diplomat Geir Pedersen will be the new United Nations Syria envoy, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the U.N. Security Council in a letter seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

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Trains that emit pure water could be in the UK by the "early 2020s", according to the government.

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"Meritocracy is the big promise of our democracies," says the OECD. But are education systems delivering?

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The Trump administration is taking action against those involved in the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

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At the same time a powerful earthquake struck Indonesia, one plane managed to miraculously take off from the Palu airport, barely escaping the destruction. It all happened because the pilot got a warning from God.

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Revenue growth however missed the estimates at Rs 86.30 billion up 13.5% Year on year (YoY), up 4.3% quarter on quarter

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Sebi norms stipulate that the govt may hold a maximum of 75% in any public sector undertaking and had set an earlier deadline for Coal India which expired in August this year

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Of the $1.71 billion raised in previous month, $1.21 billion was through automatic route while $500 million came in via approval route

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Barnes & Noble Inc. alleged in a court filing Tuesday that Demos Parneros, its former chief executive, was justifiably fired in early July because he sexually harassed a female employee, bullied other staffers and undermined the potential sale of the book retailer to an unidentified party earlier this year.

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A general thread where people can voice their opinions of where they would prefer to live.

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hi all,

just a question on a specific type of foreign income, i own a few domain names, and have them "parked" on a us-based parking platform, the platform collects parking revenue for me, in usd, and generates reports which enable me to see what im earning, even daily ... sometimes it's only a few us cents, often days go by with nothing at all, the way the platform works though is i only receive funds into my paypal account whenever i ACCUMULATE about usd 10 worth of revenue ... question...

Tax question re: foreign income

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Guys,

What is the difference between...

Vanguard Index Australian Shares Fund and Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (VAS)?

I can see one has minimum investment of 5k, management fee (0.75%) and other is EFT and has lower fee.

Performance wise both are very similar in the last 3 years.

Is there any catchy? I couldn't find anything after reading the PDS, Annual report, fact sheet and transactional, operational cost guide....

Any difference between Vanguard Index Australian Shares Fund and VAS?

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Microsoft Office users on macOS Mojave are in line for a welcome update, as a dark mode is on the way. However, you might need to wait a little while before Microsoft makes it a little more comfortable for most users to hash out their masterpiece novel in Word in the middle of the night. The mode just went live for Insider Fast testers, according to Office product manager Akshay Bakshi.

It appears as though Office 365 subscribers will get first dibs on dark mode -- Microsoft tends to release Office features on that product before they make their way to the standalone Office apps. The update mirrors Mojave's own dark mode, while Microsoft added a dark mode to File Explorer in its Windows 10 October 2018 Update.

📣 Office Visual Refresh and Dark Mode support rolling out now to Insiders Fast with build 181029!

🎀 New Ribbon and icon styling in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.
🌙 Dark Mode in Word, Excel and PPT on macOS Mojave. https://t.co/gTrEQbJoiN #OfficeInsiders #office365 pic.twitter.com/rTvFvOsqE1
— Akshay Bakshi 🎉 (@AgentAkki) October 30, 2018

Update 10/30/18 5:20PM ET: Dark mode is now live for Insider Fast users. This post has been updated to reflect that.

Via: The Verge

Source: Akshay Bakshi (Twitter)

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It was a questionable decision to opt for headphones that work with two devices. Nevertheless, I do love the Audeze iSINE 10s that I've used every day for the past year and a half. Sure, I can't charge and listen to music at the same time, but thanks to a Lightning cable feeding data and power to Audeze's in-line DAC, they sound fantastic on both my iPad and my iPhone. Unfortunately, I'm now stuck with some wonderful headphones that are roughly half as useful as they were yesterday, as Apple has just switched from Lightning to USB-C for its latest iPad Pros.

When Apple first dropped the headphone jack, I argued that it wasn't that big of a deal for people who were used to paying audiophile prices for headphones. I had used a DAC to power headphones since the pre-Lightning iPhone 4, and there were already plenty of Lightning DACs on the market. Not to mention, companies like Audeze were pushing high-grade Lightning headphones. But here we are, two years on, and Apple is moving to USB-C for iPads, putting the future of the Lightning port in serious doubt.

Whether the iPhone goes port-less entirely -- which has to be Apple's ultimate goal -- or switches to USB-C, the Lightning port's days are surely numbered. With MacBooks and iPads now on the same standard, it would be very unlike Apple to keep it alive.

I just bought a new iPhone, so I'm probably going to have a Lightning port around for a year or two. But I am definitely going to pick up a new iPad Pro at some point over the next year.... What do I do with the iSINE 10s that Apple is still encouraging customers to buy for $399.95 in its stores?

I don't really have a good answer for that. I imagine Audeze will sell a USB-C cable or adapter for them at some point, but unless iPhone switches over, that means awkwardly swapping cables when moving between the two devices. (I should probably mention that the iSINE 10s came with a regular headphone cable as well, but that they sound pretty average without the in-line DAC in the Lightning cable.)

The answer, is, of course, to switch to a pair of Bluetooth headphones. There are some really good pairs out there now, and I'm sure I'll find one that's right for me. But "you can just spend money to fix the problem" doesn't really make this situation any better. Most Lightning headphones are expensive. Audeze's range starts at $199 and tops out at $2,495. People have shelled out huge amounts of money for headphones, and they now risk having that purchase being made obsolete.

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Today, Twitter rolled out a new page focused on the US midterm elections, and on it, users can view supposedly relevant tweets through two tabs -- "Latest" and "Top Commentary." On mobile, there's also a "News" tab that includes separate sections for each state. However, while this page is clearly meant to be a place for users to find more information about the upcoming election, it's surfacing tweets from conspiracy theorists, people pushing disinformation and what appear to be bot accounts, BuzzFeed News reports.

The midterm elections right now #Midterms2018 https://t.co/7T2IojpxWw
— jack (@jack) October 30, 2018

BuzzFeed News found that the page included a tweet from pundit Bill Mitchell that claimed Democrats paid for the Honduran caravan in order to "create another 'separating families' crisis" ahead of the election. Another tweet falsely claimed that Marc Molinaro, a Republican candidate for New York governor, had dropped out of the race, while another said Kid Rock was about to become a Michigan senator. A few others pushed unproven claims about illegal voting and some tweets included on the page came from partisan accounts without followers or profile pictures, suggesting that they're automated. And in the California section of the page, BuzzFeed News spotted a tweet from Tomi Lahren that referred to the lieutenant governor of California and current candidate for governor as "Greasy Gavin Newsom."

A spokesperson told BuzzFeed News that an algorithm collects tweets for the page based on keywords, though they didn't share what those words are.

Twitter Midterms Page

Like Facebook, Twitter has been working to avoid a repeat of what happened ahead of the 2016 presidential election, when foreign groups used its platform to push content and disinformation aimed at stoking political tensions in the US. The site has also made a big deal about its more recent effort to promote conversational health among its users. But by surfacing fake news, promoting automated accounts and including conspiracy theories, the midterms page doesn't appear to fit with either of those efforts.

Along with playing host to political disinformation campaigns, Twitter has also had a problem with users spreading hoaxes and fake news, particularly during breaking news situations. But while Twitter has introduced new policies aimed at boosting the transparency around political and issue ads, when it comes to fake news, the company has been less willing to take a stance. CEO Jack Dorsey told CNN earlier this year that his company was hesitant to remove false information and that its staff shouldn't be "the arbiters of truth."

The company told BuzzFeed News that the midterms page was more for newer users seeking news about the election rather than more seasoned Twitter users.

Image: Twitter via BuzzFeed News

Source: BuzzFeed News

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Imagine that you've got $1,300 and you'd like to buy a new Apple laptop. Which one do you choose? The $1,299 MacBook, the new $1,199 MacBook Air or the cheapest MacBook Pro, which also retails for $1,299. If you really want TouchID then you'll opt for the Air, but if you're looking for the "best" then the Pro is the only answer. Not that you'd understand that from the price list, thanks to Apple's crushing inability to properly differentiate its products.

Apple's cluttered product lineup is hardly a new problem, but the situation with its laptops is now getting a little bit silly. The company is selling three laptops at roughly the same price with little beyond potential battery life to differentiate them. For instance, of the trio, two are considered for the "thin and light" crowd, offering small size at the expense of power. But the smaller of the pair costs $100 more, despite having a slower CPU and weaker graphics.

The revived MacBook Air, meanwhile, makes the MacBook look like even more of a misstep than it was before. After all, unless you're seriously hankering for a laptop that small, why not just buy its far-better sibling? If the 12-incher was sold for, say, $899, then it would be much easier to take it seriously. And that price isn't an unreasonable proposition, either, since the 11-inch MacBook Air sold for that much before its axing.

Then there's the fact that if you're looking for a thin and light Apple laptop, the MacBook Pro is hardly deadweight. The 13.3-inch model is the same width as the Air and technically narrower since it doesn't taper. (The new Air runs from 0.16 inches to 0.61 inches, whereas the Pro is consistent 0.59 inches, fact fans.) And there's only 0.27 pounds difference in weight between the two as well.

The MacBook Air was popular because it was one of Apple's most affordable machines: a sub-$1,000 machine, ideal for students, travelers and everyone on lower / middle incomes who couldn't splash out for something more. Not to mention that its size and speed, built-in SD card reader and reliability made it popular with journalists.

Put all three of Apple's cheapest laptops side by side and it's hard to make a case for at least one of them. You could say that the company has trapped itself, unable to lower the price of its notebooks too low for fear of cannibalizing iPad sales. After all, the company is now positioning the iPad Pro as its affordable laptop alternative. And if you look at Apple's average selling price for Mac hardware over time, you'll see the numbers going up, not down. It seems like folly not to knock a few hundred dollars off some of those models and stop them pointlessly clustering around the same corner.

Follow all the latest news from Apple's fall 2018 event here!

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Wednesday, October 31, 2018

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