Blog

Cutting Through the Noise


September 12, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Steadyhand Discloses Insider Trading

As we do every year at this time, we’ve updated our figures on co-investment (the practice of investing alongside our clients). We feel there’s no better way to illustrate our commitment to our investment philosophy, approach, and ultimately our clients...

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September 10, 2013

By Tom Bradley

China's Credit Boom - No Simple Answers

I wrote last week about Canada’s consumer debt challenge and noted that the scary numbers were a risk to the Canadian economy, but that other factors, including global economic trends, would be more important drivers of our stock market. One...

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September 6, 2013

By Tom Bradley

The Scariest Chart

In last Friday’s Report on Business, Scott Barlow wrote an article entitled, ‘The Scariest Chart You’ll See all Year’ (it was a price chart showing how the S&P/TSX Composite Index has diverged from the MSCI Emerging Markets Index after tracking it closely...

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September 4, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Clients versus Shareholders

In the asset management business, there has to be a balance between the best interests of the clients and those of the shareholders. A manager must make judgments on a number of factors whereby existing clients have different interests than...

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August 22, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Accounting - It's Magic

It’s a sad statement. Glencore Xstrata, the Swiss mining giant, announced that it’s taking a US$7.7 billion writedown on its investment in Xstrata. Writedowns in the resource sector are a daily event right now, but … but … Glencore just bought Xstrata for US$29 billion...

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August 13, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Real Estate - Then and Now

Scott and I met with a client recently who owns a number of commercial buildings. He was telling us a story about his first purchase in the early 1980’s. Along with a few partners, he bought a building at a fraction of its value (in his opinion), but had to finance it with...

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August 7, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Mr. Market – Use His Pocketbook, Not His Wisdom

Catching up on my reading, I came across Warren Buffett's classic analysis of "Mr. Market" in the Berkshire Hathaway's 1987 Annual Report (it was referenced in Michael Price's weekly letter). Here it is (with the emphasis being mine...

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July 22, 2013

By Tom Bradley

RRSP Transfers - An Industry Embarrassment

I’ve written about RRSP transfers a few times and will continue to do so because the way some large institutions treat their investment clients is ridiculous, abysmal, maddening, inexcusable, disrespectful, unnecessary, unethical, despicable, appalling...

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July 17, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Investing and my New Smart Phone

I recently got a new Blackberry Z10. I’m having a lot of fun with it, although it’s been a steep learning curve given that my previous phone was a three year old antique. A combination of the phone and the constant barrage of articles about Twitter...

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July 3, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Better Investors - One Article at a Time

“I long ago concluded that regression to the mean is the most powerful law in financial physics.” ... “Approximately 99% of the time, the single most important thing investors should do is absolutely nothing.” ... “This time is never different.” In an article last...

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June 24, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Why Rising Interest Rates Can Be Better For Your Portfolio

Over the last couple of weeks, the markets have been in retreat and the headlines have turned decidedly negative (the latter due to the former). Investors are nervous about what is going to happen next. My response? Don’t let the recent mayhem put you off track...

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June 13, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Real Estate Update - Part III: Why so Bearish?

In the previous two posts, I put my perspective on the current news around the Canadian housing market and reviewed the valuation measures. Mercifully, in this final one, I want to talk about what REALLY worries me. My biggest concerns are what I’ve already...

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June 12, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Real Estate Update - Part II: It's all About Mortgage Rates

In this, the 2nd of 3 posts on the Canadian housing market, I address valuation. Near-zero interest rates are absolutely driving this market. The problem is, low rates are transient, while purchase prices live on forever. In today’s terms, transient means that it’s...

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June 11, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Real Estate Update - Part I: You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet

Over the last couple of years, I’ve been writing about housing because it’s a big part of our clients’ net worth, it's great fodder for a devoted student of market cycles and ... it’s just so darned interesting. In the first of three posts this week, I’ll try to bring some...

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June 7, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Borrowing From the Future

In his June Investment Outlook, PIMCO’s Bill Gross says that the Quantitative Easing policy (QE) of the U.S. Federal Reserve hasn’t worked. He points out that over the last 5 years there hasn’t been a 12-month period when the economy has grown faster than...

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June 6, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Canadian Banks - the Next 25 Years?

It’s confirmed. We have the healthiest banks in the world. They’ve all reported their second quarter earnings and the numbers are spectacular. Industry leader RBC had a return on equity of 19%, while CIBC and National Bank were over 20%. Yes, 20% in a...

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May 30, 2013

By Tom Bradley

You're Richer Than You Think

Last year we blogged about bank CEO’s compensation (Can I Join the Club?). We took issue with the fact that they all made about the same last year, despite the fact that the performance and positioning of their respective banks were quite different. We...

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May 28, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Investor Roundtable on Mutual Fund Fees

On June 7th in Toronto, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) is hosting a roundtable on mutual fund fees. It is open to the public and will follow the agenda outlined in this invitation. We have been a regular contributor on the topic of fees and recently made...

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May 27, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Loyal to a Fault

Lately I’ve been part of too many conversations that go like this. What brings you to Steadyhand? “I haven’t been happy with my existing advisor. The returns have been lousy and the service has fallen off to the point where I never hear from him." Do you...

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May 24, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Rent versus Buy - The Most Misunderstood Financial Decision

Should you rent or buy? There are all kinds of reasons to buy a home – making it your own, establishing roots in the community, good schools, basketball hoop on the driveway – and they should be at the top of the list. From a financial perspective, however...

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May 21, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Be Better

Better Investors will experience higher returns, and be more comfortable and confident in the process. This is our underlying belief and driving force behind a new report we’ve published on what makes a better investor. It focuses on the structural and...

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May 13, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Getting out of the Market Almost Certainly a Losing Long-term Proposition

"Should I get out of the market?" I'm finding this question is coming up again, prompted either by the Dow hitting all-time highs or the central bankers' perilous high wire act (performed without a net). It depends on the week. But, while we know all...

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May 6, 2013

By Tom Bradley

The Dividend Dance

In Saturday’s Report on Business, there was a remarkable table embedded in Rob Carrick’s article (How to Shelter Your Portfolio from a Housing Decline). It showed the top 10 Canadian equity funds (by assets) and the top 10 Canadian dividend income...

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May 3, 2013

By Tom Bradley

A Report from the Front Lines

I thought a recent report from Mawer Investment Management captured well the opportunity, challenges and complexity of investing in the Asian markets. A paragraph from the conclusion summarizes their balanced optimism. Overall, we find ourselves...

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April 29, 2013

By Tom Bradley

Lessons From a Legend

Lori and I attended a Celebration of Life for Art Phillips last Friday. (There was a wonderful obituary in the Globe and Mail last week.) Art founded Phillips, Hager & North in 1965 with the help of Bob Hager and Rudy North. It was Art’s reputation and wallet that got...

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