Blog

Cutting Through the Noise


March 4, 2021

By Tom Bradley

Bad accounting? Thoughts on Canadians' rising net worth

Canadians’ net worth increased 5% in the first nine months of 2020. But are we looking at the right number? Tom Bradley explains.

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March 1, 2021

By Tom Bradley

When it comes to SPAC investing, the house always wins. The public, not so much

SPACs (special purpose acquisition company) are being billed as a better way for pre-IPO companies to go public. But better for who?

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February 16, 2021

By Tom Bradley

What would Warren Buffett make of this stock market silly season? He's already told us

Mr. Buffett is eminently readable and forever logical, and his words are a wonderful counterpoint to the times we're in.

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February 12, 2021

By Tom Bradley

Fantastic February

One prognosticator recently laid out 10 reasons why February may be a fantastic month for investors. While we're all suckers for market calls, they're largely a waste of time and space — which is why ours is rather succinct: Markets will go up. And down. And sideways.

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February 2, 2021

By Tom Bradley

Thoughts on the GameStop saga

The price surges in GameStop, AMC, Blackberry and other stocks that are being hyped in chat rooms is the talk of the town. How does it end? We weigh in.

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February 1, 2021

By Tom Bradley

Keep your eye on the 'lost returns' in your annual investing report

The wealth management industry is pathetic when it comes to transparency (we strive to be better), so be your own advocate on fees and returns.

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January 21, 2021

By Tom Bradley

New vs. existing clients: A balancing act

Discount brokers are in the news again, as their customer experience in 2020 left a lot to be desired. Brand new and prospective clients were treated well, but existing ones? Not so much. In our view, businesses need to find a better balance between loyal, long-standing clients and fresh, shiny new ones.

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January 18, 2021

By Tom Bradley

2020 was a year of extremes for investors, but it shouldn't change your approach going forward

When Canadians open their year-end account statements over the next few weeks, the range of returns for 2020 will be as wide as ever. To understand why your number might be dramatically different than your neighbour's, here are some of the reasons for the huge disparity.

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January 8, 2021

By Tom Bradley

True Wisdom

A reader provides some wise words on the missing components in social media conversations.

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January 4, 2021

By Tom Bradley

Why keeping a few simple investment resolutions for a few days can change your outlook for a few years

Whether you’re an experienced investor or raw rookie, the buck stops with you, so your 2021 resolutions should revolve around the high-level questions a CEO would ask.

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December 28, 2020

By Tom Bradley

Big lessons from history

A great read from Collaborative Fund's Morgan Housel.

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December 21, 2020

By Tom Bradley

This year investors had their cake and ate it too. Will there be consequences in 2021?

Generally, investing is all about trade-offs. To get something, you need to give up something else. But in 2020, there are numerous examples of investors having their cake and eating it too.

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December 10, 2020

By Tom Bradley

The 2020 Bank Profit Indicator

Canada's big banks make gobs of money. We feel obligated to report just how much.

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December 7, 2020

By Tom Bradley

Be wary of what's baked in the cake

People are rightly enthusiastic about companies with exciting growth prospects like Tesla and Zoom. But as investors, we need to be wary about what's already baked in the cake.

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November 23, 2020

By Tom Bradley

Gold can be whatever you want it to be — which is why you should treat it with caution

Gold is back in vogue, rising from US$1,200 two years ago to US$1,900 today. In his latest Financial Post article, Tom Bradley provides some perspective on the precious metal and the role it can play in your portfolio.

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November 12, 2020

By Tom Bradley

RRSP transfers: The dark side

If you move your RRSP to a new firm, they'll process the paperwork and get you up and running in no time. If you transfer assets out, it can take weeks. This imbalance is appalling and worthy of a rant. Here goes.

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November 9, 2020

By Tom Bradley

The Dip

Being a successful investor is less about being good at reading the economy, timing the market, or picking individual stocks, and a whole lot about dealing with the inevitable dips.

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November 4, 2020

By Tom Bradley

Red, white and who?

We woke up this morning to an undecided U.S. election. Here's why we suggest you sit tight through the drama and leave the investment stress to us.

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October 26, 2020

By Tom Bradley

When it comes to investing, don't believe everything you see on TV

If you find yourself listening to someone pontificate about where the market is going, it's best to change the channel.

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October 13, 2020

By Tom Bradley

Why U.S. election results are trivial compared to these factors that will drive your portfolio returns

The U.S. election is seriously overhyped when it comes to investing — focus on these trends instead.

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September 28, 2020

By Tom Bradley

If stock valuations seem out of whack, blame the slow burn of a declining discount rate

High growth stocks like Shopify, Netflix, Tesla, Slack and Snowflake look extremely expensive when future earnings are discounted at 10%. At 5% it can be a much different story. Tom Bradley explains in his Financial Post column.

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September 14, 2020

By Tom Bradley

The fifth risk of investing: Complexity

Complex investment products carry a lot of baggage, including a new set of unknowns and a lot of extra cost. Tom Bradley elaborates in his Financial Post column.

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August 31, 2020

By Tom Bradley

Signs that investors are paying far too much attention to short-term noise

There are some signs that we're in silly season as investors are gorging on everything that's hot at the moment. We'd all be wise, however, to focus on the opportunities that haven't gone viral yet.

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August 17, 2020

By Tom Bradley

The market has given investors a gift. It would be a shame to waste it

The market rebound has given us all a gift — an opportunity to do a thorough portfolio review from a position of strength.

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August 11, 2020

By Tom Bradley

Getting your big break in finance

From the archives — Tom Bradley wrote this article in the Globe and Mail back in 2011 to help young people getting into the business. We're republishing it in the hope that it can provide a little help today to those looking for a job in this Covid-hammered economy.

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