Portfolio Sector Allocation

This graphic below sums up how my overall portfolio is currently invested sectors wise. This is not where I would like it to be, this is how it is as of today.

Sector	%
Consumer	7.62%
Bonds	5.76%
Finances	14.99%
Cash	29.92%
Telecomm.	2.39%
Energy	12.46%
Transport	6.04%
Index Fund	3.47%
Gold	2.61%
Health	10.64%
REIT	1.51%
Penny Stocks	2.59%
Total	100.00%

All in all, I'm quite satisfied with how diversifiy my portfolio is and how my different sectors are allocated.

I now own more than 17 companies, which is a little more than I would have wanted in the beginning (I was aiming for 12-15). But, coming off a very long bull market, I find it hard to add stocks (relatively cheap) to my actual holdings. Hence, the new buys I have made this last year.

I have to say, I like my new additions : Nova Scotia Bank (BNS), Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B), Verizon (VZ), BCE (BCE), Therapeutics Knight (GUD), and more recently ATCO (ACO.X). Moreover these new acquisitions are all in different sectors : Finances, Consumer, Telecom, Pharma/Penny Stock and Energy.

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Consumer	7.62%	11%

The Consumer sector regroups Mondelez (MDLZ), Kraft (KRFT) and Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B). It represents less than 8% of my portfolio. I would like to hike this number to 11%. I might buy some more ATD.B if the stock price comes down a little. I don't intend to add shares to my actual positions in MDLZ and KRFT. (I might even sell some MDLZ.)

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Bonds	5.76%	7%

The Bond sector is part of my portfolio risk-free section. Like I said, I have contributed in the past in a former employee's pension plan. This money is dead-lock until I am 60 years old. It thus represents  the security side of my portfolio, along with the bonds. Therefore, I don't need to have a big % allocated to secure and fixed-revenue income. Since I periodically invest a small amount in bonds, this % could reach 7 $. That's more than enough.

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Finance	14. 99%	16%

The Finance sector is very well represented with the likes of Royal Bank (RY), Power Corporation (POW), Power Financial (PWF) and Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS). I like this group of companies and  apart from some small changes my Finance allocation should remain close to 15-16%.

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Cash	29.92%	15%

The Cash sector, like the bond one, is a risk-free sector. The % is quite high at the moment, but given the long bull market we have, and unless there's a major correction soon, it will stay like that for a while. Eventually, I d'like it to be around 15% of my portfolio.

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Telecom	2.39%	7%

I like the Telecom sector, but it took me a while to make an entry. I have small positions in BCE (BCE) and Verizon (VZ). I would like to add some more of their shares. But it will have to wait a little. I need to crank up my % in this sector to 7% (or even more).

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Energy	12.46%	12%

No doubt, energy is the most volatile sector in my portfolio. Whatever we say about it, we can't seem to be doing much without oil or electricity nowadays. I don't see that changing anytime soon. Again, like my Finance Sector, I like the big names here : Fortis (FTS), Suncor (SU), ConocoPhilipps (COP) and the recently added Atco (ACO.X). 12 % of my portfolio for this sector seems about right. 

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Transport	6.04%	8%

This sector, Transport, is basically railway transportation in the likes of Canadian Pacific (CP). I would like to own some more of CP, but the stock, at 230$ (and counting) isn't cheap. I'd like to add to this position and eventually have a sector allocation of roughly 8% (or even 10% if I can get my hands on its competitor, Canadian National Railway (CN)).

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Index Funds	3.42%	5%

Index Funds are a not a sector per se. Through this particular US index fund, I'm invested in a few sectors, mainly these shown in the graphic below. (I guess, I'm involved in Information Technology after all!) I'm invested in this fund via a periodic purchasing program. It simple, free of commission and effective. I might sell this fund and buy stocks directly when I feel a have a big enough lump sum. Right now it represents not even 3.5% of my portfolio.

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Gold	2.61%	3%

As you are aware by now if you visit this blog from time to time, I've been a very sad shareholder of Barrick Gold (ABX). (Yes, I'm losing money over it. Damn!) I sold a few shares lately and if the stock picks up a little, I might sell some more. A 3 % Gold allocation seems more than enough for my taste.

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Health	10.64%	10%

Again, like Transport and Gold, the Health sector is represented by a sole company. But unlike the gold sector, it's a solid one, Johnson and Johnson (JNJ). This company is one of my oldest and favourite stock. As a rule of thumbs, we often hear that we shouldn't hold a stock that's accountable for more than 5-6% of one's portfolio. This one is accountable for more than 10! It's ok, my mind is at ease with JNJ. It will stay like that. 

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
REIT	1.51%	3%

Real Estate should always be part of a diversified portfolio. The thing with Real Estate Income Trust is that you never know if a government is going to change its policies towards them; making it less attractive without their fiscal advantages. I'd say it's healthy to keep REIT below 3%. Don't you love their juicy dividends? I sure like my Cominar (CUF.UN) investment.

Sector	% portfolio	% Goal
Penny Stocks	2.59%	3%

Surely, it's a little pejorative to call Junex (JNX) and Therapeutics Knight (GUD.to) penny stocks. But they don't belong in the Dividend stocks category either. Let's call them speculative companies. Junex operates in the energy sector and Knight in the pharma one. I think 3 % of one's portfolio is not too much for having a little fun, don't you think? I have big and very colourful aspirations for these two. Let's dream big.

What do you think of my Portfolio Sector Allocation? Would you tweak it differently? Or get rid of those speculative companies? What would you do? I want to hear from you. 

Recent Stock Purchase ($ACO.X)

Today I opened a new position in ATCO group (ACO.X). I bought 50 shares at 47.65$ for a total purchase of 2 382,50$. This isn't a big buy, but it's no chump change either.

I had ATCO in my target list for a while. I thought the price was decent after a little fallout of roughly 15% from its year's peak. So I made a move.

This will add 49.50$ to my yearly dividend income, which now stands at 2 927.84$ (you can check it out here).

ATCO is now my 17th company. I know, I know... I wanted to limit myself to 12-15. You are absolutely right. But I couldn't find good market prices to add shares to my actual holdings. 

The other thing that bothered me is that of some of my portfolio' sectors were under represented (if not missing), such as the Telecom. Hence, the arrival of BCE (BCE) and Verizon (VZ). I did also add some Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B) for the Consumer sector.

Plus, I had recently sold some Suncor (SU), some Power Corporation (POW) and a little bit of Barrick Gold (ABX), and I wanted to make a significant buy to compensate (mainly my loss in ABX). Bottom line is, I thought buying shares in Atco (ACO.X) was smart move at this point in time. Time will tell. But I'm confident. Here's why :

Founded in true entrepreneurial spirit in 1947, ATCO has grown from its Alberta roots into a worldwide group of companies with more than 9,000 employees and assets of approximately $18 billion. 

ATCO's strength is in its diversity. Our companies are engaged in Structures & Logistics (manufacturing, logistics and noise abatement), Utilities (pipelines, natural gas and electricity transmission and distribution), and Energy (power generation and sales, natural gas gathering, processing, storage and liquids extraction). (source : ATCO's Internet page)

Atco operates mainly in Alberta and in the North of Canada, but also abroad in Australia.

The balance sheet of the company is solid. As of March 31, 2014, the company had access to 616 million, which is a decent amount of cash. According to the 2013 Financial Summary, the total debt of the company represents roughly half of the company's financial capitalization.

They have also recently hiked their dividend, which now stands at 0.99$ a share, that represents a 2,8% yield. They have a great history of dividend increases as shown in the graphic below.

All in all, I'm pretty happy to have initiated a position in this company.

What do you think about ATCO? Is this a stock you would buy?

Finances for dummies and selling shares in POW and ABX

Hey Financial Freaks,

Sorry for the little absence. A man has to work in order to invest once in a while!

So I was caught up with work, which is a good news I guess. Keep the money coming in. But it leaves me a little bit less time to document my financial journey towards financial independence.

And you all know I want to succeed.

Here's a few thoughts I gathered lately about my journey :

Finances for dummies

Every time I discuss finances with people I know (or don't know), I feel much more equipped than before. Stocks, mutual funds, bonds, ratios, etc. were all foreign concepts for me.

(Heck, I always thought owning stocks was something reserved exclusively for the wealthy.)

Not anymore. I don't pretend I'm a big specialist or anything like that. I guess I am only able to speak the language of finances. That makes a big difference. We habla mano a mano.

Now that I know more about that subject, it stupefies me when I hear stuff that doesn't make any sense, especially coming from people that work in the financial industry.

For instance, I suggested to my dad to open up a TSFA (Tax Free Saving Account). He didn't have one. If you are Canadian, this particular financial tool is perhaps the greatest invention since the birth of Hockey Legend Mario Lemieux.

You are allowed to put roughly 5 K$ in that account. Whatever happens with this money is tax free. You can invest in just about anything : bonds, stocks, funds, you name it. You can withdraw your money anytime. And, like I said, it's Tax Free. That's pretty much the gist of it. So, since TFSA'a have been put in place in 2009, you can put as much as 36 500$. That's a pretty decent number.

Anyway, my dad, who's pretty much clueless regarding finances, was trying to set up a automatic purchase program in its TFSA. It was a minor contribution of 100$ per two weeks. Basically, he wanted to split it's contribution to 50$ in a (boring yet secure) term deposit and 50$ in a US Index Funds. The latter fund "invests primarily in the same securities and in the same proportions as the benchmark index. The benchmark is Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) Total Return Index (CDN$)". Apple, Microsoft, Exxon Mobile and Johnson and Johnson are some of the 500 and more holdings.

But guess what? The guy was adamant that my dad's investment was not diversified enough. Not enough!

I understand that these guys follow policies, investors profile and all that. But geez whiz, come on. He was setting up a 100 $ per 2 weeks program. He wasn't buying a chunk of a speculative company with his lifetime's earnings. I also get the fact that these guys are told by banks to sell more of their funds. Hence the idea of this particular guy to add a few funds for diversification sake.

At this point, I had to intervene. (I was next to my dad).

(me) - Hello Sir. I'm the son. What seems to be the problem?
- Well, I think this approach is a little risky for your dad. This fund can fluctuate a lot, you know.
(me) - Yeah, we know. He knows and he is willing to take the risk. That's why half of his contributions will be secure in a term deposit. 
- Why do you want to be solely invested in the US?
(me) - It's only for a starter. Eventually, when he's managed to have a sizeable account, say 5 K$, we will consider other options. But for now, he would like to invest in the US.
- Well, I worry about the diversification of concentrating in one region.
(me) - Sir, there's like 500 and more companies in this fund that operate around the globe. Do you think Johnson and Johnson, for instance, isn't doing business overseas?
- No, you're right. 
(me) - Can you set him up with this low-cost Index fund? And eventually will think about purchasing some more of your high fees mutual funds. Ok?
- Yes sir, right away. 

The point is : someone with no knowledge whatsoever would probably have bailed out by then and decided to buy those 2-3 expensive mutual funds in ordre to obtain this "diworsification" for a 50$ per 2 weeks contribution. Silly.

There's a fine line sometimes between a financial sellers and a financial advisers. I'm not sure a lot of people see the difference. My dad didn't. But hopefully I did.

Sold a few shares

Speaking of selling, I know it's totally opposite of what a dividend investor should normally do but I sold some of my shares in two companies I own.

Barrick Gold (ABX.to) : the Canadian mining giant is like a stone in my shoe. This is where I have invested the more money (hello!). It would be too long to list the bad things this company has done in the past couple of years. I almost lost confidence in them. Anyway, the shares picked up a little bit last week and I decided to sell 50 of them. It's not a lot. But, of course, I lost money. It's part of the learning process, right? If the shares kick up again, I might sell more.

Power Corporation (POW) : some of you will be surprised to learn that I have sold some of my shares in POW. This a gem of a company and one of my oldest and biggest holding. I only sold 25 shares. POW was trading at an all-time high for that past 3-4 years. I seized the occasion. Why ? Well it's because I recently had initiated a position in its little brother Power Financial (PWF). So, all in all, I had 425 shares in these two companies, which represented more than 9 % of my portfolio. I wanted to take that % down a little bit. The only company I can deal with a higher % is Johnson and Johnson.  Eventually, I would like to limit the investment I have in one company to 5% of my portfolio.

So that's pretty much it for me on the financial front. Again, I have cash available for shares purchasing. Still need a little correction to move though.

What do you think about selling some shares of yours?

 

My most performing stocks (part 2)

Like I said in the first part of "My most performing stocks" post,  I had the good fortune to buy a few good companies at the right moment.

It was the case for Kraft (KRFT) (thank you Warren Buffet for the idea), Royal Bank of Canada (RY) (thank you my bank for charging me fees I can pay with your dividends) and Canadian Pacific (CP (thank you Hunter Harrison for making this company great). 

These stocks have done extremely well. Not only did they provide me with some nice dividends over the years, their prices have gone up 25% and sometimes more.

Three other names come to mind when I think about my other superstars stocks.

Johnson and Johnson (JNJ)

If you come here often, you know by now JNJ is my favorite stock. It's got everything : diversification, excellent credit, half of its earnings come from outside the USA, a growing and steady increase of its dividend (more than 40 years in a row), an excellent reputation, fine products, etc. Am I missing something?

One of my first moves as an DIY investor was to buy shares of JNJ. It goes back to 2010. I bought its shares at around 60$. 

I will hold these stocks for as long I possibly can. 

JNJ represents more than 10% of my portfolio. It's a lot but I am confortable since it's such a great company. Imagine, I had 200 shares at some point. Now I own 130 and I don't want to sell more just to keep my % lower than 10. These shares are here to stay.

Of course, the exchange rate with the Canadian dollar has helped me quite a bit. 

Total return : 40%

Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B)

This company does not fit my typical dividend investing profile. It's a small-mid-cap growth company. It pays out a meagre dividend. But the potential is there. 

Couche-Tard is a convenience store operator in the United States, Europe and Canada. It operates its convenience store and road transportation fuel retailing chain under several banners. Its network comprised 6,207 convenience stores throughout North America, including 4,698 stores with road transportation fuel dispensing. 

So I bought 30 shares at 29$, thinking I was probably buying it too high and that I would buy some more later at a lower price. Little did I know. The share quickly rocketed to a 50$ price. It has gone down recently to 44-45$. I bought 15 more shares. I now hold 45, which is not a lot. But I am happy still happy I got on. I think the future is promising for ATD.B.

The stock is now 47$, Total return: 26,39%

Power Corporation (POW) and Power Financial (PWF)

These two guys are twin brothers in some ways. POW is the all-around conglomerate. PWF is the financial Branch in some ways. 

You can buy both, depending on what your preferences are. If you want to own the whole Desmarais Family Empire, you go the easy way with POW. If you are only interested in Insurances and Financials, you pick PWF.

I own the two. The reason is simple : I had too many POW shares and wanted to lessen my exposure to their Communication Branch . 

They hold most of the newspapers in Quebec, as well as many other communication companies.

Check it out here. 

POW also holds and actively manages a portfolio of investments in China and Europe.

These two companies are huge :Great West, IGM Financials, Irish Life, Canada Life and so on, to name a few. 

Power Financial, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Power Financial Europe B.V., and the Frère family group of Belgium each hold a 50% interest in Parjointco, a Netherlands-based company. Parjointco’s principal holding is a 55.6% equity interest in Pargesa Holding SA, the Pargesa group’s parent company based in Geneva, Switzerland.The Pargesa group, through the holding company Groupe Bruxelles Lambert, holds significant positions in large companies based in Europe such as Lafarge, Total, GDF de Suez and Pernod Ricard.

It really beats me that I don't see more Canadian investors actually holding one of these stocks. I know they haven't raised their dividends in quite some time now (since 2008). But these are very careful run company. They don't get carried away easily. Besides, at roughly 4%, they actual dividend yield is very much acceptable.

Total return for POW : 21.71%

Total return for PWF: 21.64%

What do you think of my other top 3 stocks? Do you hold any of these stocks?

My most performing stocks (part 1)

I know, we are all in it for the long haul. There is no need to dwell on the performance of our stocks, especially if its over a short period of time.

But it's fun to do it sometimes, no?

I've been invested in the market (as a real do-it-yourself investor that is) since 2008.

I made some really bad moves (like selling some of my JNJ at 70'something).

I basically sold stocks I shouldn't have sold and I bought stocks I shouldn't have bought.

Live and learn, right?

I have to say I also had the good fortune to buy a few stocks at the right moment.

These stocks have done extremely well. Not only did they provide me with some nice dividends over the years,  they're prices have gone up quite a bit.

Here's the story of my top 6 stocks. (I just wish I had some more of them!)

Kraft (KRFT)

This is a consumer mature player. I bought shares of Kraft before the spin-off that created Mondelez International (MDLZ) somewhere in 2012.

I've always liked Kraft products. I still do. Peanut butter is all I have to say.

After looking at all the fundamentals, I thought, at the time, that 31$ was a good entry point.

One other factor that helped made the jump was looking at Buffets' portfolio. Not only did he have KRFT, but he had payed more than the market price at the time. (he stills hold the company, although much much less than before).

With a dividend of 2.20$, KRFT is a solid and reliable dividend player.

Performance since I bought it (taking into consideration the spin-off) : 32.40%

Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO)

I know there's a lot of bloggers out there who love those big Canadian Banks. Indeed, there is a lot to love. These guys are stable, solid dividend players.

I bought RY at 53$ back in 2011. I had a target on this bank since 2008. I could have bought it much cheaper back then. But I am still happy I could get my hands on it.

The reason why I bought this particular one is simple : this is where I hold my mortgage.

I figured I might as well make some money along the ride. Boy was I right on this one. I lost the count on their dividend raise!

Return on this investment so far (not counting the dividends) : 31.21%

Canadian Pacific (CP.TO)

I often write about CP. There is a good reason for it : it's a wonderful company. Back in 2008-2009, this stock was trading at 40$. I bought the stock at 56$. It's now well over 200$...

I originally bought 100 shares. At 77$, I sold 60 thinking the shares were overvalued. What a dumb move! (live and learn...)

In 2012, The back-then Board of Directors were happy campers satisfied with the okay results from the company.

That was before Bill Hackman made his move and bought a considerable amount of CP shares. He kicked out the CEO, installed the former CN CEO, Hunter Harrison, and let his magic touch operate.

A couple of years later, the share is now trading at 233$ and the exploitation ratios have all gone up. Hackman and Harrison won their bets. The former directors look very bad (they all retired rich nevertheless).

Investors are stil waiting for a substantial dividend raise. But meanwhile, like me, they are surely quite satisfied with the stock performance of the company.

Hard to beat a 75% return.



(to be continued...) 

And you, do you have any favorite stocks? Which ones performed best?

My Dividend Evolution

As a value investor, I am well aware of the power of dividends in one's portfolio. 

I too thinks it's very important to grow your side income as soon as possible. After all, it helps you build your nest egg faster.

But I'm also very much aware of the fair price I need to pay for one stock. Like Warren Buffet once said : "It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price."

In my view, the wonderful companies are now trading at multiples that I find to be "off the chart" and not fair at all. Take for instance Canadian Pacific (CP), our second biggest railroad companies in Canada. The stock price is now 233 $. It's roughly 16 times the estimated cash flow! I love this company, but It wouldn't make sense to buy shares at this price. Besides, their dividend yield is not even close to 1 %.

I'm saying this to illustrate my investment philosophy and why my dividend income is not as big as it should be considering the fact I have now a portfolio of 150 K$. Some of the other blogs authors I visit are really packing up the dividends. (Good for them)

The other reason is also that I'm not chasing yield at all cost. I own a few small-cap growth companies like Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B.). I can live with a meagre dividend, but I need to see potential growth in the company. In this particular case, the future is real.

Having said that, my dividend income has grown in a steady fashion since 2008.

Side Income Evolution
Year	Dividends	$/month	Variation
2008	$0.00	$0.00	0%
2009	$200.00	$16.67	100.00%
2010	$300.00	$25.00	33.33%
2011	$1,735.19	$144.60	82.71%
2012	$2,116.16	$176.35	18.00%
2013	$2,361.41	$196.78	10.39%
2014	$2,982.00	$248.50	20.81%
2015	$2,892.68	$241.06	-3.09%

On a chart, it looks pretty much like that :

You will notice my dividends have taken a little step back lately. The reason is simple : I sold some shares of my oil stock (essentially Suncor -SU) and a little bit of my REIT units in Cominar (CUF.UN). 

Nothing crazy, just a small tune-up considering the oil crisis. These guys are very nice dividend players. But I was kind of wary of the situation. I figured I would just reduce my exposition to the energy sector. Hence the little gap between 2014 and the beginning of this year.

My goal for this year regarding dividends will be to crank the numbers up to 4 800 $ (check it out here). To attain it I will need a big market correction! Fingers crossed. ;-)

What do you think of my dividend evolution? How about yours? How much do you need it to grow in 2015?

Regrets on the freedom financial road

When contemplating the road traveled and the now value of my Portfolio, I can't believe how relatively easy it was to build that stack of money.

We read about it over and over, but it's true : you can build wealth with a relatively small income.

And one thing is absolutely certain: the sooner you start, the faster your money will grow.

Compounding interest is not magic ocus-pocus formula. It's a reality.

Start young, invest on a regular basis and time will do the rest (that and a few strong bull market).

We also read a lot about people regretting not investing earlier. I get that too. But why bother : what's done is done. You can only make up the time you lost.

I often tell myself that I could of done much better if I had only did this and that... Well I didn't.

Fact is, at the time, the things I was doing with my money were the things I thought appropriate to be doing. That's all.

Eating out, traveling, spending dough on useless crap... Those were the thing to do back then.

I still have to tap on my shoulder and congratule myself for having the presence of mind to invest small amount of money in those expensive mutual funds from 2000 to 2007.

That money wasn't working hard, but thankfully it wasn't spent for nothing.

I'm so glad that I got to know what I know now. Otherwise, I wouldn't have taken the steps to engage on this road to be financially independent.

So, all in all, no regrets. Just happy to be where I am now.

I guess the chart below pretty much sums up where I am coming from (and where I intend to go).

It's never too late to do good things, people say. I guess there's some truth to it.

And you, do you have any financial regrets? How did you overcome them?

* Notice things haven't changed much between 2011 and 2012. It's because I bought a house. Therefore I wasn't able to invest as much as I would have liked to. But hey! it's an investment, right?

My January Dividend Income Summary

Every Dividend Investor will tell you : collecting that passive income every month is pure bliss. This is money working for you instead of you working for money.

I guess it sums up pretty well the whole idea of Dividend Investing : money working for you.

I take comfort in knowing that my dividends all come from strong and reliable companies that will grow their money distribution over time for the benefit of their shareholders. As long as it beats the inflation rate, that should make me richer in 20-30 years.

So, as you can see on my Dividends and Royalties page, January is below my average Dividend paying month of roughly 240 $.

Last month I managed to collect 125,90$.

(I'm not counting Nova Scotia Bank (BNS) yet, since I just recently bought it).

My Dividends came from:

• Canadian Pacific (CP) : 14,00$
• Mondelez International (MDLZ) : 18,75 U$
• Kraft (KRFT) : 27,50 U$
• Power Financial (PWF) : 26,25$ 
• BCE : 24,70$
• Cominar (CUF.UN) : 14,70$

• My total Dividend paid for 2015 : 125,90$
• My Total Dividend paid since I started Dividend Investing : 9 694,76$ + 125,90$ = 9820,66$

Some of that money is in US dollars, which makes the payout even bigger since our loony is doing so badly nowadays. But again, there is withholding tax on foreign investment. So I guess it evens out.

What do you think of my dividend income stream? I know it should be bigger, considering my portfolio, but I am still holding on to some cash. I'm waiting for a market correction. Will it come?

Recent acquisitions : ATD.B, GUD, VZ and BNS

I haven't been very active on the trading front those past couples of months. The reason is simple : I think the market is generally overpriced. 

There are a few bargains here and there. But, as you must be aware by now, I don't want to be holding too many companies. I dread diworsification. Therefore, I am extremely picky on initiating new positions. My strategy is too wait for shares of my actual positions to come down, at least 10 %. We are not there yet.

Despite of all this, I have added 4 new companies in my portfolio since the last year.

I bought 30 shares of Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B.) at 29$ in July.

This company does not fit my typical dividend investing profile. It's a small-mid-cap growth company. It pays out a meagre dividend. But the potential is there. Here's a quick overview of the company :

Couche-Tard is a convenience store operator in the United States, Europe and Canada. It operates its convenience store and road transportation fuel retailing chain under several banners. Its network comprised 6,207 convenience stores throughout North America, including 4,698 stores with road transportation fuel dispensing. 

The Company generates income primarily from the sales of tobacco products, grocery items, beverages, fresh food offerings, other retail products and services, road transportation fuel, stationary energy, marine and aviation fuel, lubricants and chemicals.

So I bought 30 shares at 29$, thinking I was probably buying it too high and that I would buy some more later at a lower price. Little did I know. The share has now rocketed to a 50$ price. This is a 40% increase. Wow! Should I have bought more? Yes! But, eh, I"m still happy I got on the wagon.

There are now rumours that Couche-Tard would buy 500 Esso fuel retailing store from Imperial Oil. So I will wait and see how it turns out before making another move to consolidate my holding.

I bought 150 shares of Therapeutic Knights (GUD.to) at 6.33$

Again, this company does not fit my typical dividend investing profile. It's a small pharma company. It doesn't pay a dividend. But the potential is there.

The CEO who runs the company made a lot of money to former shareholders of Laboratoires Paladin. A lot of Cash. He wants to replicate what he did. He has the talent, the assets and the contacts to do so. Now, he needs time to implement his strategy. It's a long shot. So will see. This is a the " Penny Stock " section of my portfolio.

The share is up 22% since I bought it. It's 8.13$

Finally, I bought 25 shares of both Verizon (VZ) and Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS)

These two stocks fit clearly my dividend investing profile. They are a little pricey, but the juicy dividends they are paying make them worth the wait. So I will wait.

For now, both shares have dropped below my acquisition price.

And you, how did your latest acquisition do? What do you think of my latest buys?