A lot of interesting developments occurred last week on some stocks I have been watching and/or holding.  I have noticed a significant increase in my holdings: Encana, Rogers, Royal Bank, and Shaw Communications etc. are all advancing.  I was hoping to have published this post over the weekend, since it was last week’s news. So here goes better late than never! Bank of Montreal (BMO) BMO is on the move! Back on December 20th BMO share prices had slumped down from approx $59 to $56.60 per share following missed earnings expectations and Moody’s Downgrade after BMO purchased Marshall & Ilsley Corp. BMO is currently trading back up at $59 per share, in large part because of its high yield of 4.8% which is a favourite amongst dividend investors. For more in depth info on BMO I refer you to the Passive Income Earner. One thing that concerns me with BMO however is the negative cash flow of 11 Billion. Although BMO has 411 Billion in assets, until I can understand why there is a negative ...

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Here’s what tickled my fancy in dividend stocks this week. These are posts or links that provide solid information on dividend investing or market outlooks: Passive Income Earner takes a detailed look at the TSX Dividends Aristocrats Index. If you’re not familiar with these stocks, you should really take look! These are the big guys in Canada that raise their dividends every year.  Buy, hold, and collect dividends! Passive Income Earner also reviews the Bank of Montreal compared to its peers. BMO has done well this year from its dip in December, and has a generous dividend yield of 4.8%. If you’re new to Dividend Investing, then Learn Dividends is the site for you. No commercial hype on this site, it’s all well laid out and easy to read.  Dividend Investing 101! Lots of great tidbits at Horan Capital Advisors. From triple-tops in gold, dividend-payers, and a 2011 market outlook, there is a little something for everyone. Short and brief articles here, but some interesting insights ...

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Chart courtesy of the Globe and Mail I was looking a couple of months ago at Superior Plus (SPB.B) because of its high dividend yield of over 11%.  I’m familiar with  the company as they deliver propane to my parent’s home.  But I quickly realized the company had a very high debt load (liabilities to equity of 3.14), and seemed to be diversifying into some obscure areas to expand its business (i.e. drywall).  In addition the dividend is currently very high at 13.5%, as the share price had crashed. To me that signalled a company in trouble, and perhaps even a dividend cut in the near future. So I decided it wouldn’t be such a good investment after all.  That research also led me to realize that SPB was also trading low also because of  rock-bottom Natural Gas prices. To me that signalled an opportunity for a value-play in the Natural Gas sector. Chart courtesy of the Globe And Mail Natural Gas has certainly been trading at it’s 5 year lows, as low as $3.50 during ...

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