Blog
Higher Rates are Here, and May Be Here to Stay. What To Do About It.
Many people in their 30s or even 40s have lived and worked their entire adult lives in a world of persistently very low interest rates. While a 40-year-old American was (barely) alive during Paul Volcker’s often double-digit interest rates during [...]
A Must Read from David Baskin and the Portfolio Management Committee
While social media can be a negative force and always threatens to be a huge time-waster, it does have the virtue of bringing material to hand that we might otherwise miss. One of the best writers in the economics and finance sector right now is Ben Carlson CFA of Ritholtz Wealth Management. His blog, “A Wealth of Common Sense” contains not only common sense, but some real wisdom, and always good writing. Here is an essay that our Portfolio Management Committee recently reviewed together. We agree without almost everything he has to say. It is well worth your time.
Understanding The Baskin Fixed Income Pool
There has been some misunderstanding about the Baskin Fixed Income Pool, and the returns or losses that clients have experienced. We accept responsibility for bad communication on this issue. Fund accounting is tricky, and in this case, has been made harder to explain by two factors. We have, in the past, reinvested income paid by the Pool, issuing additional units to our clients rather than paying them cash; and the bond market experienced a record decline in value in 2022.
an ernest opinion
What to do when a stock doesn’t work
Legendary investor Warren Buffett famously said that his favorite holding period is forever. Our aim at Baskin Wealth Management is to replicate this by owning great businesses managed by skilled & honest CEOs, and then sit back and let these [...]
How Patrick Doyle Can Fix Restaurant Brands
Last November, shares of Restaurant Brands International, the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, and Popeyes, shot up on the announcement that Patrick Doyle would be the incoming Executive Chairman. The market’s enthusiasm is well founded: Doyle is best known for leading the turnaround of Domino’s Pizza as CEO from 2010 to 2018 with Domino’s Pizza being the #1 performing stock in the S&P 500 during that time.
A compounder thesis for Brookfield Corporation
Last December, Brookfield Corporation (BN) listed its asset management business into an independent company called Brookfield Asset Management (BAM), in essence separating Brookfield’s capital (Brookfield Corporation) from the third-party capital managed by Brookfield. The naming can be confusing, so in this blog, BN will refer to Brookfield Corporation, while BAM refers to Brookfield Asset Management.
media appearances
Barry Schwartz on BNN’s The Street: There’s good reason to believe things will turn around for the TSX going forward
Barry Schwartz shares why he sees investing opportunities with the Canadian banks.
David Baskin on BNN’s The Street: What are Nvidia’s earnings going to be 3 years from now when its competitors are out there?
David Baskin joins BNN Bloomberg and shares his thoughts on investing in the magnificent 7.
David Baskin on BNN’s The Street: Investment dollars are leaving Canada
Increasingly Canada's being perceived as being a laggard going forward says David Baskin.
Outlook
Monthly Newsletter – February 2024
Spring has arrived, ushering in the annual ritual of filing income tax returns. This is a process marked by the increasing complexity of the Canada Income Tax Act to which the Government has responded by hiring at a rate exceeding that of the general population by almost 4-fold over the past 10 years. Unfortunately, this is not isolated to CRA and is symptomatic of declining productivity across the country. In this month's newsletter, David discusses how this impacts growth prospects for Canada and how we are addressing it in client portfolios.
Monthly Newsletter – January 2024
In this month’s newsletter David writes about how the Canadian government's got a reminder for us – hey, you're getting old! They let him know this by telling him to start taking money out of his RRSP, which is now a RRIF, and begin paying the taxes that go along with it. They say death and taxes are inevitable, which is at least half true, but good planning can sure take the edge off taxes. Just don't wait too long.
Monthly Newsletter – December 2023
In our year-end newsletter, David reflects on the unpredictability of financial markets, highlighting the surprising success of the stock and bond markets in 2023 despite widespread predictions of a recession. He emphasizes the importance of acknowledging uncertainties and suggests that understanding what is known and unknown is crucial for successful long-term investing. David expresses confidence in active management over passive strategies and discusses the uncertainties surrounding stock market movements and interest rates. He underscores the focus on high-quality stocks, the recognition of value over time, and the significance of behavioral biases in investment decisions.
Wealth management
New and Improved – Savings plans get even better
The past year has seen the addition of a new registered plan aiming to help first-time home buyers, as well as increased annual contribution limits for both the Tax Free Savings Account and the Registered Retirement Savings Plan driven by inflation. In light of these changes, this article will provide an update of the various registered savings plans available in Canada.
Getting Wealthy and Staying Wealthy
Everyone worries about money. Daniel Kahneman, a behavioural economist and winner of the Nobel in economic science once said “Money does not buy you happiness, but lack of money certainly buys you misery”. Money worries are the greatest source of stress, more than work, personal health and relationships.
Don’t Hesitate; Just Designate
Designating a beneficiary on your registered accounts is one of the most important decisions in estate planning. By designating a beneficiary, you inform the financial institution of your plans for your estate after your death. While it is a simple act requiring little in the way of paperwork, it can do a great deal of heavy lifting in establishing your wishes for your estate and ensuring your assets are distributed according to your wishes when you die.
podcasts
Compounding is afoot at the Circle K
Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD) is one of the best performing Canadian equities for over 30 years. Ernest and Barry discuss the pros, cons and the reasons why we finally purchased this investment for clients. We also talk about Apple's recent woes and reasons to stay optimistic.
Tourmaline Oil – It’s a gas, gas, gas.
This week's episode has Barry and Ernest discussing interest rates, why Baskin Wealth favours U.S. equities, why Alimentation Couche-Tard and Constellation Software are only listed on the Canadian exchange and then our feature discussion on Tourmaline Oil. Mike Rose, founder of Tourmaline, is one of Canada's greatest capital allocators. We learn all about his strategy and reasons to be bullish on Natural Gas.
Buffett, National Bank and Royal way to value CNQ
This week's podcast touches on a number of topics including a review of Berkshire Hathaway's recent shareholder letter and Warren Buffet's dissatisfaction with Berkshire's railroad and utility asset. Next, they have a conversation about the Canadian bank results and what their CEO's are saying about the Canadian economy. The feature discussion is on Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ) where Barry and Ernest give investors food for thought on how to value CNQ differently.