Portfolio Update: September 2017

  The month of September 2017 is now behind us.  Like any month, there is lots of news.  We have the ongoing battle with the price of a barrel of crude oil.  The price of oil effects the amount of jobs in the oil and gas industry.  It is often said that one rig creates 135 jobs directly and indirectly.

   Currently the United Conservative Party of Alberta is in the midst of a leadership race.  The Rachel Notley led NDP government has raised the minimum wage from $12.20 to $13.60 an hour on October 1.  I have noticed that a lot of places have already raised their prices to offset the minimum wage. Some analysts think that the increases to minimum wage in Alberta and Ontario at the drastic amounts will lead to lots of layoffs.

   I sold out of my position in TD.TO.  My average price was around $69.62, so I sold my 100 shares at $70.18.  The stock has risen some since then but I believe the stock will fall  below $70.00 again.  If my average price was lower,  I would not of sold my position.  Unfortunately, you or I cannot predict the right side of the chart.  Recently, the Trump administration wants to reduce taxes for Americans and American businesses.  TD has a lot of branches in the United States, so this news on potential tax cuts could be putting upward pressure on the stock.  I will invest in TD Bank again if the stock falls below the price I am willing to buy.

   We often hear that lots of people do not get enough seafood in their diets. People are often stretched for times these days as lives seem to be always busier.  People often end up going to a restaurant they cannot afford or going to get fast food.  An alternative to this is to buy frozen stuff and cook at home.  High Liner Foods (ticker symbol HLF.TO ) is one such company that is in this space.  High Liner Foods is a market leader in the frozen fish market which has products for residential consumers and business customers.  High Liner Foods is also a supplier to McDonald's Restaurants.  I purchased 100 shares of High Liner Foods at $13.45 per share foe a total cost of $1349.95 including commissions.  I now own 200 shares of High Liner Foods..

    Another way of making money in the markets is to sell option premiums.  I sold one put option contract in RY.TO  with a October 20 2017 expiration day for a total premium of $21.05 including commissions.  The stock was trading higher, so I wrote a covered call for RY.TO with an October 20 2017 expiration date for total premium of $36.05 including commissions.  Therefore, I collected $57.10 in option premiums for this stock. The covered call is currently way in the money.

     Last September, I started to included my position in Dream Office REIT (ticker symbol D.UN) in my margin account. I also have a position in D.UN inside my TFSA.  So starting this month when I post about my dividend income, I will do a year over year comparison on top of the three month comparison.

As of  Sept 1,  the value of the portfolio is $106918.63.  This is a 2.37% increase over last month's total.  The spreadsheet in the investment tab above has been updated.


Disclosure:  Long D.UN, RY.TO

Please Note:  All stocks are from the Toronto Stock Exchange except TTR which trades on the Venture Exchange.
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DISCLAIMER

I am not a financial planner, financial advisor, accountant or tax attorney. The information on this blog represents my own thoughts and opinions and should NOT be taken as investment or business advice.

Every individual should do their due diligence to make their own financial decisions based on their financial situation and tolerance for risk.