Brianne Gardner, senior wealth manager at Velocity Investments, Raymond James Canada, recently joined The Market Online to discuss her fall stock picks, companies to watch and her market insights on the financial sector, interest rates and the U.S. election.
As you will see in the full video above, Gardner’s outlook for the second half of year is a little more bullish than the first half of 2024.
Gardner focuses in on Capital Power Corp.(TSX:CPX), Canadian independent power generation company based in Edmonton, Alberta. The company develops, acquires, owns and operates power generation facilities.
She mentions the company’s dividend raise in October and says, “From a value perspective, the company scores a perfect 10 for us. We are still bullish over it in the long run and think that when Bank of Canada continues to cut on this cutting cycle, that stocks like utilities, like Capital Power will continue to do well.”
Second on her list in the industrial space is label maker, CCL Industries (TSX:CCL). The U.S.-Canadian company was founded in 1951 and describes itself as the world’s largest label maker.
Year to date company shares are recording a more than 35 per cent increase and its five-year gain is more than 40 percent, averaging almost 9 to 10 per cent per year.
Gardner believes there is still “more upside for the stock to run.” She also likes the company’s multiple growth avenues with Latin America and Mexico.
In the materials sector, Gardner points to Canadian multinational company Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (TSX:WPM) for the third company she highlights this fall.
Focusing on gold and silver, Wheaton is up more than 25 per cent on the year, and in the past five years has gained more than 120 per cent. Noting the all-time highs in the materials sector, Gardner believes “there is more room to run in this sector,” and she thinks Wheaton “will be one of those stocks that continues to participate.”
Gardner also likes Wheaton’s royalty and streaming model and notes that it reflects the strength of the precious metals market.
The upward movement of gold and silver has surpassed analyst estimates this year with gold trading at US$2657.74, up 30 per cent year to date. Silver is trading at US$32.33 and is up around 35 per cent from January.
Gardner also comments on interest rates and the tech sector, noting that falling interest rates are a stimulus for tech. She points out that the artificial intelligence boom pulled expectations forward, driving prices up ahead of interest rates falling. She mentions that investors are wondering if the sector might now be overvalued and expectations might be a little high, even with falling interest rates on the horizon.
“They’re still profitable companies and stocks that we want to own, but from a rotation standpoint, we have started to see that rotation take fruition, especially out of the tech large cap and into other sectors that have been lagging,” Gardner says.
After the three rate cuts this year by the Bank of Canada, Gardner also believes financials stand to benefit with the potential increase in consumer borrowing. She notes that almost 50 per cent of Canadians are up for mortgage renewal in 2025, which can lift the profitability of Canadian banks.
With the U.S. election in November, Gardner says the outcome can have a significant impact on certain Canadian companies. She also points out that, “Since 1990, TSX returns have increased more in an election year than the S&P 500, which is why we are bullish.”
She concludes, “Looking at the big picture, the market still continues to go higher, no matter who is in office. If we see a Democrat or a Republican, there are certain sectors that can be more impacted. But again, overall, the market, no matter who is in office, the markets continue to go higher.”
Watch Gardner’s previous price targets for e-commerce giants Amazon and Shopify here. And check out other previous Gardner interviews: Experts offer a fresh look at investment strategies for 2024; Will we have a bear market or bull market in 2024?; What’s ahead for Apple after its rough start to 2024? and Is Lululemon a buy, sell or hold?
Join the discussion: Find out what everybody’s saying about these companies on the Capital Power Bullboards , CCL Industries Bullboard and Wheaton Precious Metals Bullboards and check out Stockhouse’s stock forums and message boards.
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