We met with Joseph Burgoyne of the Options Industry Council (OIC) at the Montreal Exchange Options Education Day to discuss how investors can use options as part of their investment portfolio. He highlights information about the OIC, how investors can approach learning options and tips on how to options responsibly
In this episode of Mark to Market, Mark Tradewell learns about the limit buy.
One of the great ‘disadvantages’ to beginner investors is how to put what they hear and see in the news or what they are told by financial sales staff into context. One solution to get that context is through education. While most people would probably agree that taking the time to learn about investing is important they simply don’t have the time to do so or know where to start or who to trust.
It is through that lens that Danielle Park’s book, “Juggling Dynamite: An insider’s wisdom about money management, markets and wealth that lasts” is probably one of the most valuable starting points for Canadian retail investors.
Unlike some books about investing that focus solely on money, Juggling Dynamite takes a thoughtful and uncomplicated look at building wealth and understanding that getting money is important but keeping money is even more important in the long run. According to Danielle Park, there are no shortcuts or “extreme makeovers”, but rather a daily commitment to learning and sound decision-making. Specifically, the keys to successful investing and wealth management rely on having the patience and discipline to both identify and wait for the right opportunities to present themselves.
The well-written and matter-of-fact style of this book is a breath of fresh air in a landscape stuffed with sugar-coated sales pitches and fantastical claims about the benefits of investing in stocks, mutual funds and many other investment vehicles. Because of her experiences within the financial industry, Danielle Park is uniquely able to provide an “insider’s view” of how the investment industry is designed to work to separate investors from their capital. For example, Danielle Park writes
Waiting for the right investment at the right price is not a strategy well received by an investment industry paid to promote transactions. Most investment professionals are paid to come up with buy ideas. Fund managers are paid to buy things, not to sit in cash. This is the bias inherent in the system. (p56)
While providing a fascinating and much needed look into how investments are presented to the public, this book also provides a great overview of how market and business cycles influence when being in certain investments such as stocks, ETFs or mutual funds makes more sense and when it does not. This is a powerful piece of insight that runs contrary to much of the financial advertising and “conventional” buy-and-hold wisdom, however as Danielle Park concisely points out “To regular folks, 5-, 10-, and 20-year cycles matter most in their lives. Few people invest all their money with plans to look at it fifty or more years down the road” (p32)
Even though the financial industry is quick to point out that “past performance doesn’t necessarily guarantee future results” stepping into a market without having first taken a look at market cycles and historical behavior means that a different phrase will probably apply, namely “those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it”. As a great irony and first lesson of the value of history, Juggling Dynamite was published in 2007 just ahead of the greatest financial disaster of this generation. Too bad more people didn’t read it then.
For more information about Danielle Park, you can visit her website at www.jugglingdynamite.com
Check out our interview with Danielle Park here
You can also purchase this book online via the link below:
To read five other reviews of this book you can click here.
One of the largest publicly traded discount brokers, Interactive Brokers Group Inc. (better known as Interactive Brokers or ‘IB’) published their monthly trading data for March 2012. Many industry commentators and trader’s alike have observed a decrease in the trading volumes over the past several months. An interesting data point that confirms that observation comes from the March 2012 report which shows a decrease of 7% in Daily Average Revenue Trades (DARTs) from the past month. Options contracts also decreased about 19% relative to last year, however it actually increased 6% over the previous month.
Both volume and volatility are attractive to traders, and the recent decline of both trading volumes and share price volatility mean more than a few traders are growing impatient with the current market environment. Odd as it may sound, markets have to make participants money in order for them to survive. Active traders are key to efficiently functioning markets however low price volatility or fewer numbers of participants mean less than ideal trading conditions and therefore less profitability.
Eventually as people exit the trading game or stop trading stocks, there are fewer participants and prices are likely to get volatile. That volatility will signal profitability for traders and traders may want to step back in at that point.
The lesson – supply and demand also applies to volatility in stock prices and right now equity markets appear to be quietly frustrating volatility seekers. Using discount brokerage data is a great proxy on the retail investor’s trading behaviour in the marketplace and also a helpful way to figure out trends in the market.
To read more about their results you can find a great article here: http://yhoo.it/HFGoHq or if you want to read the report directly you can find it on Interactive Brokers’ website here: http://bit.ly/IFDYvH
This stop on the World Money Show circuit brought with it quite a few interesting speakers and exhibitors. The list of speakers included such notable Canadian personalities as Larry Berman and Danielle Park, both of whom had very good turnouts (Danielle’s was standing room only!). Some international guests included Marc Faber, aka “Dr. Doom” who managed to keep audience members nervously amused at his analysis of current financial markets and the potential pitfalls to come.
In addition to some great and opinionated speakers, there were several interesting exhibitors including several discount brokerages, some very well-known American large cap companies, such as GE and Proctor & Gamble, as well as one of the newer Canadian stock exchanges, Alpha Exchange.
These events present great opportunities to learn more about investing and trading and even pick up some very cool promotional items (my personal favourite was the slick Alpha Exchange water bottle). While having to be on your guard about giving your information away, some incentives like shares in GE or Proctor & Gamble are pretty tempting conference promotional items.
Like many conferences, being prepared makes for a much less overwhelming experience. Even though it’s important to know who you are most interested in listening to, sometimes it is also important to get different perspectives on investing ideas you’re considering.
To find out more about the MoneyShow series of events, you can visit their website at: www.moneyshow.com.
If you’d like to find out about other investment conferences and events, including investment education webinars going on in Canada, you can check out our events page.
Scotia iTrade is raising how much they charge for their ‘standard’ commission per trade rate from $19.99 to $24.99 for equity trades effective April 2012. Specifically, it’s $24.99 per trade (up to 1000 shares) and $0.03/share for orders greater than 1000 shares. Option commissions are also going up from $19.99 +$1.75 per contract to $24.99 + $1.75 per contract.
Standard rates apply if you have less than $50 000 in combined Scotia iTrade assets or trade less than 30x per quarter.
Tough break for the buy & holders just getting started. As an alternative to trading individual company stocks though, there is the choice to trade commission free with certain ETFs.
As of the time of writing this post(April 6th 2012), Scotia iTrade has not updated their website, however this notice (see picture) was sent to clients in March 2012.
Here are the latest discount broker deals and promotions offered by Canada’s online discount brokerages. This month there is a monster deal being launched by Disnat Direct called the “Active 5” deal. Look out for other deals being announced from National Bank Direct Brokerage early this month. If there’s a deal or promotion that we’ve not included, drop us a note here and we’ll look into adding it to the list.
While we strive for accuracy in our reporting we cannot guarantee that the information presented below will not have changed or be altered without notice. Please ensure to check the brokerage’s website directly for full details.
| Company | Brief Description | Details Link | Deadline |
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Open a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) and receive $50 commission credit . Use promo code: kdkfnbbc | none | none |
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Move your brokerage account to Questrade and they’ll cover the transfer-out fee. | Transfer Fee Promo | none |
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Maximize your returns. Get up to 1% (or more) of your mutual fund value rebated back to you. | Mutual Fund Rebate Promo | none |
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Open a new account with Questrade and you could qualify for a new iPad. To enter in a draw for 1 of 10 iPads, you can open a new account and deposit $1000. If you deposit $250,000 or more, you will get a free iPad (applies to both new and existing clients) | iPad Promo | May 31, 2012 |
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Transfer a value of $50,000 or more in assets to Disnat Direct (from a non Desjardins account) and receive a $500 credit (valid for 3 months) which can be applied to regular commissions or account transfer fees | $500 Credit | May 1, 2012 |
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Transfer a value of $50,000 or more to your Disnat account (from a non Desjardins account) and receive $300 and free access to their GPS portfolio management tool for a year. Money will be deposited to your account within 30 days of your completed transfer. They will reimburse any transfer fees charged by the transferring firm (up to $150 per account). | GPS Promo | Limited Time Offer |
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A monster deal called the “Active 5 Deal” being launched by Disnat: 5 Months of no platform fees on DD Xtra & DD Web (includes no fee for TSX venture quotes) 5 Months trading on the best commission rate of $5 50 free trades ($250 commission credit) 5 Months access to Tyler Bollhorn’s daily newsletter $500 off Tyler Bollhorn’s live trading course | Check back soon for details! | TBD |
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For new clients: Transfer a value of $100 000 to National Bank Direct Brokerage and reference code: NBDB25 on signup form (section 13). For existing clients: call customer service to let them know you want the deal. The Deal: Get 250 trades for $0.25 each Lots of fine print to read for this deal – click on the link to find out details | 25 years. 25 cents deal | April 30, 2012 |
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Transfer $25,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees | Transfer Fee Rebate | none |
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Open a new account with BMO Investorline and you could receive cash back. For a $50,000 deposit/transfer – you get $100; for a $100,000 transfer, you get $250 cash back; for a $250,000 transfer/deposit you get $600 cash back. Enter the code BONUS when you open your account. | BMO transfer offer | June 1, 2012 |
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Switch your account to Credential Direct and they’ll pay up to $125 of the transfer fees your online broker charges. If after 90 days you’re not completely satisfied, Credential Direct will waive the $125 transfer out fee. To qualify, you must deposit at least $5000 within 30 days of opening a Credential Direct account. Promo code “SWITCH ME” | Switch Me Offer | June 30, 2012 |
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Become a new National Bank Direct Brokerage Client before June 30, 2012 and receive a fixed rate commission of $6.95 for 6 months. Minimum deposit not specified. Promo code “TRADE2012”. Note: National Bank is releasing a similar promo early April where you have to open a margin account to receive 6 months at $6.95 – according to customer service details to be released soon. | Call customer service: 1-800-363-3511 | June 30, 2012 |
Every so often something comes along that turns into a phenomenon which then takes on a life of its own. This weekend is the big launch of the first movie in the widely anticipated Hunger Games series. The mania for the film is already at an all-time high going into the opening weekend – everyone is talking about it on the entertainment and business news channels, movie theater tickets for shows already sold out in some major centers – yes, people sense that this is going to be something huge. Some are already comparing it to Harry Potter or Twilight. While most people enjoy the stories, seasoned traders and investors understand something of this magnitude spells profits.
Investors and traders alike have seen this story play out every day in the markets. When things get emotional, there’s really no telling what people will do and more importantly what people will pay. Great traders are serial opportunists – always looking for an advantage, and therefore how to profit from a situation. For that reason, the fervor and enthusiasm for the movie has manifested itself as an emotional move higher in the stock of the company that owns the rights to movie, a company called Lions Gate Entertainment.
The simple lesson in this chart is that when people want something, they will pay for it. Prices in a stock chart go up because people believe that the value of a company will go up over time. When lots of people start thinking the same thing, prices move very quickly, and that’s when things get emotional. The fear of missing out, otherwise known as greed, is a powerful force that seasoned traders know how to recognize and exploit.
In the stock market, as in the Hunger Games, there is a simple rule for investors and traders, stay alive. To do that, you have to be calculated and cunning and ultimately you have to be willing to take money from those who are more than happy to hand it to you.
By now you’ve probably learned more about the wonderful world of commission pricing than you’d ever really wanted to know. As you’ve perhaps figured out, choosing a discount brokerage can be a bit of a chore, but it can be made much easier by understanding what your trading needs are before you go shopping. Understanding how much you have to trade with, how often you expect to trade, what types of order sizes you expect to make and what price of stocks/ETFs you want to buy will go a long way in making the decision of which broker fits your needs a lot easier. There is, however, more to choosing a broker than just commission pricing. Other than commission pricing, some of the other important factors that go into choosing a discount brokerage can be clustered into the following 3 categories:
Your experience level and investing/trading needs are generally a good way to establish which additional features you will need to pay attention to most when selecting a discount brokerage firm. For example, an experienced investor will likely have a sense of how often they place orders, what types of orders they make and the sizes of those transactions.
On the other hand, for those who are just starting out, it is much harder to understand what their needs and requirements will be. It is difficult for those who are new to the market to know what the right questions to ask are and even to know how to make heads or tails of the different products and services that are offered as part of opening a brokerage account.
In our continuing series on how to choose an online discount brokerage company, we will be looking into each of these additional categories to help beginners and experienced investors/traders alike make sense of their options.
Why is commission pricing so complicated? Why is it so hard to get good information? Those are some of the questions that inspired us to create the most user-friendly brokerage comparison and review section in Canada. To be able to compare apples to apples, we had to reverse engineer the marketing and sales pitches, to get down to what trading commissions cost with online discount brokerages.
In an ideal world, consumers would be able to get the lowest rate at a flat fee, no strings attached. While it is difficult to “feel sorry” for a bank or financial institution, providing access to markets and data as well as coordinating transactions is pretty complicated and expensive, which means that like any other business, they have to be able to pay their bills. Translation: companies that charge low commissions may not be able to afford the full suite of services and features that other discount brokerages do.
To fixed-fee or not to fixed-fee?
Flat fee pricing – one number for all your trades, certainly makes the math easier to figure out when keeping track of your costs. Whether or not it is the “best” or lowest flat fee is a different question altogether. “Flat fee” is also different from “fixed fee”.
A truly “flat fee” is just that – a flat price that includes all of the little extra fees that come along with executing a trade. A “fixed fee” for commissions is a fixed commission price you pay per trade, but does not include the “extra” exchange or middle men fees. Because there are a slew of “middle men” that help connect buyers and sellers of a stock, each one of those middle men takes a fee. Usually the most common types of added fees are electronic communication network (ECN) fees and the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) fees (for US bought stocks). These fees are usually charged as fractions of a cent on the number of shares traded (e.g. $0.0035/share for TSX) and prices vary from ECN to ECN. These ECN fees usually show up when placing market orders rather than limit orders.
If this all seems confusing, what you really need to know is whether your “flat fee” is truly flat or if you still have to pay any additional fees per trade. If you’re choosing an online discount broker, this is one question you’ll want to be sure to ask.
What’s the catch?
Currently, only a handful of Canadian discount brokerages offer truly “flat fee” pricing. Most offer the “fixed fee” model. To qualify for either, though, one usually has to make a certain minimum number of trades in a given amount of time or pay some fee for a data package.
For those discount brokerages that have a threshold to qualify for truly flat fees, the current range of trading activity goes from a minimum of 10 trades per quarter (Credential Direct) to 150 (TD Waterhouse). One of the only discount brokerages that offers flat commission pricing independent of activity level is Virtual Brokers however they have a required monthly data charge that you need to pay for so there is a bit of a string attached there.
One of the biggest benefits of fixed-fee pricing is that you not only know your minimum cost, but you also know your maximum commission cost per trade. Hybrid or variable pricing, however, can get very expensive because there is no “maximum” price you pay per trade. What you pay is determined by the size or dollar value (or both) of your transaction.
What if I don’t trade very much?
If you’re not an active trader, and our research shows that most investors typically don’t trade all that often in a year, the reality is that you will be paying a standard rate. Standard commission rates range anywhere from $6.49 to $29, with most bigger online discount brokerages falling closer to the $29 end of the price spectrum. The exceptions to this are companies that have a fairly tight range of what you can be charged, such as Questrade, which charges you between $4.95 and $9.95, depending on the size of your order, not how often you trade.
Is there a down side to fixed-fee pricing?
Sometimes your trade volumes or activities are not particularly high. If trading a few hundred shares with a handful of transactions a year sounds like you, then variable-fee commissions are not necessarily a bad option. Take Questrade again, with their volume-based pricing you can pay as little as $4.95 (+ECN fees) to be trading 500 shares at any one time. Similarly, Virtual Brokers’ “99” plan can cost you as little as $0.99 for a 100 share trade. From a cost perspective, having to pay $0.99 instead of $29 is a substantial savings if you are not trading often enough in a year to qualify for fixed-fee discounted pricing.
The Bottom Line
In the current Canadian discount brokerage market, there is a lot of competition that is driving commission prices lower. One of the best things you can do to make sense of all the choices is to ask yourself “how often do I trade?”. Once you know that answer, it will be easier to see if going with a broker that offers you “fixed-fee” pricing or “variable-fee” pricing will be the most economical for you. Keep in mind that in order to offer those rock-bottom prices, some other elements of the discount brokerage, such as customer service, accessibility or support resources may not be what they are at other more expensive discount brokerages.
Read the previous article in this series.
Read the next article in this series.
