STOCKCHASE

Would you Short this one? No. We have seen a lot of the damage come out of the stock in the last couple of days. Stock pays a decent dividend, so if you are Shorting it, you have to cover the dividend is well.

2012-05-14

DON'T BUY

43.290

Prefers Canadian banks but this is probably the cream of the crop in terms of US banks.

2012-04-18

BUY

43.900

Paul Harris, CFA

Just came up with good quality earnings. You are seeing a return of the consumer. Loan reserves going back into earnings. Well run company. Large investment bank. May not be as stable as Wells Fargo. 2.7% dividend.

2012-04-17

BUY

44.700

Gavin Graham

If he bought a US financial it would be this one. They are one that passed the stress test and raised the dividend. But as a Canadian, why would you want to be in US banks.

2012-03-15

DON'T BUY

43.580

Been in the news because of stress testing. Announced yesterday they are raising dividend and increasing buy backs. His question is what is the catalyst for earnings. He owns GS.

2012-03-14

BUY

37.400

Paul Harris, CFA

American banks are very cheap at these levels. US economy is improving. This one has a fantastic retail franchise and a great investment bank. This is a great time to be buying these things. (See Top Picks.)

2012-02-15

DON'T BUY

37.400

Banking stocks had this bounce back on a technical basis only. They were cheap and very oversold, so bounced back. This is one of the best of the group. Housing problems cause difficulty in mortgage originations. From a fundamental perspective it is hard to get excited.

2012-02-15

Comment

37.490

Shorter-term, he expects it to move up. Fears from Europe had dissipated a little bit. He would prefer a smaller bank such as Keycorp (KEY-N).

2012-01-26

TOP PICK

32.300

(A Top Pick Nov 8/10. Down 18.59%.) Way too big to fail. Model price is $47.52. Quality name compared to others.

2011-10-11

DON'T BUY

39.620

Jim Huang

Difficult to call the bottom on the US banking sector. If the economy recovers and to be no more loans, they will do better. Doesn't think US banking will be the next leading sector however you probably have a reasonable return.

2011-07-13

Comment

40.910

Andrew McCreath

Being fined more than $150 million for allegedly misleading investors in connection with a collateralized debt obligation. Expect there will be other banks that will see similar fines. Meaningless in the grand scheme of things.

2011-06-21

PAST TOP PICK

40.530

Joey Mack

(Top Pick Jun 25/10, Up 3.9%) Floating rate, maturing February/12. Half increase is price gain rather than yield.

2011-06-06

DON'T BUY

45.500

Probably amongst the best run US banks and came out of 08 the strongest, but is also the most expensive. He would suggest you buy the stability of the banks in Canada and go to the US for something with a higher risk profile, such as Bank of America (BAC-N), which trades at about 1.1X tangible book where this one is about 1.4X but you have to wait for it to mature.

2011-04-27

PAST TOP PICK

46.560

Prakash Hariharan

(Top Pick Mar 1/10, Up 11.40%) Still likes it. There is still some upside left in it. It was a pick because credit metrics lined up. It is turning out to be more of a defense play. They have been removing the toxic mortgages in a systematic way. The book value of the company is growing steadily.

2011-03-09

DON'T BUY

45.450

Sandy McIntyre

Re-installing dividend. He is not fond of US banks, particularly investment banks. They are volatile and he has no way of determining what the risks are.

2011-02-02

Comment

45.020

Lorne Steinberg

One of the US few banks that was a winner during the financial crisis. They were so strong they were able to buy Bear Sterns and Washington Mutual for next to nothing. Didn’t need any dilution or issuing of new shares after the crisis. Hungry to raise their dividend.

2011-01-24

Comment

44.160

Jeff Parent B. Eng. FCSI

People are starting to realize some of these financials have potential value. This one has been going sideways for quite a while and is starting to break out a little on the shorter trend, which is very positive. Longer it goes sideways, the bigger the break out potential.

2011-01-04

PAST TOP PICK

39.660

(A Top Pick Nov 4/09. Down 5%.) Still likes. Regulatory overhang has kept the stock from advancing. Has become a universal one-stop bank. Not expensive with a forward PE of 8X. Growth of around 8%. Will probably be one of the first US banks to increase/restore their dividend.

2010-11-18

BUY

40.080

Doesn’t own tis one because he owns Goldman Sachs (GS-N). Sees more and more M&A activity coming and they make a lot of money on those transactions. One of the concerns is on the mortgage side and some of the private equity deals they may be restricted from doing. Can see it being higher.

2010-11-15

TOP PICK

40.510

Opportunistic. They are the first financial that cracked into his top 10 in the last 2 years. Model price $53.80, 31% differential. Could fatten up dividend. Lots of room in the income forecasts for more distribution.

2010-11-08

WAIT

37.720

Mark Grammer

This has not been a stock you want to be in this year. He has been significantly underweight financials, especially US. He has recently added to that, however. Well Capitalized and earnings are growing. You are starting to get write backs (bad loans that come back). Still have foreclosure mess to deal with but until dealt with you wont see great performance, but in 12-24 months you will.

2010-11-03

WAIT

38.720

Just reported good earnings. Foreclosure issues would be the one thing that would stop him from saying this is a great buy at these levels. Would prefer Goldman Sachs (GS-N). Wait for more clarification.

2010-10-14

TOP PICK

39.440

Joey Mack

Floating rate maturing February/12. Currently yielding about 2.8% based on current coupon. (A floating rate every quarter (sometimes more frequently) resets its coupon based on 3, 6 month or short term bankers acceptance basis, plus a spread.) In this case coupon will be whatever 3 months BA’s (?) are at +0.22%. Also gives you about $2.50 of capital gain.

2010-06-25

PAST TOP PICK

38.440

(A Top Pick Nov 4/09. Down 9%.) Good management team and good risk controls. Stock is down waiting to see what the US government does on financial reforms. Beat estimates 11 out of the last 12 quarters. Forward PE at around 12X. have room to boost the dividend.

2010-06-17

TOP PICK

38.250

Brett Hryb

Management skill avoided a lot of the issues, especially with the subprime. All US financials are getting hit with headline risks because of financial regulation discussions.

2010-06-15

TOP PICK

41.970

Prakash Hariharan

From a credit perspective, the high yield bonds are now 3.5-4% so there is significant improvement in the credit risk. The expectation is that the US banks will improve their book values. They should re-instate the dividend by year-end.

2010-03-01

BUY on WEAKNESS

38.940

Jim Huang

This is one of the winners and success stories coming out of last year's credit cycles. The problem right now is the financial regulatory landscape in the US. Trading at 7-8 times earnings. If you own, continue to hold and add to it on pullbacks.

2010-01-29

PARTIAL BUY

44.250

Very good choice in the US financial sector. Prefers Goldman Sachs (GS-N) but he likes this company. There are some regulatory risks. They want to punish the financials and they may. If you want to nibble in this area, this is a good one.

2010-01-13

BUY

40.270

This is his preferred way to play US banks. This one is a great name. Very strong management. In both investment banking and consumer banking. Handily beat estimates by 15% last quarter. Pretty cheap PE at 12X forward earnings.

2009-12-17

TOP PICK

42.210

Likes it because of its leadership position. Strong leadership. Solid balance sheet. Investment banking business is very strong. Good 3rd earnings. Took a small position and will add more if the stock falls further.

2009-11-04

WAIT

42.700

Paul Harris, CFA

It will pull back like the banks and then you could buy it. Buy 12-20% lower than today.

2009-11-03

BUY

45.980

(Market Call Minute) Is one of the two best financial services companies in the US. But he is underweight the sector.

2009-10-19

BUY

47.160

Christine Poole

Have repaid the government loans. Talking about potentially increasing their dividends early next year.

2009-10-15

TOP PICK

37.770

Brett Hryb

Strong management team. Essentially skated through the banking problems of 2007/2008. Have paid TARP off and are looking to get the warrants back from the government.

2009-07-29

HOLD

35.830

Keith Richards

Chart shows that this stock is going up. There may be some resistance at around $42. Stay with it until something gives you a sign that it is rolling over.

2009-05-11

TOP PICK

23.050

Ron Ianieri

Leaps of 2011 “in the money” options Calls around $12.50 strike. He'll also Sell 3 front month “slightly out of the money” options against that to collect premium and do that every month as time passes.

2009-02-26

BUY

29.780

Mark Grammer

Current market conditions provide opportunities for the high-quality US banks. Top 3 quality US banks would be JP Morgan (JPM-N), Wells Fargo (WFC-N) and Northern Trust (NTRS-Q). On a 3-year view, these stocks will make you a fair amount of money.

2008-12-29

TOP PICK

33.520

Ron Ianieri

Buy an “out month” option, a Leap (long term option) and go as far as 2011 and buy a Strike that's about $10 or $15 in the money. Only enter about 25%-30% as he thinks you are going to get better prices in the coming months.

2008-12-10

BUY

22.720

Walter Gerasimowicz

Took over Bear Sterns and continues to be among the better capitalized and more stable bank. Would suggest call options and pick up some premium if you sold a call forward.

2008-11-21

BUY

41.640

Matthew McCall

Going to be one of the leaders. It’s going to see more consolidation in its industry. Don’t have exposure to sub-prime.

2008-10-10

TOP PICK

49.630

Kevin O'Leary

Going to be one of the winners after this crisis is over. Recent deals significantly expanded their reach. Likes this story a lot. Huge asset base. Very stable cash flows. Thinks it will be a big surprise when markets stabilize in 2 to 3 years.

2008-10-01

Comment

37.140

Charles Bobrinskoy

This is the one US financial that he does own. Good management. Balance sheet is very strong.

2008-08-27

DON'T BUY

37.810

Michael Sprung

The problems in the US financial markets are a lot deeper than what we have in Canada. Why go into the US where the problems are still unfolding when our own financial institutions are selling at very compelling multiples.

2008-08-14

HOLD

36.910

In the height of the crisis, a lot of these got oversold. This is one that will survive. Still speculative at this time. Prefers Goldman Sachs (GS-N), which trades at a little lower multiple.

2008-08-13

TOP SHORT

37.660

Ron Ianieri

Really a short on the whole financial sector. When the Fed stepped in financials bounced back overly aggressive. They’ll drop down and test the lower levels, probably around $33. At that point he would become a long-term purchaser. Likes the company for the long term.

2008-07-28

BUY

45.570

Pat Naccarato

A great US institution that has been hit by this crisis. A great franchise with tremendous value. Trading at a valuation that has not been seen since the last recession. The snap-back coming out of recession can be enormous. Valuation on a PE basis does not look good as earnings are down but if they reverse some of their mortgage write-downs, it could have a big effect on values.

2008-04-07

BUY

42.710

Mark Grammer

Are looking to buy Bear Stearns. They may be getting something out of bargin basement price.

2008-03-18

PAST TOP PICK

52.160

(A Top Pick Apr 28/06. Up 15%.) Underweight financials in general, but this one has done a great job in executing. Still likes.

2007-04-24

PAST TOP PICK

49.970

John Manley

(A Top Pick Jan 24/07. Down .07%.) Showing a reverse head and shoulders pattern and has broken above the neckline, so it may have little more room to run.

2007-04-16

TOP PICK

50.360

John Manley

This is a momentum play. Breaking out to new highs.

2007-01-24

BUY

44.350

Good dividend yield at a little over 3%. Have had a good turnaround. Well diversified financial.

2006-08-09

TOP PICK

45.380

Jonathen Wellum, B. Comm, B. Sc

US banks have been out of favour in the last several months while short-term interest rates have been rising. Short-term interest-rate increases could be at the end. They also have a capitals market business which should continue to do well.

2006-04-28

DON'T BUY

39.410

Ross Healy

Both Cdn. and US banks are all up at all long-term valuation highs and without real supporting fair market value. If we do get into a bear market, J. P. Morgan’s underwriting business will go down too.

2005-12-13

TOP PICK

38.990

3.5% dividend. A relatively inexpensive bank at 11 X earnings. Continues to grow. Price to book ratio is about 1.25.

2005-12-02

PAST TOP PICK

33.450

(A Top Pick Apr 20/05. Down 3% excluding US currency exchange which would make it worse.) A great company. Great dividend yield. Banks are not in favour. In any case, it should do well long term.

2005-10-05

DON'T BUY

35.080

Gavin Graham

3.8% yield. Stock is off about 10% this year. Affected by what is happening in the US economy. Exposed top mortgage financing which is not doing particularily well. Also has a big exposure to the derivatives market. Would prefer Wells Fargo (GWF-N).

2005-04-26

TOP PICK

34.760

Have had a few problems. Very high dividend yield. A bargain price.

2005-04-20

BUY

33.770

John Sinkins, CFA

Generally likes the US financials. At a 52 week low. 4% dividend.

2005-04-04

BUY

37.650

Likes.

2004-11-30

BUY

38.950

A really good management team.

2004-11-10

TOP PICK

39.350

Lou Holland

Reasonable dividend yield and growth in cash flow. Management turn around makes it interesting.

2004-11-05

TOP PICK

38.740

Harvey Eisen

Trading at 10 X earnings and yielding 3.5%.

2004-10-15

PAST TOP PICK

39.450

(past top pick May, 10 2004. Up 12.5%) One of our core holdings, excellent company.

2004-09-23

PAST TOP PICK

39.800

(A Top Pick June 3/04. Up 7.5%.) Sold for a gain.

2004-09-10

PAST TOP PICK

37.330

(Past top pick June 3/04. Up 0.5%.) Likes financials. A large dividend payor.

2004-07-30

DON'T BUY

37.140

Gavin Graham

The major dealer in derivatives. If you're not comfortable with these, you should not be in the stock.

2004-07-29

TOP PICK

36.860

Bob Froehlich

Financials will move up even when rates are rising. Great dividend.

2004-07-09

TOP PICK

36.960

Had about a 17% correction. Has a differential model price of 25%.

2004-06-03

TOP PICK

36.080

Harvey Eisen

Banks are positioned in case of higher interest rates. A no brainer.

2004-05-21

TOP PICK

35.410

Almost 4% in dividend yield. Had a major correction. One of the world's leading banks.

2004-05-10

BUY

39.260

Jonathen Wellum, B. Comm, B. Sc

Market is in a panic over higher interest rates. Good opportunity.

2004-04-16

TOP PICK

41.530

Barbara Marcin

2004-04-02

DON'T BUY

40.310

Ross Healy

Beyond his fair market value calculation. An interesting company in that it dominates the derivative business globally, so should be doing fairly well. Exposure to derivatives in a volatile market can create losses.

2004-02-23

BUY

40.570

In merger or negotiations. Upside will depend on integration and cost savings. Trading at 12 X earnings and has a pretty good dividend.

2004-02-20

STRONG BUY

39.600

Larry Berman CFA, CMT, CTA

Had a good run. Good management. Good option. Great platform. Not expensive. Like the stock

2004-02-10

BUY

34.980

Paul O'Neil

Has had a dramatic turnaround. Still has some upside. A reasonable multiple.

2003-10-22

SHORT

34.220

David Chapman

Control 25% of the world's derivative markets. Has broken down through their trend line. Is shorting this stock.

2003-08-29

BUY

33.760

Brendan Caldwell

US financials have had a big bounce off the bottom and can move higher.

2003-06-09

BUY on WEAKNESS

30.900

A little bit over bought. On a pullback of $5 or so, would be a good buy.

2003-05-26

BUY on WEAKNESS

23.630

Larry Berman CFA, CMT, CTA

Good base pattern. Could outperform over the next few years.

2003-03-24

DON'T BUY

23.630

Peter Arender, CFA

Has downside risk. A lot of derivitives.

2003-03-24

WEAK BUY

22.400

David Baskin

Big player in derivitives which is a concern, but still a good bank.

2003-03-04

PAST TOP PICK

25.130

(Was a top pick on Dec 27. Up 4%) Stil likes.

2003-01-23

BUY

26.770

Brendan Caldwell

Negative issues are now largely behind them.

2003-01-08

TOP PICK

23.990

6% yield.

2002-12-27

WEAK BUY

25.020

Bob Stodgell

Have been hit hard the last couple of months. Good dividend.

2002-12-17

PAST TOP PICK

24.700

Ray Steele

(Was a top pick on Oct 15. Up 32%) Still likes. Good dividend.

2002-12-04

DON'T BUY

20.600

Will drop further.

2002-11-07

DON'T BUY

20.750

David Baskin

Better off with a Canadian bank such as BNS or Royal.

2002-10-31

TOP PICK

18.610

Ray Steele

Very good price. Some problems in loan losses seem to be quieter. 10 X earnings. 7% dividend.

2002-10-15

DON'T BUY

16.770

Risky. A large derivitive trader which have potential risk.

2002-10-07

DON'T BUY

18.640

Jonathen Wellum, B. Comm, B. Sc

US banks continue to have problems. Also, the dividend is at risk.

2002-09-24

DON'T BUY

20.180

Paul O'Neil

Expect some class action lawsuits.

2002-09-20

DON'T BUY

26.880

Has a lot of risks built into their business model.

2002-08-21

TOP PICK

24.860

Allan Dustin

Very cheap. 5.5% yield.

2002-08-16

DON'T BUY

26.380

Steven Wippersteg

Not a fan. Loan provisions are high. Prefers City Group.

2002-08-08

BUY

25.020

Laura Wallace

Trading at lower multiples than Canadian banks, but will suffer because of the Enron exposure.

2002-08-02

DON'T BUY

22.250