Brianne Gardner, senior wealth advisor and co-founder of Velocity Investment Partners at Raymond James Ltd.The Globe and Mail
Money manager Brianne Gardner expects stock markets to continue rising heading into the new year, but she’s still cautious that a correction could trip up investors in the weeks ahead.
“Pullbacks in the short term will be part of the journey,” says Ms. Gardner, senior wealth advisor and co-founder of Velocity Investment Partners at Raymond James Ltd. in Toronto and Vancouver, who oversees about $300-million in client assets.
Ms. Gardner points to cooling inflation and relatively strong corporate earnings as reasons to be bullish on the markets, despite valuations that appear expensive.
She expects technology to remain a long-term market driver amid the rapid acceleration of artificial intelligence (AI). That said, Ms. Gardner warns stocks that have benefited greatly from the AI boom face higher expectations, which could leave them more vulnerable to a market correction. She believes investors will begin to rotate into less expensive, more “durable” sectors, such as financials, industrials and health care.
Her firm’s growth-focused portfolio, which includes about 75 per cent equities and 25 per cent fixed income, including cash, has returned 12.4 per cent year-to-date and 13.8 per cent over the past 12 months. Its three-year annualized return is 17.1 per cent, and its five-year annualized return is 15.6 per cent. All data are based on total returns, net of fees, as of Nov. 24..
Ms. Gardner’s top five holdings today, with weightings ranging between 3 and 6 per cent, include Microsoft Corp. MSFT-Q, Amazon.com Inc. AMZN-Q, Royal Bank RY-T, CI Gold Bullion Fund ETF VALT-T and Nvidia Corp. NVDA-Q.
The Globe spoke with Ms. Gardner recently about what she’s been buying and selling:
Name three stocks you own today and why.
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp WPM-T, the Vancouver-based gold and silver metals streaming company, is a stock we started buying in 2022 at an average price of $50 a share and added again in 2023 at around $57. We actively trim and add the stock as metals move, and today we’re sitting on a gain of more than 150 per cent on our position.
We think the materials sector will continue to do well, and we see Wheaton as one of the cleanest ways to gain exposure to gold and silver. What we like about it, as a streaming company, is that it avoids the cost overruns, labour issues and operational risks that traditional miners face.
The company also benefits from gold prices remaining strong, supported by central banks steadily increasing their reserves, especially in India and China, and by investors seeking stability amid a more uncertain global backdrop.
We also have a positive outlook for gold, as we expect a softer U.S. dollar and falling interest rates to be major tailwinds for gold prices through 2026. We believe the company is well-positioned to benefit, given that it has no debt, high margins, and predictable cash flow, which means it could increase its dividend or acquire new streams without boosting production.
Constellation Energy Corp. CEG-Q, the Baltimore-based energy company, is a stock we added in March of this year at US$212 a share. We took some gains in May at US$291 and today the stock is trading at around US$350.
Constellation is the largest producer of clean power in the U.S., generating about 10 per cent of America’s carbon-free electricity and serving more than 16 million customers. Its energy sources include nuclear, wind, solar, natural gas and hydroelectric assets.
We see a lot of upside for this stock given the growth in AI data centres, electric vehicles and new industrial loads that are pushing U.S. electricity demand higher than we’ve seen in decades.
We like that its energy sources include nuclear power, which is more reliable than wind and solar. Constellation offers investors stable utility cash flow with structural growth tied to AI and electrification – a rare combination in the sector.
Boston Scientific Corp. BSX-N, the Marlborough, Mass.-based medical device company, is a stock we bought in mid-September for about US$98 a share. The health care sector has been lagging, but we see that as a huge opportunity as investors look to rotate into other sectors. We think this company is one that more investors will start to notice.
Boston Scientific makes devices that help fix heart problems and reduce chronic pain without major surgery, offering patients faster, safer recovery options. It’s also quickly becoming a leader in treating irregular heartbeats with its Farapulse system, which has been used on more than 500,000 patients, far ahead of any competitor.
It’s also improving some of its devices that help to prevent strokes in people with irregular heartbeats. Doctors are choosing these solutions more often because the procedures are quicker, less invasive, and help patients return to normal life faster, boosting the company’s market share.
The company offers steady growth, backed by rising demand for less-invasive treatments and a strong pipeline of next-generation devices for next year and beyond.
Name a stock you’ve sold recently.
BlackRock Inc. BLK-N, the world’s largest asset manager, is a stock we trimmed in August at US$1,147 a share, locking in a 38-per-cent gain. We sold it purely for valuation reasons, not because our view on the company changed.
We think the long-term story is still intact. Investors continue shifting toward exchange-traded funds, and BlackRock’s iShares platform, with more than US$3-trillion in assets, remains the clear leader.
The company’s Aladdin platform generated US$1.6-billion in revenue last year and is used by hundreds of institutions, creating steady, high-margin cash flow.
We trimmed for discipline, but BlackRock remains a core name, and we would look to add again on a pullback given its scale, stability and strong growth runway.
This interview has been edited and condensed.