By Angela Harmantas
It’s October 1st, which means it’s not only a new month but it’s the start of a new quarter. Today on Before the Bell we take a look back at one of the most volatile and underperforming quarters in recent years, and offer a few insights into what we might expect in Q4 2015. Also, Peter Hodson and the 5i Research team give us 3 stocks they like, and we deep dive into one organic food stock that may just have enough to separate itself from its competitors and start a rally – here’s what you need to know today:
The beginning of Q4 2015 is probably welcome news to investors, who by and large experienced their worst quarter in years these past few months: China’s economy slowed, Greece threatened to collapse the Eurozone, the US Federal Reserve toyed with the idea of raising interest rates and here in Canada the dollar fell to some of its lowest levels of the decade. So, yes, happy October. Yesterday the North American markets ended on a note of positivity for the upcoming quarter, but this month has been a notoriously tumultuous period for stocks in history (Black October, anyone?). And there are still a number of factors that could come into play over the next month or so that may influence markets one way or another, from US employment figures and data on job creation to the looming possibility of a US interest rate hike and closer to home, a federal election. As we head into the final quarter of 2015 it’s really anyone’s guess how the markets will behave.
I know you already caught my interview with Peter Hodson (hint, hint). Peter is the founder of 5i Research, a company that offers conflict-free research on investments. Today on SmallCapPower the team at 5i give us 3 small cap stocks that they like, with lots of cash that gives the companies a fair degree of financial flexibility. These are names that Peter and his team think have been victims of the overall market meltdown but offer exciting prospects for investors. They even refer to one particular stock as an “investor’s dream,” so it’s worth a look for that alone.
Continuing the in-depth look at particular stocks today, Gravitas Financial’s Alex Cutulenco looks at an organic food company whose share price may start to shine very soon. SunOpta Inc.’s share price has been weak since August and has underperformed the S&P/TSX Composite by 39%. Alex takes on the questions that investors have about SunOpta’s performance and offers his insights into when the stock may turn around. It’s certainly tapped into the North American sentiment of healthier living, but does it have enough to separate itself from the myriad other companies who have as well?
Do you have a burning question you’d like answered by an investment expert or analyst? Let me know and I can post the answer here in the blog. Contact me by email at angela@smallcappower.com or on Twitter: @aharmantas.
Interested in previous Before the Bell blogs? 
