The world is on sale

The first rule of investing is to buy low and sell high. With a mantra of “crisis creates opportunity”, now’s the time to buy low, according to David Winters, CEO of Wintergreen Advisors.

“Buying good businesses, with good management, at a low price, is a compelling investment philosophy; we call that the trifecta,” he says. “The philosophy today is to look for companies on a global basis. There are a lot of opportunities because equities are very much out of favour. There are compelling choices for the long-term equity investor.”

The long-standing arguments in favour of global diversification—the concentrated nature of the small Canadian market—are now joined by a more compelling reason: The relative strength of the loonie and global risk aversion means Canadian can get a lot more bang for their investment buck.

“Stocks have gotten pummeled in the U.S.,” he points out. “Some of the European multinationals are very good. The world abounds with opportunities. If you are willing to look beyond the headlines and look at how much you get for what you pay, the world is on sale.”

He admits that it is difficult to predict the future, so his firm aims to identify “ultimate truths”—people want comfort in tough times, an ultimate truth that helped identify Nestle as a long-term investment.

“We think this is a great time. We’re looking forward to 2012 and the years beyond. This is a period of time when people should be courageous. Buying equities when people are afraid has the potential to create wealth over time.”

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.