Kash Pashootan, CEO and chief investment officer at First Avenue Investment Counsel
Focus: North American dividend stocks and portfolio construction

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MARKET OUTLOOK

"There's a tug-of-war that's taking place depending on which day you tune in to your Twitter account and the news channels, but in the short term, we've seen Trump's team backing off. I think that's going to be the main driver in the coming months anyways. The markets will be focused on what these tariffs and this back-and-forth from a geopolitical perspective will mean to businesses and economies moving forward compared to the usual, which is looking more at the fundamentals. I think the fundamentals will be secondary in the short term to whats going on out there."

TOP PICKS

FIRST AMERICAN FINANCIAL GROUP (FAF.N)

Pullback is overdone and has created a buying opportunity.

CRACKER BARREL OLD COUNTRY STOCK (CBRL.N)

100 per cent U.S. domestic revenue. Steady store growth and increasing returns to shareholders should continue to help Cracker Barrelstock move higher.

COLUMBIA BANKING SYSTEMS INC (COLB.N)

100 per cent U.S. domestic revenue. There's currently favourable regional banking environment, with deregulation and higher interest rates.

PAST PICKS: MARCH 14, 2017

DSW INC (DSW.N)

• Then: $20.01
• Now: $26.42
• Return: 32%
• Total return: 40%

NFI GROUP (NFI.TO)

• Then: $43.46
• Now: $48.50
• Return: 12%
• Total return: 15%

APPLE (AAPL.O)

• Then: $138.99
• Now: $187.16
• Return: 35%
• Total return: 37%

Total return average: 31%