Rebecca Teltscher, Portfolio Manager, Newhaven Asset Management
Focus: Canadian Dividend Stocks
Top picks: Aecon, Arc Resources, Savaria
MARKET OUTLOOK:
Stock markets in both the United States and Canada continue to push to record highs, defying a backdrop of persistent economic and geopolitical risks. In the U.S., a government shutdown and broader fiscal uncertainty have done little to dampen investor sentiment. Equity markets are showing no signs of slowing, driven by strong momentum in technology and growth sectors. However, valuations are stretched to historic levels, fueling concerns that current price levels may not be sustainable in the long term. This environment has left many investors questioning whether markets are being driven more by liquidity and sentiment rather than underlying fundamentals.
In Canada, the market rally has been influenced primarily by the strength of gold prices and the countries heavy weighting in the materials sector. While this has helped lift Canadian equities to higher ground, a surge in gold prices is often predicated on heightened geopolitical risk and economic uncertainty.
Given the sense that valuations are increasingly disconnected from fundamentals, we feel that a cautious approach seems warranted. We believe there is more relative value in traditional dividend-paying conservative Canadian stocks, which provide both income stability and a margin of safety in uncertain times. The disciplined positioning balances participation in the upside while acknowledging that current conditions carry elevated risk.
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TOP PICKS:
Aecon (ARE TSX)
Aecon is a Canadian construction and infrastructure developer in both the private and public sector. As governments continue to spend money to stimulate growth, we expect public sector demand growth to rise.
We like the defensiveness of Aecon’s underlying business segments with almost half of revenue coming from utilities and nuclear projects. Many of Aecon’s projects also provide ongoing operations and maintenance post construction offering recurring stable revenue. While legacy fixed-price contracts continue to plague the stock price, we expect these issues to be resolved by early 2026 and the company to focus on growth with their record backlog and recent U.S. industrial acquisitions.
Arc Resources (ARC TSX)
With recent commodity price weakness coupled with startup issues at the Attachie project, Arc’s stock price has experienced short term weakness. We believe this is a good long term opportunity to add to our position as Arc is a premium natural gas producer with quality assets and a strong management team trading at a decent valuation.
With a solid balance sheet, production flexibility and drilling inventory of over 15 years, ARC resources continues to be one of our favorite companies in the portfolio.
Savaria (SIS TSX)
Savaria is a North American leader in the accessibility industry benefiting from long-term aging demographics, a shortage of healthcare workers, and a desire to age at home as long as possible.
Through its Savaria One initiative, we saw significant improvements in growth, margins and efficiency throughout most of 2024. The stock saw a set back in 2025 as the threat of tariffs superseded any internal improvements.
| Disclosure: | Personal | Family | Portfolio/Fund |
|---|---|---|---|
| ARE TSX | Y | Y | Y |
| ARX TSX | Y | Y | Y |
| SIS TSX | Y | Y | Y |
PAST PICKS: SEPTEMBER 5, 2025
Brookfield Renewable Partners (BEP.UN TSX)
Then: $24.91
Now: $27.14
Return: 9%
Total Return: 15%
TC Energy (TRP TSX)
Then: $63.23
Now: $76.20
Return: 32%
Total Return: 40%
Telus (T TSX)
Then: $22.71
Now: $21.56
Return: -5%
Total Return: 4%
Total Return Average: 20%
| Disclosure: | Personal | Family | Portfolio/Fund |
|---|---|---|---|
| BEP.UN TSX | Y | Y | Y |
| TRP TSX | Y | Y | Y |
| T TSX | Y | Y | Y |
