Barry Schwartz, President & CIO, Baskin Wealth Management
Focus: North American Large Cap Stocks
Top picks: Microsoft, MSCI, Netflix
MARKET OUTLOOK:
Markets are twitchy to start 2026 as record levels on the indices come with high expectations. As we have seen, even the slightest miss or worry is being nitpicked by the market and incredible results are being ignored.
We are bullish for 2026 given the strong earnings outlook for S&P 500 companies, tame inflation numbers, and the potential for more rate cuts, especially in the U.S.
We have no interest in chasing momentum and continue to favour high quality businesses whose fundamentals are improving. We think once macro issues calm down, investors will come to their senses and will look to own durable franchises.
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TOP PICKS:
Microsoft (MSFT NASD)
Shares fell 10 per cent after reporting strong earnings due to a slight miss on their Azure business (sales up 39 per cent). This miss was attributed capacity shortages rather than demand issue, while continuing to sell AI-features to their large enterprise customer base. Management expects margins to expand this year, implying healthy returns on their capex
MSCI (MSCI NYSE)
Had a strong year with revenues up 10 per cent. Efforts to diversify their customer base away from mutual fund managers is going well, while U.S. uncertainty is leading to strong inflows into MSCI’s international ETFs. The management took advantage of the share price weakness to repurchase nearly five per cent of shares in 2025
Netflix (NFLX NASD)
The market remains focused on the Warner Bros deal, but Netflix is still growing subscribers (up eight per cent in 2025) and adding new content (Sony movies, podcasts, video games). In 2026, Netflix expects to grow sales by 13 per cent with ad revenues doubling and 20 per cent profit growth
| DISCLOSURE | PERSONAL | FAMILY | PORTFOLIO/FUND |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSFT NASD | Y | Y | Y |
| MSCI NYSE | Y | N | Y |
| NFLX NASD | Y | Y | Y |
PAST PICKS: MARCH 3, 2025
META (META NASD)
Then: US$655.05
Now: US$710.05
Return: 8%
Total Return: 9%
COPART (CPRT NASD)
Then: US$54.65
Now: US$40.09
Return: -27%
Total Return: -27%
LIVE NATION ENTERTAINMENT (LYV NYSE)
Then: US$142.26
Now: US$145.78
Return: 2%
Total Return: 2%
Total Return Average: -5%
| DISCLOSURE | PERSONAL | FAMILY | PORTFOLIO/FUND |
|---|---|---|---|
| META NASD | Y | Y | Y |
| CPRT NASD | Y | N | Y |
| LYV NYSE | Y | Y | Y |
