(August 21 – 11:50 ET) – Sharon Ranson, vice president of Canadian equities at TAL Fund Management, is talking up the future of financial services on the expectation that the rate tightening cycle has come to an end.
Speaking in Sonita Horvitch’s Buy & Sell column in the National Post this weekend, Ranson said, “[The soft landing of the U.S. economy] is positive for financial services stocks, which also tend to enjoy a seasonal rally in the fall.”
Ranson, who runs the Talvest Canadian Equity Value Fund, is expecting strong earnings and the end of interest rate hikes to boost the financial services sector. She particularly likes Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc., noting the value of the firm’s U.S.-based investment manager, and its efforts to cut costs and improve efficiency in its domestic insurance business. She also likes C.I. Fund Management Inc. for its sales leadership and cost-cutting effectiveness.
Apart from these two top picks, Ranson likes the banks in general.
-IE Staff