And then, there were 30. Rounding out our Canadian stocks universe

By Will Ashworth

Today’s piece is the final of 10 installments selecting 30 TSX and TSX Venture stocks I’ll cover over the next few months. 

The three for today’s installment are from the Barrantagh Small Cap Canadian Equity Fund. Barrantagh was founded by long-time portfolio manager Wally Kusters in 2002. 

This particular fund has nearly $100 million in net assets. As the fund profile states, it looks to own 20 to 40 small-cap Canadian stocks with an average market cap of less than $2 billion at the time of purchase and a dividend yield greater than 1%.  

With these three selections, I now have 30 Canadian small and mid-cap stocks to cover. None of the names on my list are perfect — they all have warts — but they are all investable for the long haul. 

My plan for the first 30 articles of the next leg of our journey to cover some of the things I like about each of the names on my list. The second 30 articles will address what concerns me about each business. 

The passing of time will undoubtedly affect the relevance of some of these pros and cons. I plan to comment on the changes with an unscheduled post when this happens. The 60 articles will likely stretch into late May due to vacation time, unplanned events, etc.  (Full disclosure: The Stanley Cup playoffs are scheduled to begin in April 2025, which could affect things.)

I hope to bring you along on my journey to rediscover Canadian stocks, something I’ve ignored for the past few years of my professional writing career. 

Happy Investing.

Cargojet (CJT)

Cargojet (TSX:CJT) is one of the fund’s top 10 holdings with a 4.1% weighting. It represents the fourth and final industrials stock in the Canadian SMID-Cap 30. 

The company provides air cargo services to 16 Canadian cities, the U.S., the U.K., and other parts of Europe and Asia. It owned 36 Boeing 757 and 767 cargo aircraft and leased five Boeing 767 cargo aircraft, as of Dec. 31, 2023. 

It has a market cap of $1.8 billion. Its shares have not done well in recent years, up just 13% over the past five years through Dec. 9. Year-to-date, it is down a little more than 1%, considerably less than the S&P/TSX Composite Index, up more than 23% in 2024. 

Thanks to falling interest rates and controlled inflation, the company is optimistic about the domestic cargo market improving in 2025. It is the backbone of overnight e-commerce shipments in Canada. 

I don’t see this position going away anytime soon.

Definity Financial (DFY) 

Definity Financial (TSX:DFY) is the fifth financial services stock in the Canadian SMID-Cap 30, making the sector the largest weighting at 16.7%. It has a market cap of $6.97 billion, which puts it firmly in the mid-cap camp.

Definity is one of Canada’s largest property and casualty insurance companies. Its brands include Economical Insurance and Sonnet Insurance. It was previously the Economical Mutual Insurance Co. until it went public in November 2021, raising $1.4 billion by selling 63.6 million shares at $22. 

At its IPO, it had 4.6% of the Canadian property and casualty market. It is now the sixth-largest P&C company in the country and continues to grow its gross written premiums by double digits annually.   

Jamieson Wellness (JWEL) 

Jamieson Wellness (TSX:JWEL) is the fourth and final consumer defensive stock in the Canadian SMID-Cap 30. It is the sixth-largest holding in the Barrantagh fund, weighted at 4.3%, and has a market cap of $1.52 billion. 

It’s been more than seven years since the company went public in July 2017 at $15.75 a share. If you bought shares in the IPO, you’ve more than doubled your money. They’re up 52% since hitting a 52-week low of $23.98 in March. 

While the company is best known for its Jamieson line of multivitamins and supplements, it has several other brands targeting specific health and wellness areas. 

Jamieson generates 56% of its revenues in Canada, 23% in the U.S., 15% in China, and 6% from the rest of the world. 

Paying a 2.3% yield at current levels, it is a nice combination of income and capital appreciation. 

Until next time.

Disclaimer: The author did not hold a position in any of the securities mentioned above. The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. Always conduct your own research or consult with a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Will Ashworth is currently ranked 205 out of 30,470 financial bloggers analyzed by TipRanks, with a 16.6% return on his buy and sell ratings. He is one of the founding contributors to this newsletter. 

Will has written about investments full-time since 2008. Publications where he’s appeared include InvestorPlace, The Motley Fool Canada, Investopedia, Kiplinger, and several others in both the U.S. and Canada. He particularly enjoys creating model portfolios that stand the test of time. He lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia.