On February 28, 2012, SNC-Lavalin (now AtkinsRéalis) dropped 20%. That day, the Financial Post noted I "was the only analyst on Bay Street without a buy recommendation on SNC" going into that week—one of fifteen analysts covering the stock. I was at Macquarie Capital Markets at the time and wasn't trying to predict a scandal. The numbers simply didn't support the company's valuation.

That is the discipline underneath everything I do: see the world as it is, not as I want it to be. Most investing mistakes are wishes dressed up as analysis: the company has a story, the market has a mood, and investors have high hopes for their positions. But none of that changes what the company's cash flows are actually worth. I work from the evidence. I say what it shows even when it's unwelcome, and when it turns against me, I act on it rather than argue with it. Today, I'm a discretionary portfolio manager, and my own money is invested in the same strategies I run for clients. When markets are hard, I feel it in my own account. When a thesis works, we benefit together. I'll tell you what I own, why I own it, and what would change my mind.

How I invest: I run a quantitative model across thousands of North American stocks and dozens of international markets. I flag companies trading near the bottom of their historical valuation range, then read the filings to find out why. I look for a cheap price with a reason for the fundamentals to turn: a commodity at trough prices, a balance sheet being repaired, an insider putting up his own money. Before I buy, I write down the risks and what would make me sell. I sell when the risk-adjusted return is gone, not because the stock has gone up. I've posted these decisions publicly for years—see the time-stamped entries below.

Before managing money, I spent more than fifteen years as an equity analyst at National Bank Financial, Macquarie and others, then advised clients at Edward Jones and Foster & Associates. I'm now a portfolio manager with Designed Securities in Canada and registered in the U.S. through Designed Wealth USA, so I can work with clients on both sides of the border. I'm licensed for equities, derivatives and insurance, so I can plan around your whole financial life, not one account.

On weekends, I'm a gigging musician with a passion for '80s alternative (The Cure, Duran Duran, The Police, Tears for Fears and The Smiths).

Want a second opinion on your portfolio? Send me a message. I'll tell you, in plain language, what I'd keep, what I'd change and why. No pitch, no obligation, no charge.