By Mike Sasges
The Vancouver Sun
“Prospectus” Column
Tuesday, November 18, 2003

Profit-taking banderilleros on Monday again gored the stock-market bull whose charge since March has enriched us all, either as entertainment or enterprise.

“A lot of managers are realizing that a 20-per-cent return is a good year, given what we had over the last couple years,” said one American wealth manager, Jack Holden of Fort Washington Investment Advisors in Cincinnati. “If you can lock in 20 per cent, that’s not a bad thing.”

The S&P 500 has climbed 20 per cent this year; the Dow Jones industrial average, 18 per cent; and the Nasdaq, 48 per cent.

Monday, the Nasdaq dropped 1.1 per cent; the Dow, 0.6 per cent and the S&P 500,0.65 per cent. In the last seven trading sessions, the big Wall Street indices have closed lower on six occasions.

The S&P/TSX composite index has risen 17 per cent this year and 25 per cent since March 12. Monday, it gained 0.18 per cent after spending all but the last 15 minutes of the trading day in the red.

Vancouver investment adviser Adrian Mastracci of KCM Wealth Management thinks the salvation of the long-suffering equity owner is at hand. He said in an email on Monday that investors whose exposure to equities is heavy should consider this month’s prices as an opportunity to diversify their portfolios into bonds and cash instruments.

“We have had a mini bull-market since the spring of 2003. This may be an opportunity for these investors to rebalance their equity overweight portfolios closer to their appropriate investor profiles. Especially if the portfolio is still wearing some selections who are sporting losses.”

Technology stocks were liquidation leaders on Monday.

The S&P/TSX information-technology sub-index dropped 1.2 per cent. It has gained 56 per cent this year, best advance among the 13 industry sub-indices.

The S&P 500 IT sub-index declined two per cent. It has gained 41 per cent this year, best advance among the 10 industry sub-indices.

Intel Corp. led the New York decline. The world’s No. 1 semiconductor maker declined 57 cents to $32.23. Its 52-week range is $14.88-$34.51.

Nortel Networks Corp. led the Toronto decline. Canada’s biggest supplier of telecommunications equipment dropped 16 cents to $5.31. Its 52-week range is $2.14-$6.50.

“Some sectors, namely technology, are disgustingly expensive,” Vancouver’s Murray Leith told Bloomberg News.

NOTE: The information provided above is intended for general informational purposes only. It does not constitute advice for anyone's specific situation. Everyone should always first consult directly with their advisors to determine the appropriateness of any information contained above before taking any action. KCM Wealth Management Inc. assumes no responsibility for any loss or damage arising from the use of, or reliance upon the above information.