Never EVER Take Advice From A CIBC Discount Broker

I was all primed Monday to purchase shares in VIVHY (Vivendi) after reading Seth Klarman was an investor and reviewing the company's profile.  I tried placing an order online but was advised I had to call it in because it was an over-the-counter stock.  So the next day I call and speak to a friendly investment rep.  After warning me several times that because the stock was over-the-counter it carried extra risks, she finally agreed to take my order.  The account I was trading in was a registered account so next she questioned whether it was a qualified investment.  I believed it to be but she warned me if she filled the order and it wasn't a qualified investment then I would suffer penalties from the CRA.

I asked her if she could tell me that (isn't this something your broker should know???).  She tried to find out, putting me on hold for 10 minutes, and couldn't.  She helpfully told me several times that it 'probably' wasn't a qualified investment.  I found that a bit hard to believe but didn't want to take the chance.

She tried calling me back later that day.  I returned  her call but wound up speaking to another agent.  He confirmed the shares qualified for registered accounts and agreed to take my order.  I told him to place it at the market price (last trade was 16.58).

Then he gave me advice.  Never listen to a discount broker's advice!!!!!!

He said, well, these OTC stocks are thinly traded and the spreads can be a killer.  Better to not place the order at market.  I asked for the bid and ask but it wasn't available.  So I took his advice.  He suggested we put the limit in at the most recent price (16.58).

And from that point on the stock basically went straight up and I never got a fill.  The fact I work during the day made it hard for me to find time during the week to spend another 15 minutes trying to get the order filled.  And is 100,000 shares a day average volume  really 'thinly traded?'

So by the end of the week the shares were 18.86.  The highest price on the Monday after my call was 16.69.  So that's a 13% gain in a week I lost.

Thanks CIBC.