4th place: Nita, $88,062

Nita Sproule // 43 // Calgary

TFSA: $88,062

Investment strategy: Large-cap value opportunities

Nita Sproule, a 43-year-old stay-at-home mom and part-time IT worker in Calgary, remembers the 2008–09 collapse of the stock market like it was yesterday. “I saw value everywhere after the meltdown,” says Nita. “That’s when I started looking for value stocks.” Her first was AltaGas Ltd., (TSX: ALA), a natural gas, power and utility company. She bought 350 shares at $15: they were worth over $45 at press time. “I still have those in my account.”

In 2010, Nita bought AutoCanada (TSX: ACQ), a company that invests in car dealerships across the country. It was a MoneySense Top 200 pick, and Nita bought 1,200 shares at $5 each. She sold 800 at $22 in May 2013 for a 400% gain. The company was trading at $59 a share as we went to press. “In hindsight, I should have held on to all the shares and sold everything at its high of $90 this past June. But on the bright side, I still own 400 shares that are now almost 12 times higher than the price I bought them at.”

Nita owns six other stocks as well, including Canadian Oil Sands (TSX: COS) and Encana (TSX: ECA). Her most recent purchase was Teck Resources (TSX: TCK.B). “I’m generally a value investor, but I can be swayed over to growth,” says Nita. “At my core, I’m a buy-and-hold gal and look for long-term value.”

That’s the opposite of her husband Ian’s approach. “He’s always looking for that home run with his penny stocks, and I have about four times more in my TFSA now than he does,” says Nita, who hopes to use her TFSA money to build the couple’s dream house one day. “So I hope his TFSA catches up with mine soon. I’ll get my new house all that much quicker.”

The Great TFSA Race 2015

1st place

Rick & Maureen’s TFSAs: $1M+

2nd place

Shafik’s TFSA: $262,000

3rd place

Philippe’s TFSA: $100,021

4th place

Nita’s TFSA: $88,062

5th place

Milan’s TFSA: $86,300

6th place

Jin’s TFSA: $70,474