Q: Afternoon Troops. I own several pipelines, telecom and utilities stocks. I also own a decent sized position in ZWU. Is it worthwhile to consider rolling everything in the ZWU or is there an advantage in holding both the ETF and the individual stocks? Cheers.
5i Research Answer:
It really depends on the stocks. Individual stocks will have both more potential and more risk than a diversified ETF. One advantage of stocks is that losers can be sold to manage tax burden. Of course there is no management fee on stocks (ZWU is 0.71%). If one owns 5 to 6 stocks in the sector we do not think an ETF will help much more. But it depends on risk profile and how many individual positions an investor wants to manage.
Authors of this answer, directors, partners and/or officers of 5i Research and/or affiliated companies have a financial or other interest in ZWU.