skip to content
  1. Home
  2. >
  3. Investment Q&A
You can view 3 more answers this month. Sign up for a free trial for unlimited access.

Investment Q&A

Not investment advice or solicitation to buy/sell securities. Do your own due diligence and/or consult an advisor.

Q: This has a 4% weighting, and I have held it mostly for income purposes since retirement in 2018. I have never been really compelled to be overly worried about its dividend payouts at different levels, quarterly. However, the last payout was very low at 0.0957. Can you see why it was such a drop, and if it indicates a change in their payout plans? As always, thanks for your fine service.
Read Answer Asked by James on May 05, 2026
Q: Hello 5i

Like others have mentioned, I have also learned and profited from following 5i and I thank you. I usually listen especially closely when you speak about your own strategies. In that regard I was intrigued by an answer you gave concerning your own portfolio size i.e. 15 stocks and 3 covered call etf’s. It raised several questions. I appreciate your willingness to talk about your own holdings, and this encourages me to ask the following questions. If you feel, however, that they are too personal for a public forum I certainly understand. If you feel comfortable answering, though, I would like to get more detailed information:

1.First is that there seems to be no mention of fixed income. I assume that you don’t hold any and further assume that the reason for this is that if one has enough funds one can withstand a sizable meltdown of the stock market without too much concern. I ask this because I am always wavering about whether to hold fixed income.
2. I notice that you don’t mention any vanilla flavoured etf’s, such as SPY or QQQ. Does this mean that you see the covered call etf’s as a suit iable substitute for them? The question I am getting at here is whether they would be good for all seasons or simply in times like this?
3. Do you now use these covered call etf’s as an easier way to make money on covered calls than selling calls on individual stocks?
4. If you hold 15 stocks as well as three etf’s, what kind of percentage might each one represent and the etf’s?
5. I am planning to use this strategy, But, for the moment I need to buy on margin, Canadian margin has a lower interest rate than US. So I was looking at Hamilton’s QMAX.It looks similar but I wondered what you thought.
thanks
Read Answer Asked by joseph on May 05, 2026
Q: My daughter has some holdings that need to be reviewed. What are your thoughts on dividing her capital between 8-10 ETFs that cover the US, CDN and the rest? Could you provide a list of your favs? Thanks again for your sage advice.
Read Answer Asked by Robert on May 05, 2026
Q: It was mentioned that these ETFs use a "synthetic call option strategy". I don't know what that is. Can you explain in more detail

I don't like to own something I don't understand as I wouldn't know when to sell it. What would be a trigger to sell these ETFs?


Can you also explain the risks associated with owning something like this. Is the high yield (11%) a red flag?

And which account (Non-registered, TFSA, RRSP) are these best held in.
Read Answer Asked by Paul on May 04, 2026
Q: I own only 1 ETF (XQQ @ 10% of my portfolio). I'm looking to move to owning 3-5 ETFs to cover the broad market and then pick away at a few individual stocks for some extra growth.

Which few ETFs would you recommend to hold for 'adequate' and 'broad' market coverage. Note that I'm looking to hold 40-60% of my portfolio in these ETFs.
Read Answer Asked by Cameron on May 04, 2026
Q: If you were to create a portfolio of USA stocks or International ETFS for lets say a 68 year old person with $$1 million, what would buy for growth and safety protection in todays market. % would be helpful.
Thanks Again
Read Answer Asked by eugene on May 04, 2026
Q: Thanks Garth
My T.D. Waterhouse account only shows my profit/loss position without taking into account the dividends paid into my account . Could 5i tell me my total profit/loss including dividends for the following purchases of GDXY . A total number is fine as of whatever date you select..... I just want to know if I'm winning or losing and how much with this investment ..... Thanks for your terrific service .....

Purchase dates and prices { in U.S. dollars } are the following

200 shares on Mar. 28/25 for $15.90 per share

200 shares on May 2/25 for $15.95 per share

200 shares on June 9/25 for $15.52 per share

200 shares on Aug. 1/25 for 14.55 per share
Read Answer Asked by Garth on May 01, 2026
Q: Please advise which fees should I look on ETF ie Management or MER fees. Ex: BMO ETF website FCCM shows .10 as management fees and .38 on MER fees or total fees ( Management + MER)

When I look at the charts does it includes dividends or price only. Is there a website where we have option to exclude / include dividends.

Thanks for the great service.
Read Answer Asked by Hector on May 01, 2026
Q: What would your top 3 ETFs be, that cover
1.domestic,
2.international,
3.trending stocks,
that could be held in long term accounts to buffer individual stock volatility and provide peace of mind ?
Read Answer Asked by Catherine on May 01, 2026
Q: I asked a question about these holding in February. I noted on CNBC this morning that they had an article entitled "Jamie Dimon warns of ‘some kind of bond crisis’ ahead as global debt risks build".

If we do get some form of Bond crisis/alert what will be the impact on these 3 ETF's? I have held them for several years and I'm up maybe 5% overall over that time. Probably 2% on an annualized basis. In total, they represent about 14% of my holdings. Given I've held them so long I am fearful I would be selling just as they could possibly turn around. Any thoughts on the outlook for the balance of 2026 for these 3? Factoring in all the geopolitical/debt issues in the world, If you owned them would you be a seller? Would you sell all of them or simply reduce by XX% across the board. If selling, in what order would you sell and why?
Read Answer Asked by Randy on April 30, 2026
Q: Does the ETF ZWB with its covered call structure have an advantage if banks hold flat or very slow growth? Wondering if trimming my straight Canadian bank stocks and rotating to ZWB should present an advantage.

Am I missing something?
Read Answer Asked by Marilou on April 30, 2026
Q: Best 3 covered call ETFs in a non registered account and tp 3 in an RSP
Read Answer Asked by Terry on April 30, 2026
Q: Can you please give me the names of ETF's that just include the big five on the Nasdaq.
Thanks you very much for your help.
Dorothy
Read Answer Asked by Dorothy on April 30, 2026
Q: I owned IWMY and sold for tax loss in December, and am considering buying it back. I'm curious why when I look at the chart on IWMY's 5i profile, it shows that a year ago the price was $15,54, so an increase in value to today's price, but when I look at the same position on my RBC DI site, I see 23.74 as the price a year ago, decreasing to today's price. It's a considerably different picture. Thanks!
Read Answer Asked by Kim on April 29, 2026
Q: Hi Peter & Team,

In our combined portfolio, we own the following International ETFs: ZEM, VEF, VA, and VIDY. Please list which ones to keep if you think there’s too much overlap.

As always, many thanks for your perspective.
Read Answer Asked by Jerry on April 29, 2026