Investment Q&A

Q: Do you know of an ETF that specializes in industrial REITs? I think warehousing and distribution centres will continue to be a growth business. Would you agree?

Thank you.

Q: I have 2 American Equity mutual funds: BTG105 and MAW108 in an RRSP. I also own the ETF VFV. Performance wise BTG105 has lagged MAW108 and VFV in the last 6 months, 1 yr, 3 yr, 5yr, and 10 yr periods, so I will sell it. But should I replace it with MAW108 or VFV?

MAW108 appears to have outperformed VFV in the last 3 yr, 5yr and 10 yr periods, while VFV outperformed MAW108 in the last 1 yr.

Can you rank these 3, best to worst?

Would you replace BTG105 and MAW108 with VFV (and consolidate all 3 into 1), or keep both MAW108 and VFV for US equity exposure?

Thanks,
Paul

Q: My husband and I are in our early 60’s. We do not have a company income. The bulk of our assets are in my RRSP and LIRA accounts.
We are converting his RRSP to a RRIF and my LIRA to a LIF this year and waiting until I am 65 to convert my RRSP so we can take advantage of pension splitting.
We are conservative investors and just want to keep up with inflation.
Would you please suggest a few ETF’s for diversification and a few income ETF’s for our LIF, RRIF and my RRSP accounts. If there are stocks you would would like to include that would be appreciated. Thank you.

Q: I have been planning to invest in emerging markets. They might represent good valuations compared to the overall marketplace. A friend recommended FRDM as an ETF. Would you have any other suggestions as far as ETF go.
Thank you.

Q: Hello, I have the Mackenzie fund mfc244 that has done very well for me over the years and pays me a nice dividend every month. Is the a cdn etf that would be comparable in performance and payout but would have a much lower mer? Thanks

Q: Good Afternoon 5i,
After reading the recent edition of your ETF newsletter, I am inclining to invest a bit directly in China. I already hold VWO but, after reading the well reasoned and written article of yours, I may want a direct, China only etf. Especially now that Chinise stocks have been hammered. Although i am a long term investor, I thought I might capitalise on this fall of Chinese stocks. I think it is most prominent in the technology sector. For that reason I am leaning towards KWEB rather than MCHI. But, when I read the article I see that three of the top ten holdings in both are Tencent, Alibaba and Meitvan, with a similar weighting. Although 63 percent of Kweb and 44 percent of MCHI are the weights for the top ten holdings. That is a difference but it doesn't seem like a lot. So, it looks to me that I get a pretty good cut of the technology stocks in MCHI, as well as more safety. I am therefore leaning in that direction. But, I am tempted by a tech comeback, where I might make a bit more with KWEB. I know it comes down to personal decision. But, I have a bit of trouble understanding how big a difference there would be between the two in a tech comeback. So, I thought I would ask the professionals how you would look at this?
thanks for all your great work

Q: Hi Peter
please comment on the new MVPS Amplify Thematic All- Starts ETF
Thanks Ron

Q: My sister just pulled out of Questrade's Robo account to a self-directed account. She planned to buy basic 4 index ETFs in order to keep things simple (XIC for Canadian (30%), XUU for US (35%), VIU for Europe (20%), and VEE for emerging markets (15%)).

However, when the funds appeared, we found two thirds of it was in CAD and one third in USD. It seems inefficient to convert it back to CAD and buy those funds. So we're thinking of buying the US equivalent ETFs for XUU and perhaps VIU and VEE.

Can you give us the US equivalents of these funds. If you have any advice on our strategy here or the funds I've mention (eg. whether iShares or Vanguard is preferable in these areas) feel free to add your wisdom which I so much value as a member.

Q: What technology stocks or ETF would you suggest for a TFSA? It can be either Canadian or USA.
Thank you.

Q: Hi Peter, Ryan, and Team,

We need to increase our US exposure and wish to do this in our non-registered account. We're considering CUD and VGG as we'd rather use ETFs. (Our broker allows us to buy and sell CUD with zero commission, and not so with VGG, but this wouldn't be a 'make or break' reason for choosing one over the other). What would your recommendation be when considering tax efficiency, performance, volatility, and other important metrics? I do like that CUD has a relatively low weight in Technology, as our Canadian holdings like CSU, ENGH, KXS, TOI, etc. have done so well, and we're now overweight in this sector, thanks to 5i. :) Also, if there are any other US ETFs sold on the TSX that you think we should consider, we'd appreciate that info as well.

Thanks in advance for all your assistance and wise counsel.

Q: What is the difference between these two ETF's. Both have similar performance but ZFS.L pays a better yield. Thanks.

Q: I submitted a previous question about my sister converting her portfolio from a robo manager to self-directed. The last question dealt with the equities side (75%) while this one deals with the fixed income side (25%).

My suggestions to her all come from what I've gleaned from your website, so I'm really asking for confirmation and criticism here.

She wants 10% in gold so I've recommended 5% of Sprott's PHYS.TO and 5% of AEM.TO. We realize these are not fixed income but plan to use them as a long term hold (insurance) and not speculatively. For other 15%, I have suggested VAB.TO and XSB.TO.

Some of her funds are in USD so she could buy US or Global bonds if that would add safety. It seems that would complicate things unnecessarily, a main objective being to keep it simple.

Q: My 35 year old daughter would like to start investing 150$ a month in an ETF. She would like to set up an automatic monthly transfer to an institution , any suggestions? thanks, JEan

Q: Interesting question on PKO recently. Is there a comparable fund in Canada? Also, if I were to buy the fund, what factors might cause it to lose money? In other words, what danger signs should I watch for?

Q: Hi team,

What are your thoughts on the potential in emerging markets right now ? For new capital added to a portfolio between HXEM and XIT - Which would you view as better value right now? Both positions are core and added to over time.

Thanks

Q: I was just reading about thematic investing in ÈTF's and wanted to get your opinion on it? I have some BAC I want to sell and find something newin US, this is in RRSP so looking for higher dividend, would you have any recommendations?

Q: Peter,
We own ALB and like that it is domicliled in the US. Looking at the holdings of REMX would you have any concern that many of the biggest holdings are located in China re: with the recent Tech issues ? Thank you.

Q: Is this ETF a safe way to invest in the banking sector in a RRIF account for income and some growth and do you believe the strategy used by this ETF can outperform other ETF such as ZWB or ZEB. Can you suggest a couple of alternatives ETF that are more appropriate for a RRIF or do you feel it is better to just own the individual banks.

Q: Hi 5i team: This ETF holds bitcoins ?, or is based on some kind of paper contract to purchase bitcoins ?. How secure is this ETF compared to the actual bitcoin ?,
thanks for your good job

Q: Hi
The question by J Stephen piqued my interest I have been looking for ETFs that spin out dividends for an income stream. The dividend on this is very good which makes me wonder about risks. How would risks on this compare to a covered call ETF like ZWH . Thanks Keith