Investment Q&A

Q: 250 k portfolio in a taxable account (tfsa and rrsp maxed out). currently have HXT (54k), VFV (77k), XEF(55K), and 65 k in cash. Want to add fixed income to the portfolio - currently looking at ZDB, HBB or GIC ladder - what etf should i be looking at adding or any other suggestions.
Thanks -you
Nina

Q: Good morning Peter and Team,

Thanks for answering my previous RESP question. In reviewing iTrade's commission-free ETFs, I note that they have a new bond offering HAF (although it appears to be a bit of a 'hybrid').

There have been no questions yet about this ETF, and I'd really appreciate your take. Interestingly, the sub-advisor is Fiera and I know that you think highly of them.

Thanks in advance!

Q: What are your thoughts on ZDI as a core holding in an RRSP for dividend income?

Thank You,

Joe

Q: Jim Rogers is calling for the worst bear market ever. In a recent interview, he said the following:

“When we have the bear market, a lot of people are going to find that, ‘Oh my God, I own an ETF, and they collapsed. It went down more than anything else.’ And the reason it will go down more than anything else is because that’s what everybody owns…”

“… If somebody can just take the time to focus on the stocks that are not in the ETFs, there must be fabulous opportunities in those stocks because they’re ignored… Some of them have got to be doing very, very well. And nobody’s buying them, because only the ETFs buy stocks.”

I’m curious to know what you think of these comments. Is he right that ETFs are bound to fall much more than stocks? Are some more at risk of a plunge than others? Also, if “ignored stocks” are better investments than the ones in ETFs, can you name a few examples? Thanks.

Q: I would like to invest in US banks. Can you recommend a USD bank ETF?

Q: Hi Peter and Team,

In our grandchildren's RESP (ages 15 and 16) I have been using accumulated dividends to 'top up' the above ETFs, as I'm able to do so commission-free through Scotia iTrade. The portfolio is balanced, with the majority of holdings from the 5i portfolios. Can you suggest a strategy as to which ETF(s) I should invest this extra cash at any given time? Since the 16-year-old is in grade eleven, and the 15-year-old is in grade ten, is it safer to use CLF and/or CBO, even though their charts don't look so great, as compared to CDZ and CUD?

Thanks in advance for your valued advice.

Q: I refer Richard's question of Sept.19th
Would this work for a RRSP as well, combined my wife I have $877,000. Sell our stocks and buy equal amounts of these etf'e.
This would give us a nice income should we take it out.
Also have a larger amount in cash and TSFA based on your portfolios.
We are 60 and also have pensions and no debt
Thank you and have a great weekend.
Mike

Q: If I was to invest 25K, I would receive approx $105/Mn dividend but the cost would be .72% or $180/Mn. Are my calculations correct and if they are, why would I invest in something that costs me more than I'm paid?

Q: Good day, I would like to know if you think RPD(RBC Quant European Dividend Leaders) would be a good choice for European exposure, would there be, in your opinion, a better choice (I also look at VE).
Regards

Q: I am interested in the ZWH or ZWH.U for a registered account. Is effectively the only real difference in these 2 the fact that distributions are paid out and converted to CAD for ZWH whereas the distributions for ZWH.U are paid in USD? While ZWH is "held" in CAD it would be fully impacted by FX movements. Thanks

Q: Hi,

Currently holding VCE which basically replicates the tsx60. Although I have a few select stocks from your growth portfolio, would like to add a more broad diversification on small cap. I would liked your opinion on either XCS or XMD that would compliment. Or would you have a different cnd small cap etc

Thanks

Q: Are covered call ETF's okay to put in a non registered account vs TFSA & RRSP from a tax perspective vs regular dividend etfs? Does this make things more complicated when filing?
Also what is the opinion of 5i regarding PDF?

Thank you!

Q: I would like to deploy cash held in my Canadian $ brokerage account on the basis that the Canadian dollar will decline in value in relation to the US dollar. I am considering the purchase of ZTS BMO Short Term US Treasury Bond Index. My premise is that this ETF should be very stable in the value of its holdings but will directly reflect changes in the CDN/US $ ratio. Is this correct?

Other than paying the high bank exchange spread or deploying a Norbert’s Gambit transaction, is there a better way to institute this idea? Is ZTS a suitable ETF for this purpose?
Thanks
David

Q: I am a fan of covered calls. I am retired and like the income, tax treatment and downside protection. In addition I like the diversity an ETF brings.
I hold all the above but am looking for more diversity. Are there equivalent US offerings? Does BMO have competing products that are more diverse?
Thanks

Q: Ihave never owned etf's and I am not sure how safe they are as investments in a downturn. I think I should start etf's in my RRSP's versus individual stocks as I will need to start withdrawing from a rrif in two years. Where can I get information on what etf's are best for me to start putting in my portfolio. Thanks.

Q: I am considering converting the holdings in our investment account from the couch potato to a dividend portfolio consisting of the 4 etfs listed. In both cases cash replaces the bond component. I want to draw a larger dividend from the portfolio. Do the 4 etfs provide satisfactory diversification and how do you see the pros and cons of implementing this change. Thanks

Q: Peter; My wife holds NPI in a non registered account. Shes thinking of switching to ZWU. She is 74. Thanks.

Rod

Q: Just a comment to Nino's earlier question about CDZ: at the end of February 2017 Aimia was the largest weighting at 3.15% of that fund (according to iShares website). With the loss of the Air Canada contract and subsequent cancellation of the dividend it would have been delisted from the index (can't find a link to that on S&P though). Seems to me there would be recent losses and distribution cuts to the fund especially from Aimia's fall plus any other changes in holdings. Fair to say situations like that make yield-driven weighting riskier?

Q: Just looking over the ishares website regarding CDZ, and I don't seem to understand why the dividends have not been increasing steadily and instead have been erratic. For a dividend growth ETF, should the dividends not increase regularly? Can you please help me understand this?

Q: Hi Team,
Lithium has been on a roll for a while. There are two ETFs and one company that appear to get more coverage in financial news; they all have been steadily rising.
Would any of the mentioned names be viable for investment at this point in time or would you have additional recommendations?
Thank you for your input!