Investment Q&A

Q: Hi 5I- Have just received lump sum retiring allowance and now 30% cash. Present holdings are 18%GGF31222-10%VUN-7%XEF-7%ZGI-6%SLF-6%VXC-5%ZUH-4%IYT-3%XEH-3%ATD-2%DIS. Would like your suggestions for more etf exposure and would like to start adding slowly with the next downturn, but don't like to sit in cash to long. Would you trim healthcare or USA in general now? We are long term investors. Thanks for your help.

Q: I am an anti-gold bug. I always lose if I ever succumb to the wiles of the yellow metal.
However, i would like to have a single small position in one gold company just in case the gold bugs are right and we are going to hell in a handbasket.

I would like to hold one company which I could put there and forget about but it would follow the metal should it skyrocket. I am looking at the majors ---Barrick and Goldcorp. Which would be better or is there another company which would be better for my purposes?

Bryon in Elmira

Q: Gentlemen: I am thinking of this ETF since it is hedged to the US$ (I already have over 35% US$ exposure and am trying to reduce that to about 25%), and has a decent track record. Thoughts? Thanks so much- Ken

Q: What are your thoughts of using HUV as a hedge in a down looking market. How would you decide what percentage of portoflio to use and how long to keep it.
Thanks and happy Friday

Q: I am 30 years old and have built a sector diversified portfolio of around 25 names from the TSX worth approx 200k. I also have a pension invested conservatively in bonds/mutual funds worth approx 100k. I would like to invest all additional cash for the next few years in 3 or 4 ETF's to diversify out of Canada instead of adding to my Canadian portfolio. Do you see any major flaws in my theory? also could you suggest 2 or 3 ETF's to start out with. My thoughts were: VOO, VEA, and IJR. Thanks

Q: Can you recommend one or ETF's for US $ exposure in a balanced Portfolio.
Thank you

Q: Can I get your thoughts on this very new etf launched by purefunds? Has 36 stocks of companies involved in video games. Has a very small cap of 2.6m. The gaming industry is an evolving industry and judging by the price of video games constantly increasing in price that my kids have no problem in forking out the dough for, revenue should increase for the companies. More companies are getting involved in the online gaming such as Amazon buying twitch, Facebook launching Oculus Rift and China's gaming market is expected to double over the next 4 yrs. This etf would seem to be a winner. I know it is a very risky etf and probably have to hold for a few yrs but what do you think?

Q: Please provide your opinion on purchasing preferred ETF's at the present time, for a one year hold, and which of the following would you prefer and why?.... CPD (Canadian Preferreds), XPF (North American Preferreds), HPR (Actively Managed Preferreds), ZPR (Laddered Preferreds). These funds would be held in a non-registered, fully taxable account. Thanks!

Q: I am not sure if this topic was covered on previous questions, so I thought to bring it up for the benefits of other subscribers who may not know it. Doing my income tax this year I just noticed that my T3 for the XMU ETF contains a large amount of phantom taxable capital gain that was never giving in cash and therefore was never reinvested in new shares. Upon calling Blackrock they informed me that this amount should be added to the cost of the shares. My broker doesn't add this amount to book value, so I have to keep track of these amounts myself for when I sell. This is a quite different from the mutual funds reinvestment of distribution, which you reinvest an actual cash distribution and obviously it is added to book value. Likely there are many other situations like these so one have to be aware of them.

Q: A hold a small position in CBO. Last week in the Globe John Heinzl discussed CBO's return of capital as part of its distribution or yield. He stated that an investor holding CBO gets a fatter distribution now that will be partially offset by a capital loss such that the investor's net return will be approximately the yield-to-maturity of the bonds less the fund's expenses. I didn't realize that CBO returned capital and now I am wondering whether I should be holding this ETF or not. I hold little fixed income in my portfolio currently but receive a defined benefit pension. Would you care to comment on CBO? Is there another CDN bond ETF that you would recommend instead? Thanks for all you do!!

Q: Hi Team
I am well diversified and have about 17% in US Stocks. I have a bit of US cash and would like to purchase a non US unhedged (if you think best) ETF with a lowish MER. I will hold in my RRIF. Of course I would like growth and am not chasing dividends on this. I would hold for 2 to 5 years. VXUS or ????. Thanks guys for all you do.

Q: We are Seniors who do not need current income from investments. Have various accts. at TD Waterhouse - considering using their new ETF's to increase international exposure: TPU vs. THU; TPE vs. THE. What is your current thinking re hedged versus unhedged?
Any thoughts re investing in TD's new ETF's versus using TD-efunds?

Q: Hi Peter and 5iResearch Team,

Can I invest in US treasuries and TIPs in an ETF? Investing in both traditional bonds and inflation-protected TIPs?
Thank you. Linda

Q: Hi Peter and 5iReseach team,

Can you recommend the best US Dollar S&P 500 ETF?
Thank you, Linda

Q: Which is better, FIE vs ZEB?

Thanks as always for your informative answers! Austin

Q: Hello, I want to invest in oil, but when i look at most Canadian Energy companies, their share prices seem high from valuation perspective. I would appreciate if you can suggest a few Canadian ETF's for oil futures. Also is their an ETF that tracks Canadian oil. Appreciate your help.

Q: Could you please recommend 3 names of companies/ETFs/ that would produce monthly income, to be added to an otherwise reasonably balanced portfolio for a long term hold.
Thank you for the great service.

Q: could i please have your thoughts on this c-hedged u.s. momentum fund.

thanks, david

Q: I am a senior with RRIFs and TFSAs. I am not currently living off these but could in the future. I read questions in this space about income producing products such as XHY. These look good but, frankly, I have a great deal of difficulty investing in a product with a total return of just 21.08% over the past five years, or just 4.2% average per year, when I can invest in XST (Canadian Consumer Staples) with a return over the same five year period of 168.8%. Yes, XHY has a great yield but almost no capital gain. And yes, XHY is less volatile but am I wrong, at my age, to be more interested in total return than just yield? I am not afraid of some volatility and am not a believer in the old outdated dictum of holding bonds in proportion to your age. And the total of my investable assets could not produce adequate income if I relied on yield. The standard deviation of the Consumer Staples ETF is still quite low at 0.35 to 1.2 and it has been by far, the best performing Canadian sector of the past 14 years. No, I don't currently own either of these products but may in the near future.

Q: Hi Team,

I have very little bond exposure and would like your opinion on these two ETFs, XHY and ZHY as part of a balanced portfolio? Would you consider these to be a lower risk than an equivalent ETF holding High yield dividend paying stocks?

Thanks

Peter