Investment Q&A

Q: Hello 5i Do you think that ZPW could act as a hedge against choppy markets while collecting a nice dividend. Thanks. Gary

Q: Ours is a very conservative portfolio, with one third in dividend-paying equities, half of that individual stocks and half no-load funds. The latter's performance doesn't seem to justify the MER's so I would like to reduce, maybe eliminate, that cost, roughly $5,000 per year. Any thoughts you might have on how best to effect that change and what form that should take, eg less funds, more stocks and/or ETF's, will be much appreciated.

Q: I have some cash in my account and am thinking of adding to MAL and to XHY. Recent news and performance of MAL has been good, but I am concerned about the effect of US rate increases on XHY. My account is well diversified. I would appreciate your comments on both.

Q: Alerion appears to have begun recovery from an extended down trend with what looks like significant accumulation. However, doubts have been raised with respect to volumes for transport in part related product price and demand issues. Do you have an opinion on this issue and AMLP prospects please.

Q: Good Morning: My question is about the Horizons ETF listed as TXF. (It did not show up in the drop down menu.) The full name is First Asset Tech Giants Covered Call or something like that. I know it is Cdn. hedged which I am fine with and it uses a covered call strategy to optimize returns. Do you have an opinion on this ETF in regard to management fees (they do not seem excessive to me for an actively managed fund), performance, sector and weighting within a portfolio. I don't own a lot of big tech names directly (small holdings in Alphabet, Corning, Intel, Qualcomm and Apple,all of which are in this fund) and wanted some additional exposure in this sector. I already have a small position in this ETF (less than 1%) and would like to double it. Thanks for your input. don

Q: This ETF in your Income P/F has been pretty flat since 5i started it, I think in 2014, and do you think it will remain a long term hold? How much of a hit would you expect it to take with a quarter point rise in the Fed rate and what is its duration? Thanks, J.

Q: Do Vanguard ETF's actually own the shares in their ETF's or is it some derivative that they use? If they don't own the shares, what risk does this present? I seem to recall that there was a difference between Blackrock and Vanguard in this regard. Is that true?

Q: Hi Peter & Co.

I currently own ZDJ, ZSP & ZQQ. Should I replace these with VUN?

Thanks,

Henry

Q: For an ETF investor with a small portfolio do you see any compelling reason to hold BOTH XIC and CDZ for the Canadian component? Or would one suffice? If so which would you prefer?

Q: I'm considering ZLU as an investment & would appreciate your comments.It will be about 10% of my portfolio & in U.S funds.Is it too conservative for growth? Except for owning TD it's my only U.S. exposure.Can you recommend any other etf funds with U.S. exposure?Thanks.

Q: Hi Peter & Co.

I was watching BNN Market Call May 26/16. Guest was Daniel Strauss from National Bank. I do not have REITS in my RRIF portfolio but would like to add some. Daniel was discussing an actively managed REIT ETF, RIT.TSX, First Asset Canadian REIT by CI Financial. My research indicate that the MER is .75% and the 12 month trailing distribution yield is 4.88%, the average daily volume appear to be just under 30,000. What do you think of this investment? Are their better alternatives in the actively manage REIT space? Thanks, John

Q: I would like to divide $100,000.00 into 4 ETS of equal weights. Preferably high yield but still conservative. I have been trying to do it myself but I am overwhelmed by the choices. I currently have the two above but they may be too much the same.

Thanks for being there!
Bryan

Q: Hi Peter and Ryan,

I'm interested in getting exposure to the health care sector by using an available ETF. I ran across this one (IHI) through my research and would appreciate your analysis of the ETF. I think this one focusses on medical devices. Please let me know what you think the future holds for the ETF. If you think there are other investments that would be preferable I would appreciate your suggestions.

Q: Historically, US Stocks have taken off in the 2nd. Half of an Election Year. What are some ETFs I can look at to see if my thesis is right? I prefer Canadian ETFs that capture US Stocks as opposed to US ETFs, e.g. SCHB.

Thanks as Always! Austin

Q: Hi again,
Sorry the symbol I was asking about is HEU. I've copied the question again below.

Hi 5i, I think over the next 3-5 years oil is going to rally up. In doing some reading I found this etf. The management fee is definitely higher than I like. I'm not exactly sure how the 200% correlation works but it sounds like if energy goes up it would be a good thing. Could you give your opinion on this fund, also could you give some better options for getting some more energy in my portfolio if you know of some. Thanks!

Q: Hi 5i'ers,
is it time for XEG and what do you think of their prospects going forward as oil seems to be on the mend or is this a dead cat bounce?

Q: I am looking for ETF similar to IHI US Medical Device in Canadian dollar and your thoughts on ZUQ Etf.

Thanks for the great job.

Q: Could you please comment on this ETF. I have held CWW for about 5 years and done well but am wondering what, if any, other approach you would take to replacing this investment in the water related sector? Many thanks.

Q: Is there a Canadian ETF that mirrors the Schwab US Broad Market ETF (SCHB,50)? It captures America's 2.500 largest stocks.

Thanks, Austin

Q: Sorry my previous question referred to ZBK.US it should have been ZBK.
Thanks
Mike