Investment Q&A

Q: Just finished reading the Money Saver's email warning " Avoiding The Yield Trap " on covered call ETF's . Where it mentions ETF's yielding in excess of 10% yet uses a BMO banking covered call as an example . I believe all the Hamilton ETF covered call products yield in that 10% or better area and in the case of the banking ETF ZWB used as an example, HMAX yields 15% which beats ZEB's 10 year return by over 5% . And that doesn't take into account the 50% of the HMAX portfolio that contains the underlying stock which should return 50% of the return on ZEB .....If ZEB over 10 years returns 9.6% then HMAX should return the annual yield of 15% plus 4.8% reflecting the 50% of the portfolio containing the underlying stock .... There will also be a small capital gain/loss reflecting the covered call side of their holdings which I have no idea how to calculate so have ignored .... Please explain how I would be missing out growth in the banking sector using the example the Money Saver used were I to purchase HMAX instead of ZWB ? 15% + 4.8% = 19.8% which doubles ZEB's return ...... Please explain the flaws in my logic. { I suspect they are there I just don't know what they are }

Also could 5i give me a list of all the Hamilton ETF products that operate like HMAX { 50% of the portfolio with the underlying securities } with an explanation of what sector they represent, their current yield in percent , and annual dividend amount { I'd like this number so I can calculate the yield on any given day while I follow them and make my decisions on whether and when to purchase }

Thanks for your great service in helping us DIY investors ......

Q: I am down $3,800.00 on ZWB (15% of portfolio) and down $9,600.00 on ZWK (2% of portfolio).
What is your view on the banking sector. Do you see a full recovery or is it going to take a while? Should I hold or cut back?

Q: For a long term hold (15 years) in a RESP, would you prefer ZEB or ZWB and provide reasons why. Also any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Q: Your thoughts about purchasing the above in my TFSA and/or RRIF accounts . Do you see any major downsides?

Q: I would like to put about 50% of my portfolio into safe, higher yielding (10%+) Canadian focused ETF's or Mutual Funds, and adjust my holdings as needed going forward based on sector performance. I feel that both Banks & Utilities are nearing lows and that a further correction may occur in the general market due to tax loss selling or possibly one more rate hike. Do you feel that the mix of ETF's listed provide a safe way to invest with the goals indicated? What % for each, as part of the 50%, would you recommend as a holding, and how would they be treated for tax purposes? Thanks for the great service and please use as many credits as necessary.

Q: Hi 5i,
Does Zwb pay dividend in US or canadian dollars? ....Looking at stock information using TD web broker.... it shows dividend as $1.35 US or 11.03 %....does this number seem correct to you... Where would you recommend searching for this type of info?
thx

Q: Hi team,
How would you rate and which do you prefer.HMAX and ZWB?
Thanks so much.

Q: Would like to get your view on ETFs that use covered call options to enhance returns. As interest rates plateau and eventually begin to fall is there anything 'in general' that we can expect from these ETFs? Will the share price increase, like bonds, to bring yields more inline with expectations or is the share price more influenced by the underlying share prices of the stocks held in the ETFs?

Q: I am at a point in my life where I am looking to my investments more for income than growth. My question concerns how you might incorporate a strategy that are includes "dividend" stocks that pay a low yield. eg HD, TRI, CN etc. Assuming you wish to obtain an overall yield of 4% - 5% from your portfolio (in order to satisfy RRIF requirements while maintaining some growth) I would think it best not to load up only on high yield stocks and continue maintain a balanced portfolio. To achieve the necessary income should one invest in low dividend payers and sell a portion of the low yield dividend payers annually in order to achieve the be needed income; go a bit overweight on high yield equities in order to juice the income; or just forget about balancing the portfolio?

Any thought you have would be greatly welcomed.

Appreciate the insight.

Paul F.

Q: What is your current view of Canadian Banks in general...seems like a decent time to add, or are you still overly concerned about rising rates and the threat of recession?

Q: If you had $20,000 to invest today for and Income with some growth investor in an otherwise well diversified portfolio, what would you pick or just add to?

Q: Hi 5I
I want to make sure I understand the effect of management fee and management expense ratio MER, on an ETFs dividend yield.

For example looking at ZWB the indicated dividend yield on my brokers site is listed as
Div - 7.64%,
MER -0.72 %
Mgt fee - 0.065 %

Is the stated dividend 7.64% the amount received after all expenses are paid or do you subtract the fees to get the actual dividend received?

thx

Q: I listed in descending order securities that under performed since their 2022 highs. Please rank the securities in order of the best chance to recover their losses when we get back to the risk on mode. Thank you

Q: Hello,
What are your 2 favorite covered call etfs and why? Do you generally recommend them for the average investor?

Q: In ref. to TK's question July 10 I am curious why you would suggest ZWB over HMAX for an income-based portfolio? I looked hard at both, for the same reason as TK, and chose HMAX. Just counterchecking my decision. Thanks, James

Q: Hi, I'm slowly transitioning from a growth portfolio to a dividend portfolio for retirement, starting with positions in JEPI and JEPQ. Can you suggest a couple of US and a couple of Canadian ETFs with high dividends (+6%) that would complement these two? Thanks!

Q: I have both of the above ETF's. Thinking of selling all of ZWB and adding to ZEB . While I like the high yield of the covered calls I think there is better opportunity for capital appreciation. with ZEB. as the values of all the banks are down. This would be aa long term hold. Your thoughts .

Q: HI 5i ,
I ama DYI retired investor, looking to add a few covered call ETF's to my TFSA, do you have a favorite what are your thoughts in this realm for added dividend income?
Thanks P

Q: Doing a little research with Google I found that the TSX has had an average annual return of 7.94% over the 50 year period of 1971 to 2021 . { Please confirm or correct that number ? } I know 5I doesn't " like " to give portfolio weightings but I have in the past seen you comfortable up to 15% for some ETF's . Would HMAX be one of them ? It looks to me like I can have my cake and eat it too as it's dividend is superior to that of the average annual return of the TSX . Not quite, but close to double ......

Also I have always wondered just how much difference in performance { percentage } there would be between these three products { ZEB. ZWB out of the money calls, and HMAX in the money calls } . In the case of a 10% correction in the financial sector and also in the case of a 10% rise in the financials. Please speculate on what you would expect the return percentage for each . { you will have to speculate for HMAX because of its short history and supposed lack of volatility due to the use of in the money calls } This will help me grasp what to add or subtract to that 14% dividend for HMAX under the two scenarios ......

Q: Could you explain this equity .How safe is the payout?and how much is there down side risks?
On another note ..any idea who bought the shares @ spb in the dump?