Investment Q&A

Q: I am beginning to swing trade ETFs. Which do feel more closely mirrors the SPY since one cannot buy the SPX? Feel free to mention others I may have excluded but should be considered.
Putting aside any tax implications or type of account (ie: registered vs non-registered)
Considering the state of the C$ and the price of oil, it would seem more logical to go unhedged , what are your thoughts?

Q: If you were to buy just one of these ETFs, which would you buy for a long term hold and would you purchase right now
Thanks

Q: We have an unregistered account with 74% cash and want to buy some index funds (my wife read Millionaire Teacher and is convinced index funds eliminate some human error with stock selection). We are considering XIU, ZSP and perhaps ZDB; we do have a significant bond holding with Phillips, Hager & North and not sure if bonds should be part of this unregister account? Long term investments 7+ years. Thanks you very much for your comments on index funds.

Q: Hope everyone at 5i is doing well in these times!

I have been sitting on mostly cash in my RRSP/LIRA and would like your recommendations on the best ETFs to consider for my full US and International exposure. All of these would need to be listed on the TSX as I am purchasing in CAD $. While I know you prefer non-hedged, I’d greatly appreciate if you could explain benefits/workings of hedged vs. non-hedged considering the current environment. And provide ETF recommendations for each.

I am looking to achieve a balance of diversification, reasonable MER, minimizing any withholding tax while optimizing the potential in market recovery. For US, I would like to have a technology ETF, health care ETF and a broader spectrum ETF – but also open to ideas. Also, looking for recommendations on International – one broad ETF or perhaps that and a mix of ETFs. I recognize there can be overlap (e.g. between a tech and broad sector fund), so if you can give me a sense of the degree of duplication that may be present in your recommendations. Perhaps going heavier on tech right now could be a good thing.

While I started off thinking ETF selections would be relatively simple, in reading various Q&A there seem to be many important considerations - your assistance is appreciated. Again, all of these are being purchased in RRSP/LIRA accounts with the goal of optimizing my returns over a 10 year window.

Q: Dear 5i
I'm always a little confused as to which companies are CDN hedged and which are not . Just because it's listed on the TSX doesn't` always mean that it is hedged I'm guessing . I'm also assuming that it looks like the CDN dollar is going to be weak compared to the US dollar for awhile .That being said which of the ETF`s listed above are CDN hedged and is it wise to have a balance of hedged and unhedged anyways ?
Typically you expect share prices to rise as earnings increase . With the state of the economy ie covid19 it is likely that earnings will be lower for the next couple quarters at least so there are few expectations for higher earnings from most companies .Given this , would you expect the market to rebound higher even before there are rising earnings simply on the anticipation that higher earnings will eventually happen once covid19 is proven to be under control , or do you think we would actually have to wait for increased earnings to occur before we would see any meaningful bounce in the markets ?
Please deduct points appropriately .
Thanks
Bill

Q: Given the recent increase the USD/CDN exchange rate, does it make sense to buy ZSP or ZUE while looking for few year gain as market comes back?

Q: I am looking to follow the S&P 500. I am not sure what etf is best to use. I have seen you recommend VFV in Q&A but your model etf portfolios hold ZSP. Is there one you would choose over another? Is there another option I should consider? If you can advise if it is best to put in a register or unregistered account. I have room in both my TFSA and RRSP.

Thank you for the great service.

Q: Peter and team
I sold off all my equities part way through this recent collapse.
I have followed your BPort, along with some picks from the GPort.
I do not have the time to diligently follow individual stocks anymore, and was thinking of switching to ETFs.
What are your thoughts about splitting some 400k in cash between ZCN,ZDV, and ZUE. Is there too much overlap in the two Canadian ETFs, and what are your thoughts on going with the "hedged" ZUE?
This is a non registered account. I am pretty sure that ZUE is treated as a Canadian Equity with no foreign withholding tax. Correct?
Thanks

Phil

Q: Hello, Please provide ETF's that replicates TSX, S&P, DOW & NASDAQ
are there Hedged and non-hedged versions for US stock Indices.
Thanks.

Q: I sold my business and started a non-registered investment account in November 2019 and currently have no US equity. I am semi-retired and looking for total return, with a 10 year time line. Can you recommend an ETF that I can slowly add to with market dips? ZDY is down about 10% YTD, trading a 52-week low with a P/E of 14.90 and dividend of about 3.25%. But ZSP and ZLU have historically better 3-year returns. I would be grateful for your recommendations. Thank you!

Q: Greetings,

I just sold some mutual funds(finally) in my wife's RRSP account. We are fairly diversified at individual level, majority of our holdings are from your Balanced and some from growth and income portfolios. All our funds are in Canadian and would like to diversify.

Please advise, if this is right time to diversify in to US/World markets. if it is a right time, can you suggest few EFT's for 5+ year hold.

Q: Could I please have 5 recommendations for investment in Canadian stocks and/or Canadian ETF's focused on the US market. I currently have no investments in the US market in my RRIF. Thanks

Q: Ignoring taxes, cash requirements, sector allocation, on a straight-up basis, for a minimum one-year hold, which of the above-listed equities would it be prudent to currently sell,buy, or hold? Thank You

Q: I am looking to add an ETF that tracks the s and p 500 that has to go in my Tfsa. Can you give me some etf recommendations and your rationale? Thank you.

Q: Which Top 3 ETF's do your recommend to track the S&P 500.

Q: ZSP is an unhedged Canadian Dollar ETF. It has not done as well as the US Dollar ETF, symbol IVV.

Why would that be so? Shouldn’t their performance be identical?

Q: I currently own TDB900 and 902. Have now read that TD will be using ETFs to purchase their funds like the ones mentioned. I have held these funds for a long time . So I am wondering if it still ok to hold onto TDB900 and 902 since I am uncertain how this will affect those holdings. Is it time to switch the funds for similar ETFs. Any clarification is appreciated. Thanks Paul.

Q: when I put these three on a chart together (Thompson-Reuters feed on webbroker), for a specified period, hxs shows a much greater return than zsp which shows a much greater return than xsp. Five year chart 93%, 77%, and 45% respectively. This charting service does not show total return so some of the difference between hxs and zsp will be the dividend (included in hxs but not zsp). Some of the difference can be explained by hedging of the currency on xsp but not on hxs or zsp. Given the difference in five year returns there must be something else. Suggestions?

Q: I was reading Norm Rothery's article on the "hot potato" portfolio strategy. As you know it involves investing in one of four etf's based on the previous year's best performance. The asset classes are Canadian Bond Index, S&P/TSX Composite Index, S&P 500 and MSVI EAGE Index. I have to do a little more research on this strategy but should I decide to allocate a small investment here, what 4 specific etf's would you recommend?
Dennis

Q: Would appreciate your view on this etf as a long term hold for some relative safety and income using US dollars. Secondly what would you suggest as a Canadian dollar version of this etf holding a similar array of US large caps with a similar yield and low mer - would you recommend these for purchase or another pair instead - finally would you suggest averaging in for a fairly aggressive portfolio percentage (as high as 20%) or just buy and hold given the holdings -all the best - Ken