Investment Q&A

Q: Hello 5i,
My wife has a very small LIF (around 1% of our PF value) which was put into RBF461 A. Initially it generated enough income to almost cover the withdrawals, only a minimal amount was needed to be sold. The last year, however, has seen the fund return very little and more has needed to be sold to cover the annual withdrawal.
I was contemplating switching the LIF to XTR which would seemingly generate far more income and require a smaller amount to be sold. My questions are:
1. Would you endorse moving out of the RBC mutual fund and into an ETF?
2. If so, would XTR be a suitable candidate or would you recommend something else?
We currently have (5) pensions and an equity portfolio which also has some fixed income in it (@15%).
Thanks for any direction you might be able to provide.
Cheers,
Mike

Q: Good afternoon team
I’m looking to add to the income side of my portfolio and already hold 10-15% of ZPR and CPD.
I’d like to add another 5% to the income side of my portfolio so which one or two options do you advise?
I’m looking for more income with little or no growth as my equity weighting is fairly high in dividend paying stocks as well as growth stocks already?
Thnx in advance!

Q: Dear 5i team: would you rate any other products out there etf's or mutual funds that you may find as a better option as a monthly payer or a total return type product for a retired investment? Or are these as good as any except of course a group of individual stocks.thanks Larry

Q: Hello 5i team: from what I gather zmi has lower roc than xtr albeit a higher payout. Do you think this a concern and do you like any other names etf or mutual funds that you would prefer for a all in one hands off income provider for a retirement fund?

Q: Hello Peter, Ryan and crew.

I am retired and rely on investment income of about 4% dividends/interest. Because I no longer wish to take the time necessary to monitor 50 stocks and 10 bonds, I have been looking for some good income funds or ETFs to replace the individual stocks and bonds that I currently own. The ones I have found have distributions that meet my needs, but do not appear to have the underlying earnings yield to justify the distribution yield, so they appear to be paying me back some of my own money every month. Can you recommend some income funds or ETFs that pay out at least 4% and actually earn what they distribute? Like 5i, I am also sensitive to fees.

I have been a 5i member since the beginning and I continue to be impressed by your knowledge and insight as well as the continuous improvements in the service.

I wish everyone at 5i all the best in the New Year.

Thanks

Q: Hello 5i team,
In calculating percentages of holdings and sectors: concerning complete portfolio vs, equities and fixed: are ZPR and and XTR considered equities or fixed?

Thank you
Stanley

Q: Can I have your opinion on this fund. Is there another fund or etf that would be preferred in this category? Thank-you.

Q: My wife and I are retired with pension income sufficient to cover monthly expenses. We are looking for some income and a bit of growth from our investments. Wondering if an investment in XIN AND XTR would help us reach our goal? Is a return of capital involved with either ETF? Also, could you suggest other ETF's that would help us to build a solid, well-divesified retirement portfolio of ETF's. Thanks so much for you guidance.

Q: Which etf would you consider for income,diversity, and some downside protection. I own several Cdn dividend stocks eg. TD,SLF,Mfc,ALA,Fts,Aqn,T,Bce,et al. Thank you.

Q: Hallo I5, is there a tax advantage between dfn, df and zwu, would you please rate or rank them from safety point of view. Perhaps suggesting a couple better ones. I do not have any India holding. Would you consider either of the above safe with reasonable MER, perhaps a suggesting a couple better ones. Many thanks, J.A.P. Burlington

Q: My son is currently 39 years old and is trying to develop a solid diversified portfolio. All of his holdings are in his RRSP except for some money in a Tangerine International growth fund which is in his TFSA. He has some new funds to add to his holdings. Could you please recommend some companies from your model portfolios that would add more diversification to his portfolio keeping in mind his relatively long investment horizon. As always, thanks for your advice.

Q: Do you PIN and Purpose Investments in general? What do you see as the main risks with PIN? Thank-you.

Q: I am a 69 year old investor. I am wondering about the suitability of XTR-T as a moderate term investment(3-5 years)? I am dripping the generous dividend and am looking for some capital growth as well. If this is considered risky(Especially the dividend) for that time frame could you suggest a better alternative? Many thanks/

Q: Hi,would you sell Avo or Bos at this time as i'am trying to be more conservative,to ride out Trump for the next six months or more.
Also for say 50-60,000 could you recommend say three etfs or stock with 2-4% dividend that would be fairly safe going forward,as I do not want a GIC at less than 1%. I do realize there is always going to be risks in the Market.
Thanks for your good guidance,Brad

Q: Hello Gentlemen,

What is your opinion of MID.UN and XTR at this time !

Thank you

Q: Could I have your opinion on XHY, XTR and CBO - should I sell or hold
Thanks - Hanna

Q: Hello 5i,
My wife is concerned that our exposure to bonds is far too high, so I thought I would turn to the experts for advice.
Fixed Income is 31.1% of our total, combined portfolio broken down as follows:
CBO 4.8%
EMB 6.9%
VEE 1.0%
XHY 5.0%
XIG 4.7%
XPF 2.4%
XTR 3.0%
RBF 461A 3.30%
Note: these percentages reflect only the Bond or Fixed Income component of these ETF's, not the equity or other holdings.
We each have modest private pension as well as CPP and (1) OAS.
Our total portfolio income will soon be required to help cover living expenses - and presently looks to be able to do so for the most part.
So, my question is: given the foregoing do you see any areas of concern or any compelling changes that would be required?
I know this might sound a lot like a mini portfolio review, but I have added a lot of detail so that it might assist others who read the Q&A as I know asset allocation is an area of concern and interest for many members.
Please feel free to deduct as many questions as you deem appropriate.
Many thanks,
Cheers,
Mike

Q: What investments would yield income with some safety(conservative)?
Was thinking of ZWH or XTR?

Q: Hi,

This is follow up to James' question about living off the dividends from these ETFs.

ETFs = XTR,FIE,XEI,VDY,XHY

Suppose I convert my portfolio(s) over to equal weights of these ETFs and start living off the distributions ~ 5.5% yield. I'm ok with the tax situation. I can account for inflation.

What other risks am I taking? When we see another 2001 or 2008 what is the possible impact to the ETF values & the distributions?

I'm not looking for a guess (and certainly not a promise) as to what will happen in the future. I'm looking for a list of additional things that I need to consider about this strategy for my own risk management before pulling the plug on my current working life. A handful of "what-ifs" to consider would be great.

Thanks,

Gord

Q: Because of my age and possible future need for income, amount and security, I am pondering the addition of the following ETF’s. I am indicating the present and after purchase weighting in my portfolio. ZWU ( 3% - 5%), XHY (1% - 3%), XTR (0% - 5%). My portfolio is reasonably well
diversified with about 95% blue chip (28) common shares. Can you please comment on the appropriateness of my proposed purchases, given your limited knowledge of my portfolio.

The composition of XTR i shares includes other I share ETF’s so if I were to purchase this security I would be effectively duplicating management fees and further increase my exposure to XHY, which is held in XTR.

Thank you for considering this questions