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Investment Q&A

Not investment advice or solicitation to buy/sell securities. Do your own due diligence and/or consult an advisor.

Q: Can you please compare HLYD and HDVI to BIGY and CANY in terms of leverages, dividends, NAV decay and which one would you recommend to own ?
Read Answer Asked by Richard on March 09, 2026
Q: Dear Team:

After reading many of your Q&As. I understand the drawbacks of Covered Call ETFs!

IF I want to hold Canadian Covered call ETFs in my Non-Regd accounts, which two or three would your favourite (in a tax advantageous manner withdrawal).

Also, if you can direct me to the issue that addresses Covered Call ETFs in your ETF &MF Newsletter, I would appreciate it! May I request you once again to add search function in ETF&MF Newsletter! At least a yearly index for the articles. That way, I don't need to bug you often!

Many thanks.
Read Answer Asked by Savalai on March 04, 2026
Q: Hello 5i team,
I'm looking to create yield in my TSFA. I've looked at a few covered call ETF's, but, I'm overwhelmed. Do you have a top 3-5 covered call ETF's to generate yield?

Thank you,
Brent
Read Answer Asked by Brent on February 26, 2026
Q: These ETFs advertise on their website annualized yields of between 10.5% and 11.7% which seems very attractive using covered calls and leverage at a management fee of .65%. Do the covered calls generate that much income to increase the yield as well as the leverage? Also does the yield include a significant return of capital?

Thanks for your great service!!
Read Answer Asked by Bryan on February 11, 2026
Q: UMAX has been going straight down since 2022. Time to let it go? I have individual utility stocks ( ACO.X, BIPC, BIP, BEP, CU, FTS,
H.TO ).
If so what dividend paying replacement would be suggested, or just keep it, or sell it and add to my winning covered call ETF's ( NXF, HDIV, HMAX, HYLD, IWO, NXF, QMAX, SMAX, VDC, VDY, XLY, ZQQ, ZRE, ZWE, ZWH.U)?
Healthy 80 year old value /dividend investor with stocks and ETF's in all sectors with an outlook of 5-10 YEARS (I hope).
Read Answer Asked by STANLEY on February 05, 2026
Q: It's almost too good to be true. I have owned HMX for 2.5 months and have a 5.82% share price gain on top of the monthly paid12% (annual) dividend. I understand that the underlying sector - financials - has been on a hot roll. Let's assume that banks were suddenly flat. How would that impact the share price performance and their ability to sustain the lofty dividend? i.e. can this potentially be a long term hold or am I just riding a wave?

Secondly how do you feel about the two sister ETFs HDIV and UMAX?

Thank you
Read Answer Asked by Kim on January 18, 2026
Q: There are Covered Call ETFs with mighty high yields: HPYT 18%; SMAX 10%; HMAX 10%; and HDIV 9%. These yiieds are so high that I feel there must be a downside, so my question is, what are my risks in using these ETFs as part of my income portfolio?
Thank you.
Read Answer Asked by Dennis on January 17, 2026
Q: I am looking for income replacement for BCE - I am chasing dividends. I looked at HDIV and noticed most of the 10 holdings are covered call ETFs (HMAX, AMAX, QMAX, EMAX, UMAX, RMAX, CDAY,,,).

Given the 2026 climate, is it better to have HDIV with its broader sector diversification but many covered call ETFs or pick one.

Read Answer Asked by Nadya on January 08, 2026
Q: For all of us who are interested in the fee's charged by Hamilton for HDIV and HYLD ETF'S, straight from Hamilton.


Thank you for your interest in Hamilton ETFs.



As of June 30th, 2025, the MER for HDIV is 1.90%, and the MER for HYLD is 1.87%.



Both can be found on our website in each fund’s financial statements. They’re found under the documents tab on their fund page.



The MER includes the cost of 25% modest leverage, and all performance and distributions are net of fees.



Thank you.



Alex Fozard
Head of Inside Sales

Hamilton ETFs
Read Answer Asked by Greg on December 29, 2025
Q: Half of my RIF focuses on steady, monthly income and the other half on individual stocks. To balance safety with higher income, I am looking to have equal weight in FIE and HMAX. As I rely on this monthly income, what do you think of this approach for long term holding? Can you suggest better alternatives?
Read Answer Asked by Jean on December 19, 2025
Q: I’m a62 year old retired investor with an excellent DB Pension and I’m working on a supplemental cash flow with my TFSAs,I have held the above stocks for about 4 years all roughly 10-12K in value and have been set up as DRIPs
My question is could you recommend another 8-10 Cdn dividend stocks($ 100K of room) I would add to this account coming from another TFSA,these could possibly have 4-6 % capitol growth and 4-6% dividend yield and in 3 years I would go from a DRIP to monthly or quarterly cash payments,I am medium risk and the sectors would not matter ….Thanks Greg
Read Answer Asked by Greg on December 04, 2025
Q: Could you confirm how one should look at the total return for funds that use leverage to enhance yield? For example, I am showing growth of 13.16% on my initial investment in HMAX and it has a current “yield” of 12.48% so does that mean in the one year I have owned it I am up 25.64%? For HDIV, the numbers are 18.86% share growth and a 9.99% yield for total return of 28.85%? In past discussions of these products it doesn’t seem that what you see is always what you get!

Appreciate your insight.

Paul F.
Read Answer Asked by Paul on December 01, 2025
Q: I am an 80 year old value investor. In a diversified portfolio in all sectors, covered call ETF's as per above, make up 10% of my portfolio. I am satisfied with that and all but two are up. 30% of holdings are ETF's including the covered calls.
QUESTION:1. Am I holding too many covered call ETF's? They seem to take the stairs up and the elevator down faster than single stocks. 2. Is it supposed that the covered call ETF's will plunge faster than the single stocks in an expected steep correction?
Thank you
Read Answer Asked by STANLEY on November 27, 2025
Q: I am retired and looking for a covered call ETF for each sector. There are so many ETF can you please give me which ETF would you recommend are best to own for covered call CDN ETF for each sector.

Is there one covered call ETF that covers all the sectors.

Please deduct credit as necessary.

Thank you for your excellent service.
Read Answer Asked by Hector on November 12, 2025
Q: This is a follow-up to the Sept. 11th question where you mentioned other funds that are similar to this. Could you name a couple that you would recommend please? Thanks.
Read Answer Asked by Ann on October 03, 2025
Q: Hi, what is your preference in order of these ETFs UMAX, ZWU, ZWC or is there other covered calls that you prefer. Please place in preference order. Also in which account type would each be best suited for including your picks.
Thank you
Read Answer Asked by Di on July 02, 2025
Q: I would be interested in your professional opinion on covered call ETF's within a non registered account for a duo objective of maintaining principal and generating an income. I have ample growth investments in registered accounts. One draw back I see from. this approach is the tracking of ACB for tax purposes etc, which you don't have in registered accounts, If you have 2-3 recommendations you feel comfortable with, that's appreciated.
Thanks
As a tag on to my recently submitted question about covered call, what is your opinion and recommendations within in an RRSP?
Read Answer Asked by Steven on June 30, 2025
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