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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: Good Morning 5I.

I have the following positions in my RRSP ...
BNS 6.5%
TD 5%
BCE 5%
ENB 4%
BEP.UN 4%
SRU.UN 4%
MFT 3?
CDZ 5%
ZWE 4%
ZWH 9.5%
The list above cover the equity side of my portfolio.
The other 50% is in a GIC ladder yielding over 3.0%
I plan to retired within the next couple years.
Could you please comment on any changes needed that stand out to you?
I think I should add more US exposure and possibly another reit, what would you suggest?

Look forward to your reply.
Read Answer Asked by Stephen on March 25, 2019
Q: We have a diversified RIF and are now in our 70s . We have 6 ETFs and have $20,000.00 invested in VE. We have equities invested across all sectors some sectors a higher percentage than others. Do you feel it is necessary to have monies invested in Europe when we could obtain better income investing in possibly Bonds or preferred shares. Safety and Income are important now to us . Any recommendations.
Read Answer Asked by Sharon on March 22, 2019
Q: I manage my wife's RRIF age 69 with the following ETF's: ZEF 5.3%; DXG 8.11; CDZ 6.68; XHY 6.42; ZZD 8.05 and the following stocks : BNS 7.61 ;BPY.un 9.74 ; BEP.un 9.3 COV 2.13; IPL 9.41;PKI 8.58; SIS 5.34 SPB 7.85 and .Cash 7%
I'm trying to transition her to more ETF's reduce some volatility and maintain some growth. What is your suggestion[s] for an additional ETF to complement these holdings?
Read Answer Asked by Henry on March 22, 2019
Q: Hi.

Almost finished transitioning from (50 Stocks, 5 ETFs) to (11 Stocks, 15 ETFs).
Much easier to manage; performance has improved already over one-month. Sleepin' better... ;-)

About to purchase my last ETF in the mix: VVL, but it makes me a bit nervous:
- Age: Only 3 years
- Market Cap: Only $82M
- Volume: Very low trading
- $0.10 Bid/Ask spread (i.e. an immediate loss of ~ 0.3% on buy & sell = -0.6% right off the bat?)

I would appreciate your thoughts on the observations above. Would you recommend another ETF instead?

Thank you as always from great useful timely advise.

Paul [2019-03-21 - 10:43 AM]
Read Answer Asked by Paul on March 22, 2019
Q: I currently have an in-trust account for my daughter with $5400 distributed between AQN and FSZ. I have another $6000 to put in. I would like to put half in VFV and half into VDU. These funds I am hoping will sit there until she retires (she is currently 13).

I am concerned about taxes with the two ETF’s in this unregistered account. Do you think this is a good approach with the funds or would you advise otherwise?
Thank you for your great site and forum!
Read Answer Asked by Sarah on March 21, 2019
Q: Good morning,
My wife and I wish to put $$$ into our minor (twins 7 yrs old) grandchildren's in- trust accounts to help them get an early start in building an investment portfolio. Moreover, this would allow them to start contributing to their TFSA when they reach 18 years of age and when I am perhaps long gone.
I understand that if I put $$$ in my minor grandchildren's in-trust accounts that ALL INCOME would be taxed in my hands until they reach 18 years of age but that any CAPITAL GAINS would be taxed in the hands of the grandchildren regardless of their age.
Assuming that my understanding is indeed correct, I am looking for a few suitable investment vehicles and more specifically a few good quality ETFs that DO NOT generate any form of INCOME or DISTRIBUTIONS other than CAPITAL GAINS.
I would very much appreciate your thoughts on implementing this strategy along with a few of your best ideas as to which ETFS you would recommend for my purpose.
I thank you in advance and look forward to hearing your response along with your ETF recommendations.
Read Answer Asked by Francesco on March 21, 2019
Q: Hi,
I need a bit of help in structuring my Bond component for my RRSP.
I had so far running with PH&N High Yield 5%, ZST 5%, PH&N Total Return Bond 10%, PIMCO Monthly Income Fund 5% and MFT 2.5%, for a total of 27.5%. Given my age (59) and the fact that soon we may enter in a Bear market, I have to increase my Bond allocation. According to some, this should mirror my age, probably close to 60%. My question is: What combination of Funds/ETFs and weight should I use? Is probably not a good idea to invest more than 15% in a fund and probably limit my High Yield exposure to 5%. Thank you.
Read Answer Asked by Nicolae on March 21, 2019
Q: I currently have no fixed income. Looking to build this portion using an ETF and GIC's. My thinking is the the ETF could provide a base (liquidity and slightly better yield) with the GIC's providing stability. Considering either HFR or FLOT as the ETF. Which would you prefer or is there are more attractive one in your view? Thanks as always.
Read Answer Asked by Lynda on March 21, 2019
Q: Hi there,

i am going into retirement and am looking at reviewing my holdings to generate a bit more income. I currently own XLU in my 401K but the dividend is only 3.1% while the underlying companies often have much higher Dividends. Is there an alternate ETF or would your recommend a basket of utilities and if so can you give me 2 or 3 names - i own BIP, ACQ in my canadian accounts but could hold them in my us as well.

Thanks
Read Answer Asked by kelly on March 21, 2019
Q: Please comment on XTR as an source of income and diversification ie, is it a good retirement holding?
Morningstar classifies it as a high risk ETF-do you agree? Would it move downward say like an XHY if the market declines? Is the distribution safe?
What types of taxation is applied given its a mixed bag of holdings and therefore what account would you favor to hold it in?
Thanks
Jeff
Read Answer Asked by JEFF on March 21, 2019
Q: In this month's MoneySaver magazine, there is an article by Rita Silvan titled "Spin-offs, Ticker Symbols and Other Investment Anomalies". In this article, she states that in the last 15 years, from 2002 to 2017, the Bloomberg US Spun-Off Index returned nearly 1,000% compared to the S&P 500 Index which returned 203.9%.

Are you aware of any ETFs which track this index? What is your view about ETFs which track spin-offs? Is this a strategy which you would recommend? I could only find the Invesco S&P Spin-Off ETF (CSD) and its returns appear to be 2.15% annually over the last 5 years, and is a significant underperformer compared to the S&P500.

Thank you again for your invaluable advice. This service is truly excellent!
Read Answer Asked by Dale on March 19, 2019
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