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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 confirm that ZUB is the better from a performance analysis standpoint. My take is that as both are priced (?) in CAN $, ZBK will reflect changes in the US/CAN $ relationship which are separate from the underlying bank performances while ZUB because it is hedged will be a more accurate measure of the underlying assets behaviour. Is this correct?
Read Answer Asked by Mike on April 27, 2017
Q: Could you recommend an ETF that trades in Canada with Canadian funds that.
A. Invests in US savings accounts and pays some interest
B. Is unhedged
Would this be an effective way to play a possible drop in the Canadian dollar. Is there another way that this could be achieved without the cost of converting dollars?
Read Answer Asked by William on April 26, 2017
Q: $IDV: iShares International Select Dividend ETF. I'm wondering your thoughts on this ETF - would you recommend holding this as a way to diversify dividend income outside of North American equity, as we don't follow much for international equities. Morningstar mentioned that it outpaced the category average by 80 basis points annualized, but with greater volatility, so its risk-adjusted performance was slightly below average. Are there any alternatives you would recommend instead?
Read Answer Asked by Robert on April 25, 2017
Q: A follow up on your recent response regarding XHY and BSJK.
What is the difference in risk factors comparing these two funds if interest rates rise as expected over the next 2-3 years.
I would expect BSJK to act like a single bond held to maturity ( 4% annual return with 100% of the principal returned in 2020 ). XHY yields 5.3% but rising rates could substantively reduce its value, resulting in a net loss if redeemed in 2020. Am I understanding this correctly?
Read Answer Asked by Lloyd on April 24, 2017
Q: Hello,

I assume that VFV and ZSP are identical EFTs provided by Vanguard and BMO respectively. Their MER, asset allocations, sector breakdown are close to identical.

However I notice the following anomalies (VFV vs ZSP):
1) Dividends of $0.238 CAD vs $0.145 with yields of 1.565% and 1.789% respectively. Why the difference in dividends?

2) Portfolio turnover rate of 13.18% vs 31.90%. Why would there be a difference in turnover rate?

3) Benchmark: S&P 500 CAD vs S&P 500 TR CAD. What does the "TR" mean?

3) Market price (NAV?) of $56.33 vs $34.94: Is this due to dividend reinvestment and inception date?

If one were to buy one of these, which would you prefer and why?

Thank you for your excellent and unbiased opinion and service

Read Answer Asked by Vee on April 24, 2017