Investment Q&A

Q: Hello. My question is regarding Management Fees vs MERs. Can you please tell me what is typically included in and MER other than Management fees as the MER is usually higher than the Management fee.

Thank you

Q: Can you direct me to the list of Canadian companies paying dividends in $ US.

Q: Hi
HXT does not pay a dividend CDZ does pay a monthly dividend.

I do not know or understand why one would buy HXT over CDZ.

Could please explain this in way grandmother would understand. how HXT works

Thank you

Mike

Q: Hi 5i I was stopped out kxs this morning when it dropped to $76.13 and $.02 below my stop and then recovered to to over $77. My question is should I be selling at some point close to the stop and if so how would you determine when. I know you are all about buy and hold but in a time of uncertainty I would rather limit my losses. That said I do suspect that the market makers are manipulating the price to take the little guys stops out and profit at their expense. To frame this as a clear question can you recommend a strategy to minimize needless losses or suggested reading on the subject.
thanks

Q: This question may be more for the forums and if so I can redirect it there.
I want to add a contribution to my RRSP to defer income tax. What would be the best source? I can move stock from my TFSA thus opening up more contribution room for next year. I can move stock from a non-registered account or I could make the contribution from cash reserves held in an EQ Bank savings account.

Q: I've read that total market ETF's such as ITOT include a component of unprofitable small caps that can cause a drag on performance. It was recommended instead to go with an S&P 500 ETF suchs as VOO, and supplement this with a mid/small cap ETF that follows an index that screens out low profitability, such as IJS or IUSV. What's your opinion of this strategy?

Q: XTR iShares Diversified Monthly Income ETF top 10 holdings are iShares Canadian HYBrid Corporate Bd ETF XHB25.78% iShares Floating Rate ETF XFR19.75% iShares Edge MSCI Min Vol USA ETF XMU18.43% iShares S&P/TSX Composite High Div ETF XEI10.65% iShares US Dividend Grwrs ETF CADH Comm CUD8.78% iShares Canadian Select Dividend ETF XDV8.23% iShares US High Yield Bond ETF CADH XHY4.24% iShares S&P/TSX Cdn Prefr Shr ETF Comm CPD4.07%

XTR charges a MER of .62%. Is this in addition to the MER’s charged by each ETF holding?
Thanks
John

Q: Hi Peter & 5i staff,
I think my last question got lost in the shuffle, so here goes. My Son has a couple of accounts, an RRSP and a LIRA, each with $135 Thousand. Very little time to manage these accounts so I am doing it for him. Is it advisable to go with all in one ETF's like VGRO, XGRO or ZGRO as the funds are not required for at least 15 years. Any suggestions and advice would be much appreciated. Thanks as always. Ivan

Q: I am interested in what your general guidelines for sector percentage allocations would be at this time and looking forward in 2019. We are retired with pensions ,investments in registered accounts and a balanced approach investor. Second question-your recommendation re percentage allocation Canada/US investment. Thank you for your assistance.

Q: Hi 5i Team,
I just read Peter column in the National Post and recognize myself with a few small positions each representing a very small portion of my portfolio (ex: 0.36%, 0.54%, 0.64% etc).

I would like to know at what percentage of a Portfolio do you decide to close a position because you consider it too small.

On the other end what would you consider the minimum "meaningful" percentage of a new position in a portfolio.

Thanks in advance!

Q: Just a comment

I am very impressed.
Being in my mid 60's I now have reduced my holdings to under 20 from 80.
Makes life easy and now I can retire.
I was 100% Canadian, I have now covered all areas Canada, US and International.
Money well spent
Cheers

Mike

Q: I read/hear on BNN and on this site regularly that inflation is low. To anyone who does grocery shopping or shopping of any kind, inflation is definitely "not" low. Prices have increased dramatically over the last few years on pretty much everything. I realize the low Canadian dollar contributes to this, but I think Economist are too busy looking at charts and not actually paying bills. This has at least been my experience, can't talk for anyone else.

Q: If you were starting a new portfolio, what are some of the Canadian and US stocks you would consider at todays levels to hold as core holdings?

Q: I notice a number of growth-by-acquisition stories out there. CSU, GUD, Valeant, Concordia, etc. Management aside, what is your approach to valuation for these types of scenarios?

Q: If i do not want my shares to be lent to a short seller can I prevent that by putting a sell order on the shares at a price much higher then it trades at.
Example. last trade $10.00 and I put in a sell at $25.00

Q: Good Afternoon,
I have just finished reading the ETF & Mutual Fund Update Newsletter which I really enjoy. I read the article by Moez Mahrez written about Return of Capital (ROC). I think most investors find this whole concept a bit odd and confusing. A direct quote from the article " It is not actual income generated from investments, rather it is cash that is distributed from the cash portion of the fund". If this is a return of cash why pay any tax on this? I know it reduces the ACB and becomes a tax deferral mechanism but this shouldn't be taxable at all? Once again a direct quote " ROC is quite tax-efficient as it turns that cash into a capital gain, which can be deferred". Once again isn't this a bit of a scam? If I and other unit holders buy an EFT and there is an influx of cash and the fund distributes some of this cash back to me, is this not double taxation? That money has never been invested, never earned a return and all of a sudden it's taxable to me? Under the Big Picture portion of the article " realized returns from the past as well as new money from investors", if there is a portion of the cash that are realized returns from the past then shouldn't that portion of those returns be taxed accordingly? If those returns were cap gains, dividends or interest shouldn't they be taxed as such?
Sorry this isn't directed at your organization I understand you are simply describing how the process works and I find the article very helpful. I'm sure this is a CRA issue. It's pretty basic isn't it? If the money is invested and a return is earned than that money should be taxed accordingly. If the fund has a large cash position because of a large influx of new unit holders , this hardly seems fair that when a portion of this money is distributed it shouldn't be taxable at all, this is double taxation in my mind. That is after tax dollars we are investing and a return has never been earned.
What am I missing here?
Thank-you

Q: Hi Guys:
I've re read this article twice since you sent it out, lots of good advice on how to invest for the long haul, for the individual investor who manages there own money. I wish I had found 5i many years ago, so thanks for the service and the information to help make the right choices in my retirement.
Best Regards,
Tom

Q: Peter; Have you looked at the KOHO site and/or experienced their service. It would seem to complement your low fee quest re ETF’s . Thanks.
Rod

Q: Gentlemen
Finally, Computershare responede to my question about the dividendes in U$ from Can corporations (CSU & FNV, but applies to all Can corp)
"This is in response to your request for information.
Please note that the declared currency is USD. Canadian residents will receive CDN funds unless they choose to receive US funds and US and international residents will receive US funds unless they choose to receive CDN funds.
Please contact your broker to help with your request."
I asked NBDB & ScotiaITrade.
I will put this in forum.
Thanks

Q: Does any material info explain the positive momentum? It feels to me like a sell before May & go away. Your thoughts please?