Investment Q&A

Q: During the Spring I liquidated my CDN Equity portfolio. I wanted to move away from managing indidual positions and move to a more passive approach. Then I read Ryan's excellent article, Why it's almost impossible to be a passive investor in Canada. I looked at HEW; but it is very small with only about $12m invested. Are there other ETFs that do an equal weight S&P 60? I also am considering VCN and CDZ. I also looked at Two mutual funds, Mawer Canadian Equity and Lester CDN Equity Fund. There are High Conviction funds available; but with very high MER's.
Would you please recommend a portfolio structure that would meet my needs, I am a conservative senior. Please have the suggestions add to 100%.
Thanks Guys for keeping us thinking outside the box.

Q: What do you think of the Phillips Hager & North High Yield Bond fund? I understand the lead manager is Hanif Mamdani. The fund seems to have half its assets in Canadian and half in American high-yield bonds. The MER is 0.87% which doesn't seem too bad for this kind of fund. The chart they post on the web looks outstanding (http://funds.rbcgam.com/pdf/fund-pages/monthly/rbf1280_e.pdf). How risky is this fund going forward?

Q: I would like to place some Mawer fund that is mostly in foreign stocks into my TFSA. Are there any withholding tax implications?
Thanks for your answer. HD

Q: good day...I am looking for a mutual fund that has no load and a small mer that my son and his wife can use in their rrsp for the next year or two ...I only want an mutual fund because of the trading costs incurred by buying individual stocks until they have a larger balance in this account...if you could recommend a good fund here I would greatly appreciate it...gene

Q: Do you have any thoughts on the Mackenzie Canadian Growth A Fund and Dynamic European Value Fund?

Q: Hallo 5I, Can you suggest similar ETFs in place of the above mutual funds. Also, the actual cost of a Mut.Fnd in view of the MER and Magt. Exp.Do
Many thanks, J.A.P. Burlington

Q: On June 28th, under misc, Donald asked your thoughts on a fixed income fund. I thought of your answer as a possible investment fund for me, but you did not name the fund. Could you please tell me the fund’s name. Thanks.

Q: Would you recommend this fund as part of the fixed income portion of a portfolio?

Thank you.

Q: As part of the US component of my equity portfolio, I own the above three funds/ETFs. I would like to reduce the count by one. Which two holdings should I keep and which one should I sell?

Q: Hi Great Service With ETF's gaining popularity and taking over from mutual fund investments ,how will they react with a 30 to 35% correction to the market? These investments have not been tested in a mass sell off. Question is about ETF's on the US and Canadian Markets

Q: Hi Guys! I like and respect Eric Nuttall very much which is why i bought his SPR 006 Fund about 6 months ago. I'm down abut 30%. I've seen him on BNN many times bragging about his fund appreciating by about 60+ % last year. BUT when I look at his Fund Fact sheet, it show NEGATIVE Returns for all Previous Years. What am I missing?

Thanks as always!
Fund Performance as at May 31, 2017
MTD* YTD* 1 YR 3 YR 5 YR 10 YR Inception
-5.5 -37.8 -20.9 -16.6 -2.4 -5.8

Q: When mutual funds report yearly returns are these usually net of MER and any Management fees or are they reported before expenses?

Thanks

Paul

Q: Hi,
A few days ago you answered a question to James and recommended using TD US Money Market Fund as a place to park US cash - (I believe the fund code for this is TDB166). Information of TD's website says there is a distribution yield of .46% and MER of .27%.
I have been using TDB8152 - TD Investment Savings Account as a place to park US$ cash when I am not invested in US$ equities as a place to collect some interest on this money instead of just leaving it in my margin account. When I buy a US stock I sell sufficient amount of TDB8152 to pay for the stock purchase and then return the money to the Savings Account when the stock is sold. I know I receive interest payments every month (in the form of additional shares purchased) - but when I look at the information page on TDB8152 there is no distribution or yield figures available to allow a comparison against TDB166.

So my question here is - which of these 2 funds is the best place to park US$ cash when not invested in US equities - i.e.- 1) which pays the higher yield and 2) are they both equally safe when it comes to protection of principal? As far as I can see both of these trade at a constant price of $10.00 throughout the year - so is only the yield / distribution different?

Thank you.

Q: I have decided to look outside of Canada for small cap exposure. I am interested in either a mutual fund or ETF in a non emerging market economy. Currently own Russell 2000. What other recommendations would you have for both USA and elsewhere. Can be either Canadian or U.S dollars.

Thanks

Paul

Q: Could you recommend 3 good emerging market etf and mutual funds. Thanks

Q: I would like to ask a question about mutual funds that take a global approach. (Sorry I am a ETF Newsletter subscriber and I do not know where to post a question there so I did it here). According to the high-profile consulting firm, McKinsey & Co., the expected return on NA and western EU will be far worse than 30 years ago. See the link for detail.
(https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2016-05-12/millennials-don-t-worry-you-ll-be-able-to-retire).
If it is for the long term, I personally agree with the global approach combined with active management, what do you guys think?
I would like to also ask you for a list of global-approach funds. I remembered you mentioned "Trimark Global Endeavour Fund" in the newsletter. Can you give some more names here or please do it on the next issue? Thanks, Tony.

Q: Hello 5i,
I need to add some geographic diversification to my dividend stock holdings. I only have Canadian companies at present. Is there a mutual fund or ETF that you would recommend? I'm looking at the Sprott Global Dividend Fund. What do you think of it?
Dennis

Q: HI PETER, MY QUESTION IS ABOUT PPS (PERSONALISED PORTFOLIO SERVICE) PORTFOLIOS OFFERED /PITCHED BY CIBC IMPERIAL. MY ADVISOR IS OFFERING THIS AS 1 STOP SOLUTION FOR RRSP @ 200K. HIS SELLING PROPOSITION IS TACTICAL ALLOCATION BY THE PORTFOLIO BASED ON MARKET CONDITIONS. ARE YOU AWARE OF THESE PPS. NOT SURE IF THIS IS WORTH THE FEE AROUND 2.2% FOR A BALANCED PORTFOLIO. WOULDYOU RECOMMEND OR SUGGEST ALTERNATE. THANKS AS ALWAYS.

Q: Hello I5, I would appreciate your help selecting or suggesting a couple Indian based equities, your assessment of the above ETFs. Also your opinion of the funds above,the difference between the ser.F and Ser.D, which one would you pick?
Many thanks, P.S. I have submitted a request w.r.t the above and was ignored in your resent reply. J.A.P. Burlington

Q: Hello 5i:
could you give me your opinion of the CEF RFI (Cohen and Steers Total Return Real Estate Fund) for a conservative investor please?
thanks
Paul L