Investment Q&A

Q: What are your 3 favourite U.S. small and mid cap etfs?
Philip

Q: Good day,

I am setting up TFSA and FHSA accounts for an 18-year-old with a 15-25 year investment horizon. The goal is to contribute the maximum annual limit each year, which is $7,000 for the TFSA and $8,000 for the FHSA in 2024, and continuing at those levels in subsequent years. From an aggressive growth perspective, without restricting the investment options to Canadian markets, what would you recommend? Also, do you recommend making an lumpsum investment or spread the purchases over time? If so, how do you suggest I spread the purchases.

Thank you

Q: With the U.S. election behind us, and the increase in stock markets, what would you purchase today ? IWO or IWM ? Would you start a full position today ?

Q: What are your thoughts on the philosophy of a 3 etf portfolio (growth, dividend and foundational) from a retires point of that has the basic expenses covered by pension income. And some etf's you would consider candidates if you were to agree with this philosophy?
As always thanks for your point of view.

Brian

Q: What is the difference between these two and which do you like better?

Q: My son moved to the USA a few years ago and has opened a Roth IRA upon which I am advising him. He holds the ETFs listed above. I have two questions upon which I would appreciate your advice. In which order of preference would you add to the existing holdings? And can you suggest two additional ETFs to complement the current holdings?

Q: Hi,
I recently heard a suggestion to broaden out of the S&P 500 given its large run up. the presenter suggested value small caps. I hadn't heard of them before. what are they?
what do you think of this presenter's suggestion?
how do they differ from the Russell 2000?
if there an ETF based in CAD?
how have them done in comparison to IWO or IWM?
thanks
Mary

Q: good morning - I'd like to increase my US ETF exposure and already have IWO and VOO. Do I just add to one of these (which?) or add a third? Thanks for your ongoing good work. Al

Q: On September 24 you answered a questions in which the person asked about a RRSP but in your answer you mentioned RESP so not sure if the answer is for a RRSP or RESP but would IWO or IUSG be better for a RESP. Money is not needed for 10 years.

Thanks

Q: Hello- a few months ago I took a full position in IWO and am currently about break even, I'm a bit concerned about the possibility of recession and wonder if there's a US ETF that would not suffer as much in a drooping economy in which the smallest companies get impacted earlier. I'm wondering about VO, for example. Thanks

Q: Hello 5i,

We have a little cash to add to our equity bucket. We have a 1/3 positions in IWO, IJT, and IJH. Would you recommend we add to those positions or do you see more value in a new 1/4 position into XSMO or GSC prior to the rate hike?

Are small caps too risky for a TFSA?

Thank you
D&J

Q: Hi there! Long time subscriber here, and love your platform!

I'm currently developing a plan to align with my goal of purchasing my first home in about eight years, alongside a long-term investment strategy. I’m seeking your insight on how a person in this situation could responsibly proceed (I understand that nothing here is considered actionable financial advice).

I'm currently contributing $400 biweekly to my FHSA, aiming to reach the $16,000 contribution limit this year. I also have approximately $5,000 in my TFSA, with all funds currently held in cash in both accounts.

For the FHSA, I’m considering investing in a high-growth American ETF, such as VFV, IUSG, or IWO, to balance growth and risk over the eight-year horizon. However, I would only like to invest in CAD (I'm not sure which ones only allow USD). Could you provide guidance on which ETF might be the most suitable for this approach, and why? If you have other recommendations, I would appreciate your insights.

For my TFSA, I'm interested in an aggressive investment strategy, potentially utilizing one of your growth or balanced portfolios. Given my exposure to cryptocurrency, I aim to diversify into equities for greater stability while still pursuing substantial growth over the next 45 years. I'm comfortable with higher volatility during this period. With $5,000 currently in my TFSA, would you recommend specific securities or a strategy that balances high growth with diversification?

While I’d prefer to follow your portfolio exactly, my current funds are only 5% of the $100,000 needed to follow it exactly. As an alternative, I'm considering selecting stocks from your portfolio and eventually investing evenly across the entire growth portfolio when my TFSA grows to an appropriate amount. Given my current $5,000 and my $100 bi-weekly contributions, which companies would you recommend selecting from within those two portfolios? Should I allocate $1,000 each to five different stocks or focus on three stocks with an initial $1,600 investment in each (the more I diversify on such a small number the less the potential return)? Your advice on which equities to select for both approaches and your opinion on the most responsible approach would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance! :)

Q: Hello Team,

I am setting up a TFSA account for my son, he would be saving this money for a house down the road (at least 5-7 years away).

I was thinking maybe purchasing 3-4 stocks and 1 ETF for him to hold, can you let me know what you would recommend. We are going to deposit the max he can deposit which is 19.5K.

Looking to maximize growth.

Thanks.

Q: My daughter is investing about $1500/month into an FHSA until the yearly $8000 max contribution is reached and will repeat this process for the next four years until the plan max of $40,000 is reached. What suggestions would you have in order maximize growth of the contributions given the relatively small $40k amount and short timeline (15 years from plan opening but only 10 years after the full $40k has been contributed) involved? Many thanks.

Q: I look after a RESP for my grandchildren and I have IWO, VFV, VGG, at equal weight. XIC, XQQ at a lower weight and only 2 stocks BN and LMN. Is there any more ETF that you would recommend to go with the ones I currently own? What 2 stocks would you recommend as well? The funds are not needed for 10 years,

Thanks

Q: Hi group in what order would you add Regardless of sector to the above stocks that i presently own + would you wait after the big drop in the markets today or slowly average in

also what your general thoughts (short comment will suffice) on the markets going fwd

Q: It seems that small cap stocks are finding some legs. Could you provide 4 CND, 4 US and and some EFT ideas that might be able to take advantage of this trend

Q: Speaking as specialists in Canadian small cap equity, what are your favourite Canadian and U.S. small and micro-cap equity mutual funds and ETFs?
Best regards,
David

Q: Writing in again because I keep hesitating about how to start a high growth all equity portfolio..

For context, I am 39 years of age, with a comfortable income, and planning on working about 25 years. This would be for retirement money.

You previously answered you would be comfortable with an SP500 index fund as VFV of SPY as opposed to an all in one equity fund such as VEQT or XEQT, from what I understood.

Can you please suggest a porfolio of 5 to 7 all equity ETFs that you believe to be superior to the all in one variety. I don’t necessarily care about the truisms about absolutely needing to be geographically diverse. And I certainly prefer to avoid Canadian home bias.

Thank you.

Q: Hi there,

Can you comment on the strength of small and mid caps going forward and give me 1 US and 1 Cdn etf to look at?

Ok thanks!