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Investment Q&A

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Q: Hey there guys. Wondering about appropriate allocation for my rrsp for longterm holdings (using etfs). Focused on low cost, and good diversification, geographically especially. Keeping in mind my tfsa will be almost exclusively Canadian stocks and ETFs. So for the rrsp 50% VTI, 40% SPDW, 10% HXT. I know spdw holds a bit of Canada too. Thanks for your amazing work, it is very much appreciated,
Jer in Ottawa
Read Answer Asked by Jeremy on March 18, 2019
Q: Hello Peter and Team
my question pertains to my US trading account invested in all stocks. I have done well so far. Now I want to switch to all ETFs portfolio for more stability and less maintenance in the medium and long terms. I intend to buy the above for 20% each.
Please let me know if my strategy and choices make sens and do not hesitate to provide suggestions and adjustments.
I value your opinion as always.
Raouf
Read Answer Asked by Raoul on February 08, 2019
Q: Hi team,

My foreign exposure is held in VTI 14% of my portfolio, VEU 9% ( these two are my largest holdings) and SPOT 3.75%. Everything else is held in canadian stocks and etf's.

Since VEU also holds some canadian would you still hold this or look for one that doesn't have any cnd holdinds?

Second, is there one etf that does the same job has VIT and VEU combined?

Tks,
Rino
Read Answer Asked by Rino on January 29, 2019
Q: Good morning 5i,
I want an etf to cover the US market in an easy to manage way. Given that objective, which of the above etf's would you choose and why? I noted in an earlier question that Vanguard had switched from VOO to VTI for its own pension plans, I presume because of the wider market: large caps, medium caps and small. Then we have RSP, which is similar to VOO but weighted differently. Once again, thanks for the great service
Read Answer Asked by joseph on January 16, 2019
Q: I currently hold both VTI and VSP in my RRSP for US exposure.
VTI is my only US holding (i.e. trades on US exchange) in my RRSP, so it is the only holding that forces me to occasional exchange currencies (US dividend).
Which of the following options do you prefer (feel free to suggest an additional option):
1) Do nothing (continue converting the US dividends to CDN$).
2) move VTI to VSP. (CAD hedged.)
3) move VTI to VFV. (not hedged)
4) move VTI to VUN. (not hedged, broader index)
5) move VTI to VUS. (hedged, broader index)
Thanks.



Read Answer Asked by Mike on January 08, 2019
Q: I have recently taken over managing a 401K that is comprised of many ETFs. I have never owned an ETF prior but am wondering if this setup is reasonable. It feels like too many ETFs with a fair bit of overlap. Currently equal weights of: XLV, XLI, XLY, XLK, XLRE, XLU, XLP, XLF, XLC, XLE. Your thoughts - some of these the fees are a bit high as well!
Read Answer Asked by kelly on September 18, 2018
Q: In our RRSP we hold the above etfs for US exposure. Does 5i see any sector not covered with these ETFs?
Or would you recommend selling any of these ETFs due to too much overlap? We are approaching retirement, but I don’t think that would be a factor in this question. Thank you
Read Answer Asked by Kim on May 09, 2018
Q: Firstly, let me compliment your staff on the VERY quick response to my latest question!
Now, picking up on our changes to the Cash Acct, I have decided to move the bulk of our RIFF accounts to the US to counter the larger CDN investments in our Cash Acts.
I have picked only ETFS as I believe they best represent US national growth potential at this time.
I would appreciate your best advice & rationale on 4 or 5 of the following: UDOW, DDM, SPSM, XLE, DIA, VTI, XLF, SPY, IGM. Thank you.
Read Answer Asked by Robert on January 22, 2018
Q: Hi, for my US exposure, I hold the following 3 US ETFs at the following total percentages:

VTI - 50%
VIG - 20%
IWO - 30%

I have $10K USD to add and I'm wondering whether VTI and VIG are too similar or whether I'm fine to add to all 3 and keep the same rough percentages.

Thanks
Robert
Read Answer Asked by Robert on December 12, 2017
Q: I would like to buy some etfs but am concerned about liquidity. I would prefer to buy US Europe and emerging markets in US currency. Can you recommend the best etfs in canada US europe and EM thar have a large nuber of shares traded daily?
Read Answer Asked by hal on October 24, 2017
Q: Good morning Peter
In the next month I will receive US$50,000 which is available for investment. I would like to keep these funds in low risk but growing investments. I have considered putting half into each of BRK.B ( currently own 250 shares ) and BAC ( currently own 1,000 shares ). Another consideration is a broad based US ETF, such as VTI. I would very much appreciate your thoughts.
Read Answer Asked by doug on September 21, 2017
Q: I'm considering various ETFs (mostly from Vanguard) for global exposure and I just wanted to get your thoughts:

Asia/Pacific - VPL or VAH
Europe - VEH or ZWE
EM - VEE or VE
USA - VUN or VIG or VGG
Global - VT, VIGI, VYMI, VXC (would it make sense to buy all of these, or is there too much overlap?)

These would all be held for many years. I don't need the income from dividends, but a decent yield is always nice. Currently wondering about things like hedged vs unhedged, fund size, growth potential. Thanks for the advice.
Read Answer Asked by Brian on July 17, 2017
Q: I currently have, in ETFs, 20% in U.S. (VTI) and 10% in international (5% in VEF and 5% in VEE). I'm thinking that long term my U.S. and Int'l should be equal weight as one never knows what countries will perform the best. What are your thoughts on this and recommendations? Thank you.
Read Answer Asked by Pamela on June 13, 2017
Q: Some ETF questions:

I am starting to add more US exposure to my portfolio. I would like to buy VTI. I already own IWO, but I'm thinking I won't need it anymore as VTI covers small, medium and large cap. Does this make sense? I feel like less funds are easier to manage.

Also want to buy a vanguard international (non North America) ETF in Canadian dollars. Should I pay the higher fee for the hedged version?

Also want to add Vanguard's Canadian ETF to my portfolio. I own your equity portfolio, and just want to use the ETF to add some diversification. What percentage do you think would work? Would 75% of my Canadian equity position in your portfolio and 25% in a Canadian ETF work?
Read Answer Asked by Carla on April 25, 2014
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