ETF is an acronym for exchange traded fund. These exchange traded funds are used to track indexes as closely as possible, since investors cannot actually buy an index outright.
Exchange traded funds trade on stock exchanges, just like stocks. Investors can buy them on margin, or sell them short. The best exchange-traded funds offer well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios with exceptionally low management ETF fees. They are also very liquid.
Investors use ETFs in a variety of ways, and some investors work only with ETFs and no other type of investment in portfolio creation.
An amazing aspect of ETFs is their diversity. Some investors may create an entire portfolio solely from a few well-diversified ETFs.
ETFs trade on stock exchanges, just like stocks. That’s different from mutual funds, which you can only buy at the end of the day at a price that reflects the fund’s value at the close of trading.
Prices of ETFs are quoted in newspaper stock tables and online. You pay brokerage commissions to buy and sell them, but their low management fees give them a cost advantage over most mutual funds.
As well, shares are only added or removed when the underlying index changes. As a result of this low turnover, you won’t incur the regular capital gains taxes generated by the yearly distributions most conventional mutual funds pay out to unitholders.
ETFs have a place in every investor’s portfolio, at TSI Network we also recommend using our three-part Successful Investor strategy:
Invest mainly in well-established companies;
Spread your money out across most if not all of the five main economic sectors (Manufacturing & Industry; Resources & Commodities; the Consumer sector; Finance; Utilities);
Downplay or avoid stocks in the broker/media limelight.
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You Can See Our Exchange-Traded Funds Portfolio For January 2025 Here.
ETFs in brief
Exchange-traded funds are set up to mirror the performance of a stock-market index or sub-index. They hold a more or less fixed selection of securities that represent the holdings of that index or… Read More
Companies that pay regular and growing dividends have performed very well over time when compared to the broad market indices.
A strategy such as selecting stocks with a long history of uninterrupted dividend growth—as represented by the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats—has resulted in gains of 11.8%… Read More
Global military spending in 2023 reached $2.44 trillion U.S. That was 6.4% higher than the previous year, and the highest level ever recorded; this was also the 9th consecutive annual increase (see graph below).
The world military burden—defined as military spending as a percentage of global… Read More
This month we highlight the Canadian listing of a very popular U.S. ETF from JP Morgan, as well as another listing of a “quality equity” fund from BMO.
JPMorgan US Equity Premium Income Active ETF $26.61 (Toronto symbol JEPI) invests in the shares of U.S. companies—plus it… Read More
The U.S. stock market has performed very strongly over several decades, adding 11.1% per year between 1988 and 2024. At that rate of return, investors would have doubled their money every seven years.
The return generated by the S&P 500 index can be explained partly by… Read More
The U.S. has been the leading economy in the world for many decades, and the stock market has outperformed international markets for the past 15 years. Despite the challenges posed by its big deficits, plus uncertainty posed by the upcoming Trump administration’s policies, top U.S…. Read More
Dividend-paying companies have done well over the longer term, although the recent performance of this group lagged the main market indexes. That’s because higher interest rates on fixed-income investments made their dividends less attractive to income investors. Still, high-quality dividend-paying companies—given their prospects for capital… Read More
VANGUARD FTSE DEVELOPED ALL CAP EX NORTH AMERICA ETF $35.16 (Toronto symbol VIU; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $4.7 billion) tracks the FTSE Developed All Cap ex-North America Index. The index includes large, medium, and smaller companies listed in developed markets.
Financial Services make up 19% of… Read More
BetaPro Equal Weight Canadian REIT 2x Daily Bull ETF $16.88 (Toronto symbol HREU) aims to use a combination of derivatives and debt to offer daily returns that correspond to twice the daily gains of the Solactive Equal Weight Canada REIT Index. If HREU is successful in meeting… Read More
Global military spending reached an all-time high of $2.44 trillion U.S. in 2023, spurred by major regional wars and large-scale investments by several countries. That spending might slow in the coming years as governments are forced to re-examine their military budgets in the wake of… Read More
INVESCO SOLAR ETF, $36.02, is a buy for aggressive investors. The ETF (New York symbol TAN; buy or sell through brokers) tracks solar-related companies (including technology firms and utilities) listed on global exchanges.
Its top holdings are First Solar (China; solar panels), 9.9%; NEXTracker Inc. (U.S. solar trackers),… Read More
If you’re looking for ETFs with quality holdings and exceptionally low fees, then Pennsylvania-based Vanguard Group offers you strong options.
Vanguard is one of the world’s largest investment management companies. In all, it administers over $9.0 trillion U.S., spread across 430 mutual funds and ETFs. Here… Read More
You Can See Our Exchange-Traded Funds Portfolio For December 2024 Here.
ETFs in brief
Exchange-traded funds are set up to mirror the performance of a stock-market index or sub-index. They hold a more or less fixed selection of securities that represent the holdings of that index or… Read More
To succeed as an investor, you need to overcome the temptation to think that you can succeed as a fairweather investor. That’s one who is in the market when prices are going up, and out of the market during the inevitable downturns.
If you try to… Read More
Demand for uranium is forecast to increase 30% by 2030 and to more than double by 2040. The ramp-up in nuclear power capacity to meet the growing electricity demand from AI datacentres and to lower greenhouse gas emissions should drive those gains.
However, the capacity to… Read More
This month we highlight a natural resources ETF actively managed by a team with a strong track record. We also consider an ETF that invests in smaller U.S.-listed companies that are considered high-quality and pay regular dividends.
Mackenzie Core Resources ETF $20.97 (Toronto symbol MORE) invests mainly in the… Read More
With 240,000 employees and a market value of $92 billion U.S., Infosys is one of the largest, and best-performing Indian companies. The company operates globally in 56 countries and is considered to be among the top global IT consulting firms.
Software services provide the bulk of… Read More
The Indian economy continues to expand rapidly and increased consumption among a growing middle class is expected to support that growth over the medium term. The Indian stock market has also performed well over the past five years, easily beating the emerging markets index and… Read More
The Canadian ETF market experienced another strong month in September 2024, with $5.8 billion in new money flowing into Canadian-listed ETFs. That brought the total inflow for the first nine months of the year to $48.8 billion—62% higher than the same period in 2023.
The total… Read More
Over the long term, most stock markets move up. But there are times when sharp declines inflict heavy losses on investors’ portfolio holdings. For example, in 2008 to 2009, U.S. stock markets declined by 51%; in 2020, they dropped by 34%; and in 2022, they… Read More
