Topic: How To Invest

Hi, Pat: Would you have a look at the BMO Low Volatility U.S. Equity ETF for me? Thank you.

Article Excerpt

BMO Low Volatility U.S. Equity ETF, $25.34, symbol ZLU on Toronto (Units outstanding: 11.5 million; Market cap: $291.4 million; www.etfs.bmo.com), aims to invest in a portfolio of low-beta U.S. stocks. The fund has a 0.30% MER and yields 2.0%. The ETF selects the 100 lowest-beta stocks from a universe of the largest, most liquid U.S. securities. The underlying portfolio is rebalanced in June and December. In this respect, it differs widely from conventional ETFs which are designed to minimize trading and trading expense. BMO Low Volatility U.S. Equity ETF’s top holdings are Newmont Mining, McDonald’s, Autozone, Verizon Communications, Quest Diagnostics, Dollar General, Family Dollar, AT&T, Laboratory Corporation of America and AmerisourceBergen Corp. Beta is a commonly used measure of volatility. To calculate it, you first assign an index like the S&P 500 a beta of 1.0, then measure the historical volatility of different stocks against the index. If a stock has a beta of 1.0, it means the market and the stock move up…