BMO Covered Call Canadian Banks ETF (ZWB.TO)

ZEB is equal weight where as ZWB is equal weight banks with a covered call overlay. When you think the markets will go sideways or down, covered calls will perform better. However, the covered call gives away some of the upside potential so if you are bullish on growth, forego the covered call.

There are two elements to covered call strategies. There is the underlying stocks, and then the option premium. Volatility will continue to be high for the next couple years. Premiums will remain elevated. FIE pays back a part of your money back. There are a couple different elements to consider.

Canadian banks are much better run and offer good dividend yields compared to elsewhere in the world. There is some risk in the housing sector and some challenges to growth. He would favour ZWB right now. Once markets correct 10-15%, get out of the ZWB and get ZEB for the growth.

ZWC vs. ZWB Both offer additional income through covered calls. ZWC yields 8.4% plus the dividend and premium from the covered call strategy. ZWB (Canadian banks) pays 6.5%. Both you pay 72 basis points in MER. ZWC is more diverse with banks, pipelines and telecoms so he prefers ZWC. Warning: long-term, covered calls can lag the underlying securities if there's a bull market in those securities. In an up market, he prefers the stocks themselves or other ETFs.

ZWB-T vs. ZEB-T. If your view on the banks is sideways to down a little bit, then ZWB-T is the better holding but if you are bullish on the banks then you don’t want the covered calls. He prefers ZEB-T right now because he wants all the price capture upside when the banks recover.

vs. ZWC ZWC covers the general Canadian market vs. ZWB which covers Canadian banks. If you think banks will do well, ZWB may lag the market, but if the market tumbles, this will fall less.