Wealth Professional 9.02

WWW.WEALTHPROFESSIONAL.CA ISSUE 9.02

ETF

SPOTLIGHT WP takes a closer look at eight ETFs designed to overcome or capitalize on the current environment

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JUNE 3, 2021 • ONLINE

LAST CALL FOR NOMINATIONS Building on the success of this year’s virtual awards attended by over 730 industry professionals, the annual Wealth Professional Awards is returning in 2021, for its 7th year, to celebrate the leading wealth professionals and organizations across the nation.

The online nomination process across 23 award categories is straightforward, free and open until February 26.

Finalists will be announced by WP magazine and on online channels before the winners are revealed at the highly anticipated virtual awards show on June 3.

To learn more or submit an online nomination, visit

www.wpawards.ca Nominations close on February 26 (end of day) #WPAwardsCA

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

ETF SPOTLIGHT Despite the pandemic, the ETF industry continues to grow – and these eight products are part of the reason why THE COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on many aspects of our lives. While the initial shock of shutdowns impacted the ETF industry, it bounced back quickly. By the end of 2020, the industry had notched a record year – and it looks set for further expansion in 2021. Canadian ETFs took in $41 billion in inflows during 2020, the highest amount in Canadian history. The number of products

now totals more than 1,000 across 39 fund providers. The funds themselves also broke new ground in active management, technology, factors and ESG. The pandemic has forced fund providers, advisors and investors to reconsider how they position themselves. In this special report, Wealth Professional takes a look at some of the new products that have emerged from

this sudden reckoning. The funds featured in this report offer a glimpse into both new trends and different ways of thinking about existing ones. They address both core and satellite portfolio options to help advisors with a variety of different situations. As Canada’s ETF market continues to grow, there’s no better time to examine the latest options for improving portfolios.

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

Growth still the watchword for Canadian ETFs Amid unprecedented growth, the Canadian ETF Association is holding firm in its mission to make more advisors and investors aware of the benefits of ETFs THE CANADIAN ETF industry had another banner year in 2020, beating mutual fund flows for the third consecutive year. The COVID-19 pandemic forced advisors and investors to take a hard look at their investments to evaluate what they could or should do. As more advisors are becoming feebased and more investors are realizing the benefits of ETFs, the investment vehicle’s popularity is soaring.

“ETFs are becoming more of a product of choice than in past years,” says Pat Dunwoody, executive director of the Canadian ETF Association (CETFA). “When you read some of the articles – and there are a ton that are not product-specific, which is different than other investment products – they talk about ETFs and why you should

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invest in one sector over another. That is appealing to both investors and advisors.”

While growth is nothing new for the industry, Dunwoody believes more investors have begun asking their advisors about ETFs. With many advisors offering or considering a fee-based model, ETFs are also becoming part of the normal shelf.

“For advisors, being able to articulate their value proposition with ETFs is easy,” Dunwoody says. “When they show their client the fee line in a fee-based account, the number usually isn’t that high, and it is easy to explain the value proposition for it. What we have seen with our investor research is people who are investing in ETFs want to understand what they are investing in at a higher level. A lot of ETFs are easy to explain,

so it is easy for a client to get their head around them.”

The time is now for ETFs, Dunwoody adds – given the availability of information, the variety of products and the low cost of the investment vehicle, investors and advisors are seeing why it makes sense.

“Even when you add in the other costs to hold an ETF, it is still less expensive,” she says, “and I think advisors and investors are able to see that the lack of compounding of the MER on their investment has a huge impact in 10 or 15 years. They are doing the math – advisors are still able to get paid for the work they do, probably the same or potentially more, and the clients end up with more money invested in the end because of the lack of compounding.”

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Supporting the growth, sustainability and integrity of Canada’s ETF industry Working closely with our members, we deliver the accurate, in-depth and timely ETF information you need to make better investment decisions.

Collaborate with industry leaders Access in-depth education resources and research Get clarity on regulatory or structural industryspecific issues

Visit cetfa.ca for up-to-date and detailed industry statistics, news, and member information, or call 1-877-430-2532.

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

Dunwoody says there is also a newfound comfort level in being associated with the ETF industry. Despite being around for 30 years, ETFs have only gained significant momentum in the last six or seven. But that track record, along with the fact that all major banks and fund providers have an ETF shelf, has made advisors increasingly comfortable with the products.

In 2020, the ETF space was a tale of two asset classes. The year began with fixed income ETFs carrying over their momentum from 2019. Yet as the pandemic took hold, equities began seeing the majority of flows, something Dunwoody believes will continue.

“People are still going to have fixed income products to balance their portfolio, but with the rates as low as they are, I think you want to

were some MFDA firms that launched last year – slowly, just to make sure they were comfortable with the process. I know three are launching this quarter, and I think once we get to 10 of the major firms selling, it will make the other firms evaluate their value proposition and ask if they can afford not to offer ETFs.” Dunwoody says the upcoming client reform rules will force many fund companies to evaluate their product shelf and realize that ETFs need to be there going forward.

She adds that one of CETFA’s initiatives is to support MFDA dealers that are beginning to offer ETFs. “We know instituting a new product line is difficult,” she says. “They’ll bring providers in to assist, but it is easier to reach out to us

“People who are investing in ETFs want to understand what they are investing in at a higher level. A lot of ETFs are easy to explain, so it is easy for a client to get their head around them” Pat Dunwoody, Canadian ETF Association skew to equities,” she says. “There are so many niche products coming out that a lot of people are taking a small part of their portfolios and being able to invest in creative products.”

While Dunwoody is unsure whether the ETF space will continue to see more niche products from new Canadian issuers (due in part to the costs), she does know some US providers have been eyeing the Canadian market, and that could be their way in.

Another initiative the industry has been working toward is to allow MFDA dealers to offer ETFs, which would be monumental for the Canadian ETF space.

“It could be huge – you are basically doubling the size of the advisor base if they have access,” Dunwoody says. “We have been struggling with this for five years. There

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because they know we are product-neutral.”

CETFA has a few other initiatives on the go this year, all geared at expanding education and information about the industry, including a big push on social media to help with product awareness. The organization also plans to launch an ETF screener on its website.

“It ties in with product choice and how advisors select funds,” Dunwoody explains.

“We will have every ETF in the industry on the screener and allow advisors or clients to see all the products that match their criteria. They can get a list and take a hard look at the products that meet the criteria. Then they can do a deeper dive or make the appropriate choice.”

In addition, CETFA will continue its highlevel research into why people are selling

THE CANADIAN ETF INDUSTRY AT A GLANCE

1,010

Regular ETFs

39

Providers

$257 billion

Assets under management

$41 billion

Total ETF inflows in 2020

$23.8 billion Equity ETF inflows in 2020

$13.9 billion

Fixed income ETF inflows in 2020 Source: CETFA/National Bank Financial Markets, as of December 31, 2020

or shying away from ETFs so it can get the right information about the vehicle into their hands. Also in the works is an in-depth ETF guide, scheduled to be released later this quarter, that gets into the technical nature of setting up an ETF, what the industry looks like, and in-depth tax and legal information.

All of these initiatives will ultimately aid in supporting the industry’s growth, which Dunwoody expects will continue.

“When you look at the growth charts, it is straight up, and we don’t see that changing,” she says. “Part of our discussions internally are making sure the industry’s infrastructure can handle the growth. Whether we are peeling away from the mutual fund product line, I don’t know yet. I think we are entering into that world. The last couple of years has been a lot of new money going into ETFs, but I think we are going to start seeing money transferring into ETFs as people get more comfortable.”

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The quest for a better core portfolio With its CI WisdomTree Quality Dividend Growth Suite, CI Global Asset Management aims to provide a better core investment by using a multi-factor approach IN FEBRUARY 2020, when CI Global Asset Management (CI GAM) completed its acquisition of WisdomTree’s Canadian ETF business, it not only complemented the company’s existing lineup of ETFs, but also reinforced its position as a top-five ETF provider in Canada.

With many investors concerned about narrow market leadership or potential pricing bubbles in market-cap-weighted solutions, CI GAM saw opportunity in the form of its CI

WisdomTree Quality Dividend Growth Suite.

The suite’s fundamentally weighted index provides a means to diversify away from some of the risk associated with pricing bubbles that can emerge in a traditional market-capweighted index.

“WisdomTree indexes were born in 2006 from the research of famed investor Jeremy Siegel,” explains Randall Alberts, senior vice-president and head of distribution for

Eastern Canada at CI GAM. “These were some of the original smart beta ETFs, long before traditional indexes had been marketcap-weighted. This was also the first time a weighting mechanism based on dividend stream was brought to the marketplace.”

The suite covers multiple geographies and includes the CI WisdomTree Canada Quality Dividend Growth Index ETF (DGRC), the CI WisdomTree US Quality Dividend Growth Index ETF (DGR.B) and the CI WisdomTree International Quality Dividend Growth Index ETF (IQD.B). The US and international strategies also offer hedged and variably hedged options for investors looking to manage currency exposure.

The suite screens dividend-paying companies for quality and growth using return on assets, return on equity and earnings growth expectations. It then applies a dividend weighting to determine the allocation of the 50 stocks in the Canadian ETF portion and the 300 that comprise the US and international assets.

This process helps the investment team rank companies based on quality of earnings, quality of balance sheets and estimated earnings growth. As a result, the team can zero in on the best quality and growth opportunities. Once the different factors are applied, the team carefully selects the highest-ranking stocks and weights companies based on their dividend stream. The rationale behind this rigorous process, Alberts says, is to have a multi-factor quantitative approach that can avoid some of the problems caused by traditional market cap index and active strategies.

With a rules-based approach, the methodology remains disciplined and focused, regardless of market environment, trends or index levels. One of the advantages Alberts sees with the CI WisdomTree Quality Dividend Growth Suite is its ability to diversify risk from overexposed areas, such as the FAANG stocks (Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google), which are sometimes found in market-cap-weighted index funds.

“Reducing the reliance on FAANG stocks is relevant today because when we look at

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

PERFORMANCE OF THE WISDOMTREE CANADA QUALITY DIVIDEND GROWTH INDEX GROWTH OF $10,000 OVER TIME WisdomTree Canada Quality Dividend Growth Index

S&P/TSX Composite

$70,000 $60,000

$59,504

$50,000 $40,000

$35,731

$30,000 $20,000 $10,000 $0 Nov 2003

Feb 2005

Jun 2006

Oct 2007

Feb 2009

Jun 2010

Oct 2011

Feb 2013

Jun 2014

Oct 2015

Feb 2017

Jun 2018

Oct 2019

Source: Morningstar Research, as of December 31, 2020

“During this pandemic, the advantage we have relative to broad markets is that these ETFs offered better drawdown protection” Randall Alberts, CI Global Asset Management US markets, we see very narrow leadership,” Alberts says. “Most of the returns from the S&P 500 Index can be attributed to FAANG stocks and Microsoft. With a market-capweighted index, as security valuations climb, risks increase as these companies become an even bigger part of that index.”

One way the Quality Dividend Growth Suite addresses this concern is by requiring dividends from its holdings, which eliminates some of the higher-growth stocks that have loftier valuations and don’t pay dividends. The suite’s rigorous quality and growth screening also filters out unsustainable growth and higher leverage opportunities. The result is a portfolio that tilts away from those higher-growth stocks and corresponding risks.

Not only does this potentially create a much better core portfolio, Alberts says, but using the dividend stream provides a disciplined structure to rebalance in a way that makes sense to investors.

In the Canadian marketplace, DGRC has no exposure to the major Canadian banks,

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which would be unusual in a market-capweighted index or a Canadian dividend fund. Given these banks represent about a third of Canadian indexes and are a significant holding in many active investments, the positioning in CI GAM’s Quality Dividend Growth Suite is unique. That’s because, when the quality and growth screens are applied, the Canadian banks fall outside the top 50 ranking.

According to Alberts, this positioning is solely based on quality and growth factors.

“Canada represents less than 3% of global investment markets,” he says. “Unlike marketcap-weighted indexes, we look at netting a differentiated portfolio that is adding value. It isn’t a call to avoid banks, but rather invests based on systematic factors such as quality and growth factors.”

The suite also ranks well on environmental, social and governance (ESG) scores.

While it has no specific ESG screening, the strict criteria used for stock selection does tend to result in holding higher-scoring ESG

companies. For example, IQD and DGRC have a four-star (out of five) sustainability rating from Morningstar.

The long shadow COVID-19 cast on 2020 provided a test not only for the CI Quality Dividend Growth Suite but the entire ETF landscape. Alberts notes that the sector held up well, as it has done historically.

“During this pandemic, the advantage we have relative to broad markets is that these ETFs offered better drawdown protection,” he says. “It is something we have experienced repeatedly over the history of these ETFs and their underlying index. They have outperformed in the majority of drawdowns.”

Over the last 10 major drawdowns since 2006, the ETFs’ underlying index has outperformed seven times internationally, nine times in the US and every time in Canada. That resilience, along with the Quality Dividend Growth Suite’s ability to offer a differentiated strategic approach, is why Alberts thinks advisors should seriously consider it as a core exposure for clients.

“Our methodology is an improvement on traditional core strategies, and focusing on company fundamentals may provide a more intuitive approach to dividend growth,” he says. “With a track record of outperformance, even in a robust growth era like the previous decade, but also how this methodology reduces risk during market turmoil, we see a compelling argument as a core investment.”

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

One-ticket ETFs fill gap in balanced income With its monthly high income ETFs, Fidelity hopes to appeal to retirees in search of a simple solution for balanced income ONE OF the fastest-growing segments in the ETF market is asset allocation ETFs – essentially ETFs made up of other ETFs. These one-ticket solutions are designed to serve as the core of a portfolio – or even the entire portfolio. While many providers have launched

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passive solutions in the space, Fidelity looked to go active with two offerings that also address the need for income, launching the Fidelity Canadian Monthly High Income ETF (FCMI) and Fidelity Global Monthly High Income ETF (FCGI) in January 2020.

“These ETFs are largely driven by the fact that income is a priority for the demographic around an aging population,” says Andrew Clee, vice-president of product for Fidelity Canada. “It is no surprise we are an aging country. That generation is now starting to rely on their TFSAs, RRSPs and cash accounts as their source of income in retirement. When we looked at the balanced ETF landscape, we noticed there was a gap in the income space. What we did to differentiate was twofold – these are actively managed asset allocation ETFs, and the building blocks are mostly dividend-focused ETFs. Our hope was that clients could rely on these as a source of income for retirement.”

While the ETFs are constructed using many of Fidelity’s own ETFs, Clee says Fidelity has opened the products so the management team can purchase third-party

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ETFs and adjust the asset allocation in order to navigate the economic cycle.

These asset allocation ETFs offer advantages to both those on a direct channel and advisors looking to manager smaller accounts, Clee says. And because they pay monthly distributions, they can serve as a core for anyone who relies on income.

“If you look at someone on a discount platform, if they put these together or try to do it themselves, there are going to be multiple commission charges,” he says.

“When we look at the advisor side, this is a great solution for smaller accounts that an advisor may not want to pick 20 to 40 stocks or purchase multiple funds for.”

Having both a Canadian and a global version helps appeal to different types of investors. Clee notes that the tax advantage the Canadian fund provides for retirees is a major selling point.

“The Canadian dividend tax credit is a huge importance to a lot of retirees relying

“This is a great solution for smaller accounts that an advisor may not want to pick 20 to 40 stocks or purchase multiple funds for” Andrew Clee, Fidelity Canada on income from portfolios,” he says. “When I look at people using this as a source of income, that is where I see the Canadian ETF has an advantage.”

For other investors, however, the global version also provides income while still getting exposure to equities that have performed well recently.

“US equity has been the large driver of equity returns,” Clee says. “For investors who are more growth-oriented, that is where the global ETF comes into play.”

However, he notes that while equity

returns have been primarily seen on the US side recently, that wouldn’t have been the case a decade ago – so having both options is an advantage during different market cycles.

But the main benefits of the ETFs, Clee says, lie in generating income and managing smaller accounts.

“These are great solutions to address the growing need for income in a risk-controlled manner with the benefits of asset allocation,” he says. “For smaller accounts, they are a great single-ticket solution to address the needs of clients in an aging demographic.”

ASSET MIX OF FCMI AND FCGI

FIDELITY CANADIAN MONTHLY HIGH INCOME ETF (FCMI)

37.5% Canadian equities 33.0% Foreign equities

FIDELITY GLOBAL MONTHLY HIGH INCOME ETF (FCGI)

60.8% Foreign equities 14.8% High-yield bonds

9.6% Foreign bonds

12.2% Foreign bonds

8.9% High-yield bonds

8.4% Canadian equities

8.1% Canadian bonds

1.0% Futures, options and swaps

0.9% Other investments

0.6% Other investments

2.1% Cash and other

2.2% Cash and other Source: Fidelity.ca, as of November 30, 2020

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

A first-of-its-kind investment in travel Harvest ETFs hopes to capitalize on the comeback of the travel industry with its Travel & Leisure ETF – the first fund to offer exposure to all subsectors of the industry TRAVEL MIGHT not be top of mind for most Canadians right now, but with many travel companies still not near pre-pandemic valuations, Harvest ETFs saw an opportune time to launch an ETF designed as a long play on the industry’s recovery.

“We had been looking at the travel industry since 2019,” says Harvest president and CEO Michael Kovacs. “We recognized that the industry had been outperforming the S&P 500 for a number of years. We got lucky and didn’t launch it in 2019 or going into 2020. When the pandemic hit and many of the stocks were crushed, we said it was a great opportunity to take advantage of some of the values that have come down. It is a recovery type of positioning, and eventually the industry will return to its longer-term growth trends.”

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On January 14, Harvest launched the Harvest Travel & Leisure Index ETF (TRVL), a market cap index of the 30 largest stocks in the five subsectors of the travel and leisure universe. Harvest partnered with Solactive, which created the index for the ETF.

Kovacs explains. “It is fairly index mechanical in that way. There is no subjectivity – it is based on the market cap of these various subsectors of the industry.”

Those five subsectors include airlines, cruise companies, booking agencies like

“It is a recovery type of positioning, and eventually the industry will return to its longer-term growth trends” Michael Kovacs, Harvest ETFs “Solactive will market-weight it across the 30 stocks, and then if one gets to a maximum weighting of 10%, they will rebalance semi-annually to the market cap in the index,”

Expedia, resorts and casinos, and hotels.

“We did see opportunities in the sector,” Kovacs says. “Across these five different areas, a couple, like hotels and resorts/casinos, have

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TSX

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TRVL

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ETF SPOTLIGHT

TRVL’S SUBSECTOR ALLOCATION

come back quicker. Some areas, like cruise lines, we don’t expect back to full capacity until 2023, and airlines later this year. I think by the time we get to 2023, we will see a good rebound across all the areas. In setting up the fund, we wanted to position ourselves across these five subsectors and develop an indexbased fund with 30 different stocks.”

Harvest believes this ETF is the first of its kind worldwide to offer truly diversified travel exposure. Kovacs notes that while there are some travel sector funds in the US, this is the first one diversified across the five subsectors.

“From our research, this seems to be the only one of its kind that is this diversified,” he says. “We feel very fortunate. When it started trading, it was getting good activity and inquiries. The concept is a natural one for people to think about: travel, flights, cruises, hotels – something everyone is looking forward to doing again.”

On its launch date, the fund was 24% airlines, 31.8% hotels and resorts, and 8.6% cruise lines. The cruise industry is an interesting subsector, not only because it has been hit hard by the pandemic, but also because it is dominated by only a few companies.

“The cruise industry was hammered, but that will change as the industry comes back and the vaccination protocol picks up,” Kovacs says. “There are only three cruise companies in the fund: Royal Caribbean, Carnival and Norwegian. They control 72% of the global

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cruise industry by passenger capacity. They are dominant in the industry. They are global businesses, though North American-listed, like many names in the fund.”

Despite the well-recognized names that make up the fund, there was a bit of trepidation around when to launch it, Kovacs says.

As things began to settle down, he recognized that after the first wave of the virus, rebounds in the travel industry would start to emerge.

“We could see some of the rebounds starting to occur in baseline traffic in airlines,” he says. “Cruises were shut down, but hotels and casinos started to come back. We knew there was a potential for a second wave, but we thought getting into 2021, we would at some point be at the back end of this pandemic, so the best time to launch would be winter of 2021 as the sectors and markets move before recoveries. It was an opportune time – with some stocks down 50% from pre-pandemic highs, some have moved back to where they were before, but many are still down quite a bit.”

The cruise subsector is the one Harvest is keeping a close eye on – not because of any fears, but rather the timing of recovery.

“The cruise lines will be the longest to recover,” Kovacs predicts. “We expect airlines to recover by the second half of this year, when you will start to see travel pick up. They are still operating at just 30% compared to pre-pandemic. Cruise lines we see as a 2022 story before it picks up.”

30% Hotels, resorts and cruise lines 26% Airlines 22% Casinos and gaming 13% Internet and direct marketing retail 6% Hotel and resort REITs 3% Leisure facilities Source: Harvest Portfolios; as of February 4, 2021

While investors might see risks in putting money into the travel industry right now, Kovacs notes that TRVL has the same sector equity risk any fund focusing on one area would have.

“It is a smaller position in a portfolio, something you put in as a position on a rebound in the industry,” he says. “These are your top 30 companies in the world for market capitalization, the leaders in the space, so we are comfortable with them. It is just the timing as they rebound and come back as travel picks up.”

As for why advisors should consider incorporating TRVL in their portfolios, Kovacs points to a couple factors. “Diversification – it is a consumer discretionary recovery play as the consumer gets back out there,” he says.

“They will use some new savings towards travel. It is also a growth opportunity with long-term demographic winds in its sails.

Eventually, travel and leisure will get back to its longer-term growth trends.”

Harvest ETFs are managed by Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.

Industry leaders team up for new ESG ETFs Given its lengthy history in sustainable investing, TD Asset Management’s launch of an ESG-focused ETF suite was a natural fit IN LATE 2020, TD Asset Management (TDAM) added to its growing lineup of ETFs by introducing three environmental, social and governance (ESG) solutions – its latest foray into responsible investing. Relying on its long history in this area, TDAM brought something new to the table by working with Morningstar to create the indexes the ETFs track, and with Sustainalytics (a Morningstar company) to provide the ESG ratings for the securities in the funds. With three industry-recognized leaders involved in the fund, TDAM is hoping this will influence investors and advisors who might still be on the fence about adding ESG mandates to their portfolios.

“The ESG space is something TDAM has been involved in for a number of years, although it wasn’t always referred to as ESG,” says David Roode, VP and director of ETF product strategy at TDAM. “We were one of

the first asset managers to sign the United Nations-backed Principles for Responsible Investing in 2008 and had a mutual fund at that time in sustainable investing. The mantra at TD is being the ‘Green Bank,’ so being in the ESG space is a natural fit.”

TDAM has been making a strong push into the ETF market over the past couple of years. The company’s lineup has grown to 33 ETFs, and with $4.48 billion worth of assets as of January 5, it is ranked seventh in the country for ETF assets, according to National Bank Financial Markets and the Canadian ETF Association.

The company’s ETF shelf has grown by 27 products in the past two years (including 11 in 2020 alone), and amid the proliferation of ESG funds being brought to market, TDAM recognized a need for its own solutions. A desire to create something unique led

to the formation of the TD Morningstar ESG Equity Index ETF suite, three funds that give investors exposure to geographies around the world with an ESG tilt: Canada via the TD Morningstar ESG Canada Equity Index ETF (TMEC), the US via the TD Morningstar ESG US Equity Index ETF (TMEU), and international via the TD Morningstar ESG International Equity Index ETF (TMEI).

“When we look at the strategy of the ESG suite, these are index funds that provide index-like exposure while incorporating ESG principles,” Roode says. “It allows investors to invest alongside their beliefs. They want to make a statement with their investments without sacrificing performance or exposure.

The intent is these ETFs gain broad marketlevel exposure with the ESG tilt. It gives a core exposure for investors.”

The construction of the funds and the indexes they track is anything but simplistic, which is why TDAM chose Morningstar to construct them. Since the funds need an ESG rating, having Sustainalytics provide that strengthens the construction. “We rely on Morningstar – they construct the index using a rating score provided by Sustainalytics,” Roode says.

The process begins with the selection of a parent index, which represents the broad market of the geography where the fund is looking to gain exposure. Sustainalytics then provides data and scoring on the companies in that index, assigning each one a controversy score from 1 to 5, which measures issues companies might face and how they’re likely to deal with them. Anything with a high controversy score of 4 or 5 is automatically kicked out. In addition, controversial sectors like gambling, tobacco and weapons are excluded. From there, Sustainalytics provides ratings on the companies that are eligible and begins to build the portfolio.

“We are left with a group of companies, and each has an ESG rating,” Roode says. “We rank those and build a portfolio, taking individual companies with the best ESG scores, and do that until we get the market cap of the companies included at 67% of the market cap

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THE GROWTH OF TDAM’S ETF OFFERINGS Number of ETFs

AUM

$5bn 60

$4bn $3bn

40

$2bn 20

$1bn

0

$0 Oct 2018

Dec 2018

Feb 2019

Apr 2019

Jun 2019

Aug 2019

Oct 2019

Dec 2019

Feb 2020

Apr 2020

Jun 2020

Aug Oct 2020 2020

Dec 2020

Source: TD Asset Management

“These are index funds that provide index-like exposure while incorporating ESG principles. It allows investors to invest alongside their beliefs” David Roode, TD Asset Management of the parent index. We are getting the best ESG scores of the companies in the parent index. At the same time, we try and maintain sector allocation in the parent index.”

The combination of Morningstar and Sustainalytics’ expertise is something Roode says makes these funds unique, and the educational support they’ve received has been an added bonus.

“The combination of TDAM as the issuer, Morningstar as the index constructor and Sustainalytics as the ratings provider works well,” he says. “They have a willingness to support the products and explain everything.

Sustainalytics has helped put together education material – having that level of support in a space where there needs to be education of advisors and investors is important.”

The trust factor created by the collaboration has also been key for TDAM. Roode says that because the ESG space is still in its infancy, having companies with experience to create the ratings and the indexes themselves was important.

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“We went through numerous companies that have a rating and use different methodologies,” he says. “It is still a bit of the Wild West, and people don’t understand what an ESG score means – and they are not comparable between companies. When we looked to find an index provider to go with, we wanted to make sure we were collaborating with a firm that investors could trust. Sustainalytics, through our research, matched the criteria.

They have been around for over 25 years, have roots in Canada, a depth of talent and a detailed process to evaluate companies.”

Confidence in the quality of the research is critical – with so much information out there, Roode says, it would be nearly impossible for investors to evaluate it all themselves.

“Individual investors can’t look at and evaluate all the data points to ESG that Sustainalytics can – there are just too many companies,” he says. “When you are looking at ESG scores, you are looking not just at the financials – not all of it is numerical. They have a rigorous process to establish the scores

that can be trusted. Their ratings are not relative; the scores are absolute, and that is an interesting element, which means you can compare across industries.”

As more investors begin to place an emphasis on ESG investing, Roode believes TDAM’s new ETF suite will become a sought-after option.

“Given these are index funds and provide broad market exposure, the intent is for people to get their core exposure in each of these various markets,” he says. “Investors can use them as their beta exposure and add other types of funds on the periphery.”

On the other side of things, he notes that when advisors need to find a solution for investors interested in ESG, the backing that TDAM has put behind these ETFs makes them a trusted option.

“As an advisor, you want to be able to trust what you are going into,” he says. “You want to know that it will achieve the objective of a high ESG factor while striving to provide market-like returns. That is why we did these funds with Sustainalytics – because we can trust their ratings, the process and strength.”

The information contained herein has been provided by TD Asset Management Inc. and is for information purposes only. The information has been drawn from sources believed to be reliable.

Graphs and charts are used for illustrative purposes only and do not reflect future values or future performance of any investment. The information does not provide financial, legal, tax or investment advice. Particular investment, tax, or trading strategies should be evaluated relative to each individual’s objectives and risk tolerance. Certain statements in this document may contain forward-looking statements (“FLS”) that are predictive in nature and may include words such as “expects”, “anticipates”, “intends”, “believes”, “estimates” and similar forward-looking expressions or negative versions thereof.

FLS are based on current expectations and projections about future general economic, political and relevant market factors, such as interest and foreign exchange rates, equity and capital markets, the general business environment, assuming no changes to tax or other laws or government regulation or catastrophic events. Expectations and projections about future events are inherently subject to risks and uncertain-ties, which may be unforeseeable. Such expectations and projections may be incorrect in the future. FLS are not guarantees of future performance. Actual events could differ materially from those expressed or implied in any FLS. A number of important factors including those factors set out above can contribute to these digressions. You should avoid placing any reliance on FLS. Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with mutual fund and/ or exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) investments (collectively, “the Funds”). Trailing commissions may be associated with mutual fund investments. ETF units are bought and sold at market price on a stock exchange and brokerage commissions will reduce returns. Please read the fund facts or summary documents and the prospectus, which contain detailed investment information, before investing in the Funds. The Funds are not covered by the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation or by any other government deposit insurer and are not guaranteed or insured. Their values change frequently. There can be no assurances that a money market fund will be able to maintain its net asset value per unit at a constant amount or that the full amount of your investment will be returned to you. Past performance may not be repeated.

Morningstar® Canada Sustainability Extended IndexSM, Morningstar® US Sustainability Extended IndexSM and Morningstar® Developed Markets ex-North America Sustainability Extended IndexSM are service marks of Morningstar, Inc. and have been licensed for use for certain purposes

by TD Asset Management Inc. The TD Morningstar ESG Canada Equity Index ETF, TD Morningstar ESG International Equity Index ETF and TD Morningstar ESG U.S. Equity Index ETF (collectively, the “TD ETFs”) are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Morningstar Research Inc. (“Morningstar”), and Morningstar makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in the TD ETFs. TD ETFs are managed by TD Asset Management Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of The TorontoDominion Bank. \ All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. ® The TD logo and other trademarks are the property of The Toronto-Dominion Bank or its subsidiaries.

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5/02/2021 5:41:29 AM

EMERGE ARK ETFS

YOUR INNOVATION PARTNER IN CANADA The Emerge ARK ETFs, sub-advised by ARK Invest, are at the forefront of global innovation and active management.

Head into the future for 2021 with the Emerge ARK ETFs.

Ticker (CAD)

YTD

2020**

Since Inception*

EARK

153.8%

134.8%

96.4%

EAGB

193.0%

158.2%

108.5%

EAAI

139.2%

135.4%

98.4%

EAUT

112.8%

94.9%

82.6%

EAFT

99.2%

95.7%

70.6%

Performance as of January 22, 2021. *Since Inception Annualized July 29, 2019. **2020 Calendar year as of December 31, 2020.

FOR THE TOP THEMES IN DISRUPTIVE INNOVATION: Emerge ARK Global Impact Disruptive Innovation ETF TICKER CAD: EARK | THOMPSON ONE: EARK-GD FOR GENE EDITING AND PHARMACEUTICAL INNOVATIONS: Emerge ARK Genomics & Biotech ETF TICKER CAD: EAGB | THOMPSON ONE: EAGB-GD

FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND DIGITAL MEDIA: Emerge ARK AI & Big Data ETF TICKER CAD: EAAI | THOMPSON ONE: EAAI-GD

FOR SELF-DRIVING CARS AND 3D PRINTING: Emerge ARK Autonomous Tech & Robotics ETF TICKER CAD: EAUT | THOMPSON ONE: EAUT-GD

FOR GLOBAL PAYMENTS AND DIGITAL WALLETS: Emerge ARK Fintech Innovation ETF TICKER CAD: EAFT | THOMPSON ONE: EAFT-GD

SPEAK TO YOUR ADVISOR ABOUT THE EMERGE ARK ETFs TODAY.

Disclosures: Performance is sourced from Morningstar Direct. Commissions, management fees, brokerage fees and expenses may be associated with an investment in ETFs. Before investing, you should carefully consider the ETF’s investment objectives, strategies, risks, charges and expenses. This and other information is in the ETF’s prospectus, which may be obtained by visiting www.emergecm.ca or www. sedar.com. Please read the ETF prospectus carefully before you invest. An investment in an ETF is subject to risks and you can lose money on your investment. Detailed information regarding the specific risks of the ETF can be found in the prospectus. There can be no assurance that the ETF will achieve its investment objective. The ETF’s portfolio is more volatile than broad market averages. Units of the ETF are bought and sold at market price and there can be no guarantee that an active trading market for the ETF units will develop or be maintained, or that their listing will continue or remain unchanged. ETFs are not guaranteed. Their values change frequently. Past performance may not be repeated. The statements contained in this document are based on information believed to be reliable and are provided for information purposes only. Where such information is based in whole or in part on information provided by third parties, we cannot guarantee that is accurate, complete or current at all times. This document does not provide investment, tax or legal advice, and is not an offer or solicitation to buy. Graphs and charts are used for illustrative purposes only and do not reflect future values or returns on investment. Particular investment strategies should be evaluated according to an investor’s investment objectives and tolerance for risk. Emerge Canada Inc. and related entities are not liable for any error or omission in the information or for any loss or damage suffered.

E M E R G ECM .C A | 1 . 8 3 3 . 3 6 3 .74 3 2 | M A R K E T I N G @ E M E R G ECM .C A

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

Disruptive innovation comes to Canadian ETFs Sensing a hole in the Canadian ETF landscape, Emerge Canada sought to fill it with its own take on a technology ETF EMERGE CANADA came to the Canadian marketplace in July 2019 with a suite of five technology-focused ETFs. That was daunting enough – but Emerge had no idea what kind of environment was lurking around the corner. However, the asset manger’s ETFs, subadvised by ARK Investment Management and portfolio manager Catherine Wood, were not only able to weather the storm of the pandemic-induced selloff in March 2020, but also turned in impressive performance over the course of the year.

As a result, Emerge has seen its AUM grow from $10 million in 2019 to $204 million as of the end of 2020 – the most of any Canadian ETF provider, according to National Bank Financial Markets. Leading the way is its flagship ETF: the Emerge ARK

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Global Disruptive Innovation ETF (EARK), which builds on the relationship Emerge had forged with ARK in the US. “We saw while there is an increased

key fastest-growing, general-purpose technology platforms, and each one of the ETFs represents them. EARK is really the aggregator – a ‘best picks’ approach – where Wood

“Everyone is leaning into technology, but EARK didn’t have to pivot – it was already there” Lisa Langley, Emerge Canada number of active ETFs coming to the market in Canada, there wasn’t anyone focused on disruptive innovation in the manner that ARK does,” says Lisa Langley, founder and CEO of Emerge Canada. “ARK address the

looks at the themes and determines her preferred holdings to be in the flagship fund.

To the best of our ability, we follow what ARK is telling us to do, which is the same way they are executing in the US. There may be some

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EARK’S TOP 10 HOLDINGS

timing differences or Canadian concentration limits, but in every instance, we try to do the same.”

The selection process for EARK is very disciplined and involves both a top-down and bottom-up approach. ARK begins with a macroeconomic understanding of the marketplace and then performs a bottom-up analysis.

“The key in stock selection is ARK has subject experts with deep domain expertise,” Langley says. “They look at things companies are doing that may not be recognized by others who do not have that expertise. This is anything but a pure financial exercise.”

By not confining its analysis to an economic perspective, ARK’s management team is able to use their knowledge of the sector and really determine if a company has the means to prosper long-term – an approach that helped EARK perform during the turmoil caused by the pandemic. Langley notes that while some funds and indexes were down 25% to 45% in March, EARK was only down between 12% and 15%.

“The grace of the situation is that everything the world needs to conquer the pandemic and work more efficiently is related to technology,” she says. “Everyone is leaning into technology, but EARK didn’t have to pivot – it was already there. I was overjoyed

that the investment thesis for the holdings prevailed and actually were showing more resilience and opportunity.”

Many of the themes Emerge’s ETFs invest in – including fintech, e-commerce, artificial intelligence and deep learning, genomics, and industrial innovation – were accelerated by the pandemic, Langley points out.

“Everything that ARK was investing in and continues to invest in is needed by the world,” she says. “It is the right place and right time with the needs that are important to all of us every day. All of the themes benefit other areas, so they are top of mind, and there are opportunities.”

Langley’s goal was always to bring innovation to the forefront – specifically technologies that can improve the world. Even though Emerge had a similar product in the US, she felt it was important to have a Canadian version, too.

“Philosophically, I wanted a presence for Emerge in Canada and to do things properly by creating ETFs for Canadian investors and selecting the best subadvisors we could,” she says. “While US-listed ETFs can be purchased

by Canadians, they are not in the best interest of Canadian residents and investors from tax and estate planning perspectives.”

With an all-technology portfolio like

1 Tesla (10.57%) 2 Roku (6.89%) 3 Crispr Therapeutics (5.53%) 4 Square (5.25%) 5 Teladoc Health (4.36%) 6 Invitae Corp. (4.13%) 7 Zillow Group (3.09%) 8 Pure Storage (2.81%) 9 Proto Labs (2.79%) 10_Editas Medicine (2.69%) Source: Emerge Canada; as of December 31, 2020

Emerge’s, Langley does note that volatility is a risk. That’s why Emerge doesn’t suggest EARK as a core holding, but rather a satellite to diversify and accelerate growth. Still, Langley points out that if March was the worst-case scenario and investors are taking a long-term approach, then volatility is a minor factor. She says ARK’s investment process, with its focus on deep expertise and research, is geared toward the long term and is not distracted by the occasional volatility.

Langley believes investors and advisors need to consider investing in innovation, as its ability to solve world problems brings huge growth potential.

“These problems exist in every area,” she says. “All of these technologies solve problems and are needed. They also enable and spawn other technologies. Advisors should look to allocate to innovation so clients and portfolios can benefit from long-term trends of accelerated, uncorrelated growth from companies creating solutions to these world problems.”

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

Pandemic showcases opportunity in Canadian banks With bank valuations still better than historical averages, BMO’s Equal Weight Banks Index ETF offers a way to increase bank exposure quickly and efficiently CANADIAN FINANCIALS have been a consistent staple of most Canadian portfolios for years. Yet when the pandemic hit, the sector’s valuations significantly improved, creating a great opportunity for those wishing to enhance their exposure. While many core funds have an exposure to Canadian banks, BMO’s Equal Weight Banks Index ETF (ZEB) is one way to get increased exposure.

“Valuations got to an attractive point,” says Chris Heakes, VP and portfolio manager for global structured investments at BMO

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Global Asset Management. “If you go back to April, banks were yielding in the 6%-plus range; historical average is about 4%. In recent history, Canadian banks were one of the first to bounce back from the 2008 crisis.

When you look at your cyclical sector playbook, investors believed Canadian financials had the potential to bounce back first. I think that is what happened.”

Heakes says banks started to rally thanks to the support of fiscal and monetary stimulus and have carried that momentum into 2021.

He reports that their dividend yield is, at 4.5%, still above the historical average, so there’s a positive backdrop for the sector.

ZEB is a straightforward, transparent ETF that aims to gain exposure to an equalweighted basket of the six largest Canadian banks. BMO’s equal weighting approach is designed to minimize the impact of any one bank and capture the overall industry exposure, Heakes says.

“It is a very clean construction,” he says.

“With stock-picking, we can get into trouble

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ZEB’S ALLOCATION JUST BEFORE ITS REBALANCING IN MARCH 20%

18.35%

17.71%

15%

16.87% 15.89%

15.72%

14.66%

10%

5%

0.80% 0%

Scotiabank

BMO

TD Bank

RBC

CIBC

National Bank of Canada

Cash

Source: BMO GAM; as of January 25, 2021

– when to buy and when to sell. ZEB, as a diversified bank ETF, gives you one clean exposure. You can plug it in, taking away the need to stock-pick, and get the returns you want. It keeps things simple for investors.”

The ETF rebalances semi-annually to an equal weighting to bring it back to an overall sector exposure – even though the banks tend to move in a similar direction, there is some performance drift from quarter to quarter.

That’s exactly what has happened now; the fund scheduled to rebalance in March, as Scotiabank currently holds a slightly higher weighting (around 18%).

“Scotia was hit hard during the pandemic, in part due to their international exposure,” Heakes explains. “Now you are seeing a bit of a bounce-back. It is not uncommon to see this with the Canadian banks – often the underperformer in one period can outperform the next.”

When it comes to ZEB’s risks, Heakes notes that there is equity risk, and a big driver for the banks is on the credit risk side,

“ZEB, as a diversified bank ETF, gives you one clean exposure. You can plug it in, taking away the need to stock-pick, and get the returns you want” Chris Heakes, BMO Global Asset Management which could still be affected by the pandemic.

“I think the risk now is if we don’t reopen or the vaccine distribution is further delayed – that could negatively impact businesses at the grassroots level and translate to more credit risk for banks,” he says. “I think that is the downside case – I am cautiously optimistic we will get to the light on the other side of the tunnel. The other risk is it is a sector fund, so even though Canadian banks give you diversified exposure because they are exposed to all kinds of businesses, it still is one sector.”

Heakes sees ZEB as a satellite option.

Because many Canadian core funds already

have exposure to the Canadian banks, he notes that it’s important to understand what you already have, but this can be an option for investors looking to increase their exposure.

“Think of ZEB as a satellite – you can adjust your position in Canadian banks according to your outlook,” he says. “A lot of investors find the Canadian banks have attractive risk/return profiles and dividend streams that tend to grow over time. Or they see them as a tactical trade that can continue to bear good fruit. Depending on what you want to accomplish, as a satellite position, it makes sense.”

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5/02/2021 5:41:34 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

Fuelling the future with a uranium ETF With energized performance in 2020, Horizons’ Global Uranium Index ETF (HURA) aims to provide diversified exposure to the uranium sector ONE OF Horizons ETFs’ best-performing funds over the one-year period ending December 31, 2020, has been its Global Uranium Index ETF (HURA), an index fund that offers exposure to companies involved in uranium mining and exploration, as well as the physical price of uranium. Yet understanding the fund’s performance last year requires looking back at the history of the commodity that could impact its underlying index, the Solactive Global Uranium

20

PurePlay Index.

“Uranium goes through relatively long bear and bull cycles,” explains Nick Piquard, portfolio manager and options strategist at Horizons ETFs. It has been in a bear cycle for the last seven or eight years, and the last high was in 2007.”

Piquard highlights a few factors that created this prolonged bear run. The first was the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. That put many activities related to nuclear energy

on hold globally. The second was countries shifting to other renewable sources of energy, like solar and wind, which led to an increase in energy supply. However, countries soon realized that they couldn’t just flip the switch on energy; traditional sources were still necessary. That’s when things started to swing for the industry.

“One significant change was the shutdown of the McArthur River uranium mine in Northern Saskatchewan,” Piquard says. “It was the largest mine in the world at the time, so that started to limit supply.”

In 2018, Kazatomprom, the national uranium company of Kazakhstan, went public, curtailing supply as the company sought growth over profits. In 2019, it announced production cuts through 2021 as the uranium market recovered from oversupply and prices remained low. “That also curtailed supply,” Piquard says.

Meanwhile, countries such as China began building and exporting more nuclear reactors at a faster pace. Suddenly, there was a demand for the reduced supply of uranium. That ushered in a renaissance for the industry, as now it is seeing advances in technology and safety. That’s why Horizons saw an opportunity to offer exposure to the space.

“When we launched HURA, we set out to offer an ETF that provides diversified exposure to uranium,” Piquard says. “We recognized that it was a pretty niche industry, so we sought an index that offered exposure to all areas of the sector.”

Through its underlying index, the Solactive Global Uranium Pure-Play Index, “we have large-cap exposure through the holdings of Cameco and Kazatomprom, the two largest uranium companies,” he says. “Then we have the junior miners, and up to 20% of the portfolio can be allocated to companies that hold uranium as a commodity.”

Piquard adds that investing in physical uranium is different than other commodities because there is no liquid futures market. To get the exposure, the fund’s mandate includes uranium holding companies Uranium

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5/02/2021 5:41:36 AM

Com The suc its v bef The con

TACTICAL FLEXIBILITY DIVERSIFICATION

HARB Access Positive Absolute

Risk-Adjusted Return Potential HorizonsETFs.com/HARB

Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with an investment in Horizons Tactical Absolute Return Bond ETF (“the ETF”) managed by Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. The ETF is an alternative mutual fund within the meaning of National instrument 81-102, Investment Funds, and is permitted to use strategies generally prohibited by conventional mutual funds and ETFs, such as borrowing cash, selling securities short, and employing leverage of up to 300%, amongst others. The use of these strategies may accelerate the risk associated with the ETF. The ETF Is not guaranteed, its values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. The prospectus contains important detailed information about the ETF. Please read the prospectus and its risk disclosure before investing.

The information contained herein reflects general tax rules only and does not constitute, and should not be construed as, tax advice. Investors’ situations may differ from those illustrated. Investors should consult with their tax advisors before making any investment decisions.

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

HURA’S ANNUALIZED PERFORMANCE Horizons Global Uranium Index ETF

Solactive Global Uranium Pure-Play Index

80%

70%

65.67% 66.23%

60%

65.67% 66.23%

53.25% 53.24%

50%

46.55% 46.82% 40%

46.30% 46.03%

30%

22.34% 23.62%

20%

10%

0%

1 month

3 months

6 months

YTD

1 year

Since inception*

The indicated rates of return are the historical annual compounded total returns, including changes in unit value and reinvestment of all distributions, and do not take into account sales, redemption, distribution or optional charges or income taxes payable by any securityholder that would have reduced returns. Additionally, index returns do not take into account management, operating or trading expenses that may be incurred in replicating the index. The rates of return above are not indicative of future returns. The ETF is not guaranteed, it’s value changes frequently, and past performance may not be repeated. The index is not directly investible.

Source: Bloomberg, as of December 31, 2020 *Performance since inception on May 15, 2019

“I think the future for uranium is pretty bright … If we can improve on nuclear technology and safety, and get people more comfortable with it as a resource, there is plenty of it to be used” Nick Piquard, Horizons ETFs Participation Unit and Yellowcake.

“Because the index methodology caps the weight of each company at 20%, you have the two large-cap companies at 40% of the fund, then 40% is exposure to junior miners and 20% to the physical commodity, so it is a nice balance,” Piquard says.

Creating a fund with diversified exposure made sense to Horizons. Unlike other commodities, such as gold, which has

22

dedicated funds to each of the subsectors (gold bullion, gold mining and exploration companies, and gold futures), the uranium market is smaller. Providing exposure to all three areas makes it easier for investors to access them. “It adds diversification, and if the sector does well, they should all do well,” Piquard says, though he notes that if there is a decline, these sectors would move in tandem.

The positive performance of the uranium

sector – and subsequently HURA – can potentially be attributed to a few key factors. First, the reduction in supply had a tremendous impact. Then, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it forced the second largest mine, Cigar Lake, to also shut down, reducing supply further.

While that mine did reopen, it was forced to shut down again in December 2020 during COVID-19’s second wave.

“That precipitated the perception that we were heading towards a deficit in uranium unless the big mines could come back online,” Piquard says. “So, the decline in supply has been a big factor. At the same time, there hasn’t been a change in demand; it didn’t come down much during the pandemic because people still needed electricity.”

While recent demand has laid way to strong performance, Piquard feels uranium may have some more room to grow.

“I think the future for uranium is pretty bright,” he says. “There is quite a bit of uranium in the world; it is just expensive to extract. Australia, for example, doesn’t produce much or nearly as much as Canada and Kazakhstan, but they have the biggest reserves in the world; it is just expensive to get to. On the other hand, uranium is a pretty small part of the cost of generating electricity. If we can improve on nuclear technology and safety, and get people more comfortable with it as a resource, there is plenty of it to be used. Some of the newer technologies look bright in terms of lower fixed cost and better safety profiles.”

As the technology continues to improve in the industry, and if uranium can be less expensive to mine, that supply could keep nuclear power in the conversation, even as the shift to renewable energy occurs.

“Energy demand is only going to be greater,” Piquard says. “You see all these targets of getting rid of fossil fuel generation in electricity, but coal, natural gas and oil still contribute about 50% of electricity generation. It will be hard for renewables to meet that demand. The technology may get there down the road, but we have technology today in nuclear to meet that need. You are

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starting to see it from various governments – they want to invest in that space and want to protect existing infrastructure.”

One example of that is in the US with the American Nuclear Infrastructure Act (AINA), approved in December 2020, which promotes the development of nuclear technologies, new reactors and creating a uranium reserve.

It currently has support from both political parties, which is another good sign for the industry. In Canada, $26 billion is being invested in Ontario to refurbish 10 reactors until 2031, ensuring their operation for another 25 to 30 years.

Piquard notes that uranium is a highrisk sector because of its volatility and the long bull and bear markets, so the fund should only appeal to investors who have a high risk tolerance. He adds there can also be risks around the mines themselves that can affect the industry; if there is a decline in the industry, it is reflected in these funds.

However, he says that because the fund provides exposure to multiple areas of the industry, it aims to give investors exposure without putting all their eggs in one basket.

“I think if you believe nuclear energy is here to stay – it is currently providing 11% of global energy supply, 20% in the US – I think it could be an attractive market because we aren’t producing enough uranium today to supply the existing power plants,” Piquard says. “The market is still imbalanced because there is inventory overhang from when Japan shut down their plants and some additional inventory available, but that inventory won’t last forever. If you take a long-term view, then I think it provides an attractive entry point.”

Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with an investment in exchange traded products (the “Horizons Exchange Traded Products”) managed by Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. The Horizons Exchange Traded Products are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. The prospectus contains important detailed information about the Horizons Exchange Traded Products. Please read the relevant prospectus before investing.

Certain statements may constitute a forward-looking statement, including those identified by the expression “expect” and similar expressions (including grammatical variations thereof). The forward-looking statements are not historical facts but reflect the author’s current expectations regarding future results or events. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations. These and other factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on such forward looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the authors do not undertake to update any forward-looking statement that is contained herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable law.

A global approach to quality investments With its new Global Growth Active ETF, Franklin Templeton is putting a focus on the long term for its clients FRANKLIN TEMPLETON is looking to help Canadian investors gain exposure to quality companies across the globe with its Global Growth Active ETF (FGGE).

Launched in October 2020, the fund is a concentrated portfolio of high-quality, long-term growth investments. A dedicated analyst team allows the fund to operate as a boutique within Franklin Templeton.

“We benefit from the resources of a broader organization, but we have a lot of concentrated analyst attention here,” says Patrick McKeegan, vice-president and portfolio manager at Franklin Templeton.

It’s a long-term approach – analysts are

looking at three to five years in the future, and they’re focused on high-quality investments.

“We have a fairly unique approach to portfolio concentration and risk management,” McKeegan says, “in that we are concentrated in the number of names we have in the portfolio, but we’re diversified in that we try to intentionally touch 35 to 40 different growth engines globally.”

FGGE invests substantially all of its assets in the Franklin Global Growth Fund, which is a concentrated portfolio of 35 to 40 global growth stocks. Benchmark-indifferent, the fund can invest anywhere around the world, including up to 20% in emerging market

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SPECIAL REPORT

ETF SPOTLIGHT

equities. With a concentration on mid- and large-cap investments, it gives a high active share, typically at 95% or more compared to the benchmark.

According to Ahmed Farooq, vicepresident of ETF business development at Franklin Templeton, FGGE provides an opportunity to get a differentiated strategy from what’s available right now.

“Last year, there was a huge amount of uptick in terms of thematic ETFs, or ETFs that were really positioning themselves with healthcare and technology,” he says. “I think this is a strategy that’s differentiated enough that we’re looking for a lot of the overlooked stocks in the benchmark across all sectors, versus just kind of imposing our portfolio on the two main sectors.” He adds that this strategy can uncover stocks that would normally “never see the light of day.”

According to McKeegan, all of Franklin Templeton’s investments are vetted in the context of three broad buckets: growth, quality and valuation.

“When analysts are doing work here, we have 11 investment professionals on this product, as well as nine dedicated analysts,” he says. “Analysts are typically spending two or three months … getting in the weeds, understanding not only the company, but the ecosystem that the company operates in.”

In the growth bucket, they’re focused on the business model, the competitive modes around the business and whether they can be confident that an attractive, high-level growth opportunity can become a high-value business model with the ability to generate durable, free cash flow.

The second bucket – quality – focuses on financial transparency, accounting quality and more. McKeegan notes that the Franklin Global Growth Fund was one of the first to use ESG as an assessment of quality. “We take the rights of minority shareholders seriously from a governance perspective,” he says.

The third bucket – valuation – is something Franklin Templeton’s analysts always consider. “We are looking at a long-term DCF, and so we’re valuing everything based on

24

“We are concentrated in the number of names we have in the portfolio, but we’re diversified in that we try to intentionally touch 35 to 40 different growth engines globally” Patrick McKeegan, Franklin Templeton FGGE’S GEOGRAPHIC ALLOCATION 65.91% US 5.25% Canada 4.92% Switzerland 4.90% Australia 3.22% Argentina 3.15% India 2.96% China 2.78% Netherlands 2.27% Denmark 4.64% Cash and cash equivalents

Source: Franklin Templeton; as of December 31, 2020

cash flow,” McKeegan says, adding that this includes e-commerce and biotech companies.

He notes that even early-stage investments in the portfolio are being modelled out over a 10-year period.

From an advisor’s perspective and a

macroeconomic point of view, Farooq says, the ETF allows potential investors to not look at negative headlines and buy from a bottom-up position where they’re looking for higher-growth companies that can provide diversification benefits.

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