SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)

People were thinking there was going to be volatility in 2017, but markets literally went straight up. Now the forecast for 2018 is higher volatility, and we’ll have to see what happens. This is based on the entire market, but you have to remember the market is not just made up of one thing, it is made out of other pieces of businesses. She runs a very concentrated portfolio, which allows her to cherry pick the parts of the market that she thinks will do well, so she is not just in the broad market. Doesn't see how people can do well by owning a broad market.

SPY-N vs. ZSP-T. They should be identical except ZSP-T trades in Toronto but has exposure to the US$. If the US$ gets stronger it should help the ETF. SPY-N has underperformed dramatically because it is in US$. They would be identical if you converted the dollars. There is foreign tax withholdings of about 30 basis points on SPY-N. ZSP-T gives you a foreign tax withholding also but you get a tax credit.

It is the one decision way to get exposure to the S&500. The recent weakness in the US dollar doesn’t hurt. You will do just fine with it. We are in a market that is benefiting some sectors more than others so he would like a more targeted exposure. Financials, industrials – a basket of 3 or 4 of them.

(A Top Pick Aug 4/16. Up 16.88%.) This is pretty much a core holding.

(A Top Pick Aug 4/16. Up 16.58%.)

An index fund that tracks the S&P 500? There are several and the big one is this one. The most heavily traded and largest. You could also do SPDR S&P 500 ETF (VV-N), as well as others. They are very straightforward and very low cost.

As options approach their expiry they lose their time value, but are not incredibly volatile.

As a global investor he has been moving away from the US in the last few quarters. The US will be travelling a different monetary passage than other Central Banks. Also, looking at where we were 7 years ago we had a hugely undervalued US$. The US has dramatically outperformed a lot of other stock markets, and during that period it became really expensive. He feels the US is somewhat overvalued relative to other stock markets, which is going to be a headwind. Also, valuations are just not as good as other countries.

Broad US market, S&P 500 index. It has $200 Billion in assets. It is the largest ETF of them all. A lot of people have domestic and foreign ETFs, but no US ETFs. This represents the whole US market. Long term he is very bullish on the US. It trades in US$.

Short by using HBP S&P 500 VIX ST Future Bull+ (HVU-T)? Part of what we have seen in this move has been a bit of a Short squeeze that is going on. The Fed is going to be talking on June 15-16, so there is going to be a bit of a bid until after that. You could start to take some Short positions but he wouldn’t go totally short. There is a bit of overhead resistance. Wait until we get closer to the June meeting.

(A Top Pick Aug 18/15. 0.00% Return.) He bought the stock a little higher than what it is today, but sold an option which reduced his costs down to $208.52. He also collected dividends on this, which has not been included.

(Covered Calls. He is playing the last half of the year by taking some option premiums in with he expects that these 3 Top Picks will hold their own or rise. Yield on the total return is pretty attractive. Thinks we could be in a flat market until the end of the year.) The largest ETF in the US. Very liquid and very cheap to own. Trading at around $210 a share and he is selling a January $220 Call Option. Selling this will give you roughly $2 and you get $2 in dividends between now and January. If the stock is called away your return is better than 6.5%. If it stays the same you make just under 2%.

(A Top Pick April 14/15. Up 0.79%.) On average, the US and most global markets peak on May 5, so the whole idea is that you want to own this until May 5. He got out on that date, but it turned out to be a little bit early.

Technicals are positive. The S&P 500 is in an upward trend. Trading above its 20 day moving average. This is the market, so it is doing what the market does. Seasonality continues to be positive until, on average, May 5. There is a danger that the markets could come under pressure some time between May and October of this year. A very short term trade.

Expecting a bit of weakness this summer and we are seeing stretched valuations. Nothing is cheap at the present so you want to avoid the broad markets. This one is trading at about a 17 multiple. Look for things with a lower multiple such as consumer staples or utilities which are hovering around 14.