Stockchase Opinions

Larry Berman CFA, CMT, CTA BMO US Put Write Hedged to CAD ZPH-T BUY May 08, 2017

ZPW-T vs. ZPH-T. ZPH-T is hedged against currency risk. The cost of hedging is the differential in the cost of writing the forward contract. He is fully hedged on all portfolios. The CAD$ may go back to $.80. If markets sell off and contracts come into the money they may get taken out. A 20% down for the market will cause many of their stocks to come down into the money.

$19.900

Stock price when the opinion was issued

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COMMENT

ZWE-T vs. ZPH-T. ZPH-T is the put write strategy. If we have an acute sell off, both will lose a little money. If you are branching outside of Canada, there is no dividend tax credit, but put write gives additional income. He recommends having a bit of both in order to diversify. Europe is a bit more attractive over the next couple of years.

HOLD

It contains some of the best quality companies in the US. BMO write puts 15-20% below the market price. They generate additional income from the puts. Every month if the markets don’t fall to those prices, then they harvest the income on those puts. BMO does not want to own the stocks so if necessary they buy the option and re-write the put. He expects 6-7% from it. If it is not working out the way you hoped, pricewise, then you have to ask if you can take the asset and put it somewhere else. This ETF won’t grow in price.

COMMENT
ZPH-T vs. ZPW-T. When the view is that the CAD$ is going to get weaker you don’t want to be hedged. If it is going to be stronger, then you want currency hedged.
COMMENT
The idea is that you are giving the right to sell the stock at a price higher than what is selling. If the market turns you are going to be clobbered. The same as in a covered call. Interesting yield play as long as you understand the risk.
COMMENT
ZPH and ZPW in a recession? He was a big fan of these put-write strategies--to write puts on the best companies on the market--when they launched, but they have since failed to execute this plan. He still holds these for the yields, though, because it provides an alternative source of yield. In a recession, it depends on how fast the markets go down. There is an embedded protection in these ETFs, giving you only half the downside. With these, you place a put, but don't own the companies, but rather harvest the yield off the option premium.
SELL
He has not been happy with it for a year. They created ZPAY-T which he moved to. It is a similar ETF.
COMMENT

ZPH and ZPW way to extract yield from the market without taking a lot of risk. They have been okay but not great. ZPAY is a better way to benefit from the same strategy.

COMMENT

They write puts and buys good companies at lower prices and sells high. He would cycle out of ZPH and ZPW to ZPAY which generates a rate of around 6% but with a better strategy.

COMMENT

Would not suggest Put Write strategy (ZPH). Would prefer ZPAY for the US market. ZPH never owns the stocks whereas ZPAY wants to own the stock at better prices.

DON'T BUY
Good replacement for a HISA?

Idea was to extract tax-efficient income out of the market. Hasn't taken off in a big way. See ZPAY.