TSE:ZWB

BMO Covered Call Canadian Banks ETF (ZWB.TO)

28.91
+0.02 (0.07%)
as of Jun 5, 2026, 7:58:02 pm Market Open.
328 watching
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Investor Insights
star iconJun 6, 2026, 12:00 am

This summary was created by AI, based on 9 opinions in the last 12 months.

The BMO Covered Call Canadian Banks ETF (ZWB) has received a mix of reviews from various experts, highlighting both its benefits and drawbacks. The ETF, which is concentrated in Canadian banks and designed to generate income through a covered call strategy, has seen a notable increase of approximately 52% over the last year, albeit less than the equal-weighted counterpart, ZEB, which rose by 63%. While many experts appreciate the extra layer of yield that the covered call provides, they also caution against investing heavily at this stage in the economic cycle due to potential downturns affecting bank performance. Concerns about underperformance relative to the underlying banks, and the inherent trade-offs of call writing, such as capping upside potential, were also articulated. Overall, ZWB is seen as a long-term holding for those looking for income, but caution is advised regarding new investments given current market conditions.

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Consensus
Cautious
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Valuation
Fair Value
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ZEB-T
BUY

Own both Canadian banks and ETF like this? He has clients who've owned both, so holding both is okay. You can make income off the covered call. He likes Canadian banks, because they've diversified outside Canada, such as TD and Royal.

BUY

He likes the Canadian Banks now. Recommends buying it together with BMO Covered Call Utilities ETF (ZWU-T) to provide stability to the portfolio.

DON'T BUY

ZWU or ZWB? Add more to both? Utilities and banks, covered call. Wouldn’t add more, and be especially careful with the utilities one in a rising rate environment. Might want to use the Vanguard VXC, world index excluding Canada. Inexpensive, liquid. Encourage people to look outside Canada for growth.

BUY

Yes, you can buy and hold this in a TFSA. Its yield is close to the Canadian banks' yield. What is the covered call portion doing for it?

BUY

What's a covered call, international dividend ETF, hedged to the CAD? Just go with the S&P 500, made up of companies that have a footprint around the world. Consider ZWB-T, a covered call on Canadian banks. A hedge against CAD but has global exposure.

BUY

He owns lots of it because it's on the Canadian banks with some U.S. exposure. The banks have had a good run. Pays a 3.9% dividend.

TOP PICK

He holds a lot of this. ZWB puts the covererd call portion on only 50-60%, so you also get the growth in the bank stocks. The Canadian banks will perform decently.

HOLD

It should be dividend income and the covered call overlay is all capital gain. He does not see a lot of growth in the banks for next few years. This is the best way to hold them. He expects them to fall 25% from the peak during the next recession. The dividends are not in jeopardy.

PARTIAL SELL

ZWB-T vs. SU-T, which to sell. There is nothing wrong with Canadian banks long term. ZWB-T is his preferred way to play it. He got out of it when it retested last year’s resistance. He thinks we will test last year’s lows and then he would be a buyer. SU-T is a bellwether of the market but will underperform a lot of global oil plays. He would trim exposure and then look to buy it 10-15% lower. He would trim both here and look to buy them back.

COMMENT

He uses a lot of the ZWB-T. He is always looking at keeping the cost low. When looking at covered calls or managed ETFs, all of a sudden prices spike. He’s looking to buy from 5 to 15 basis points. But there are times when he will look at a different products like ZWB-T or the whole series they have, ZWH-T, ZWA-T, etc. But the different thing with the covered calls is that the persons sitting at the trading desks are actually making a difference and he thinks it’s worth paying for. When you buy a covered call you are giving up some of the upside in exchange for cash flow. With interests rates being so low, covered calls are a good way to get the flow of income. He uses covered calls to enhance the income of a portfolio. He’s been holding this for years.

SELL

He loves ZWB-T and it is a great way to hold the banks. But he sold out, taking profits, putting it into ZWU-T. This is a lot more interest rate sensitive. ZWU-T will outperform in a market correction as utilities are more defensive.

COMMENT

Unfavourable in a TFSA account because of the withholding taxes? It would not be in this case, because this is Canadian banks.

WAIT

Equal weighted Canadian bank covered call strategy. Banks should settle into a trading range over the next couple of years so buy low and sell high. Wait until it pulls back. You could trim your position right now.

BUY

This has gone from around $21 to $19 and the yield is about 5.1%. A good entry point.

BUY

A sector play just on Canadian banks, which he likes better than a broadly diversified portfolio. His concern on a broadly diversified portfolio is the movement of different sectors in the course of a business cycle. You lose the sectors as they are rising, and you end up continuing to hold the sectors that are declining. This one is only one sector. The banks are averaging about 4.25% dividends, and about half the income comes from dividends and the other half comes from capital gains on the sale of options. They only write options on about 50% of the portfolio, so you are getting some upside anyways as banks continue to rise. A good ETF.

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