royal bank

ISHARES S&P/TSX 60 INDEX FUND $19.25 (Toronto symbol XIU; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) is a good low-fee way to buy the top stocks on the TSX. The units are made up of stocks that represent the S&P/TSX 60 Index, which consists of the 60 largest, most heavily traded stocks on the exchange. Expenses are just 0.17% of assets.

The index mostly consists of high-quality companies. However, it must ensure that all sectors are represented, so it holds a few we wouldn’t include.

The index’s top holdings are Royal Bank, 8.3%; TD Bank, 7.3%; Bank of Nova Scotia, 6.4%; Suncor Energy, 4.5%; CN Railway, 4.1%; Bank of Montreal, 3.9%; Manulife Financial, 3.1%; Canadian Natural Resources, 3.1%; CIBC, 3.0%; BCE, 3.0%; Enbridge, 3.0%; Valeant Pharmaceuticals, 2.9%; TransCanada Corporation, 2.7%; Potash Corp., 2.4%; CP Rail, 2.1%; Telus, 2.0%; and Cenovus, 1.9%.
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iShares Canadian Fundamental Index Fund ETF, $13.39, symbol CRQ on Toronto (Units outstanding: 16.8 million; Market cap: $225.0 million; ca.ishares.com), aims to track the FTSE RAFI Canada Index. The ETF’s top 10 holdings are Royal Bank, 7.2%; TD Bank, 6.2%; Bank of Nova Scotia, 5.0%; Manulife Financial, 4.6%; Suncor Energy, 4.4%; Bank of Montreal, 4.0%; Encana, 3.3%; CIBC, 3.0%; Canadian Natural Resources, 2.8%; and Sun Life Financial, 2.6%. Its expenses are 0.72% of its assets. The RAFI (Research Affiliates Fundamental Index) methodology aims to select companies by the highest fundamental measures of their size, rather than by market capitalization (or the value of all their outstanding shares)....

Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are set up to mirror the performance of a stock-market index or subindex. They hold a more or less fixed selection of securities that represent the holdings that go into the calculation of the index or sub-index....

Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are set up to mirror the performance of a stock-market index or subindex. They hold a more or less fixed selection of securities that represent the holdings that go into the calculation of the index or sub-index.

ETFs trade on stock exchanges, just like stocks....

CGI GROUP INC., $39.61, Toronto symbol GIB.A, hit a new all-time high of $41.47 this week after it reported better-than-expected quarterly results. The company is Canada’s largest provider of computer outsourcing services. It helps its clients automate certain routine functions, like accounting and buying supplies. That makes companies more efficient and lets them focus on their main businesses. On August 20, 2012, CGI completed its $2.7-billion purchase of Logica plc, a U.K.-based firm that offers computer outsourcing services in 36 countries....

The U.S. is the sole country worldwide that requires its citizens to file an income tax return and report any income regardless of where they live or whether they hold dual citizenship in another country. That’s unlike Canada, which mainly bases its tax system on country of residence, like most other nations. The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) estimates that five to seven million American citizens reside abroad. Of that total, about one million live in Canada. Most U.S. citizens paying income taxes in Canada pay no additional U.S. income tax. However, they still have U.S. tax filing and compliance requirements....

ROYAL BANK OF CANADA, $64.90, Toronto symbol RY, reported that its earnings rose 11.9% in the three months ended July 31, 2013, to $2.2 billion from $2.0 billion a year earlier. Earnings per share rose 13.2%, to $1.46 from $1.29, on fewer shares outstanding. These figures exclude unusual items, such as a $90-million tax refund in the latest quarter. On that basis, Royal’s earnings beat the consensus forecast of $1.38 a share. However, the bank was forced to write down the value of certain securities it holds, which cut its revenue by 6.9%, to $7.2 billion from $7.8 billion. The bank continues to see strong loan demand at its retail banking operations in Canada, the U.S. and the Caribbean. This division’s earnings, which accounted for 57% of Royal’s total, rose 7.1%....

ISHARES DOW JONES CANADA SELECT DIVIDEND INDEX FUND $22.31 (Toronto symbol XDV; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) holds 30 of the highest-yielding Canadian stocks. Its selections are based on dividend growth, yield and payout ratio. The weight of any one stock is limited to 10% of its assets. The fund’s MER is 0.50%. It yields 4.5%.

The fund’s top holdings are Bonterra Energy, 6.5%; CIBC, 6.3%; National Bank, 5.9%; TD Bank, 5.7%; Bank of Montreal, 5.3%; Royal Bank, 4.5%; IGM Financial, 4.4%; Telus Corp., 4.2%; Bank of Nova Scotia, 4.1%; and BCE Inc., 4.0%.

The fund holds 53.4% of its assets in financial stocks. The top Canadian finance stocks have sound prospects. However, if you invest in this ETF, be sure to adjust the rest of your portfolio so it won’t be overly concentrated in the financial sector.
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ISHARES S&P/TSX 60 INDEX FUND $17.88 (Toronto symbol XIU; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) is a good low-fee way to buy the top stocks on the TSX. The units are made up of stocks that represent the S&P/TSX 60 Index, which consists of the 60 largest, most heavily traded stocks on the exchange. Expenses are just 0.17% of assets.

The index mostly consists of high-quality companies. However, it must ensure that all sectors are represented, so it holds a few we wouldn’t include.

The index’s top holdings are Royal Bank, 8.2%; TD Bank, 7.1%; Bank of Nova Scotia, 6.2%; Suncor Energy, 4.5%; CN Railway, 3.9%; Bank of Montreal, 3.7%; Enbridge, 3.4%; Canadian Natural Resources, 3.2%; TransCanada Corporation, 3.0%; Manulife Financial, 3.0%; BCE, 2.9%; CIBC, 2.8%; Valeant Pharmaceuticals, 2.8%; Potash Corp., 2.3%; Cenovus Energy, 2.0%; and Goldcorp, 2.0%.
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Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are set up to mirror the performance of a stock-market index or subindex. They hold a more-or-less fixed selection of securities that represent the holdings that go into the calculation of the index or sub-index.

ETFs trade on stock exchanges, just like stocks....