Dividend ETFs aim to provide solid income

Article Excerpt

Rising interest rates mean dividend-paying stocks must increasingly compete for investor interest in fixed-income investments. However, sustainable dividends still offer an attractive and growing income stream for investors. Meanwhile, dividend-focused ETFs can—but not always—follow strategies that we feel set investors up for maximum long-term gains with the least risk. Here’s a look at three of them. As well, please see the Supplement on page 60 for more information on the performance of dividend-focused ETFs. VANGUARD DIVIDEND APPRECIATION ETF $148.19 (New York symbol VIG, Toronto symbol VGG; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $75.7 billion) invests in dividend-paying U.S. companies. The fund selects companies that have increased their dividends for at least 10 consecutive years and apply proprietary quality and profitability screens. Qualifying stocks are weighted by their market values, subject to a 4% maximum weighting at the time of quarterly rebalancing. Financial Services make up 20% of the portfolio, Technology 18%, Healthcare 15%, Industrials 15%, Consumer Defensives 14%, and Consumer Cyclicals 9%. The fund owns no real…