These ETF niches are ready to reward you

Article Excerpt

We think that overall, most investors should hold the bulk of their portfolios in high-quality U.S. and Canadian stocks—or ETFs that hold those shares. But if you’re looking to add growth to your portfolio, here are some niche ETFs we recommend for your new buying. International Dividend-Paying Stocks Our first ETF niche primarily appeals to investors in two ways: International dividend payers generally have p/e and other valuations that are cheaper than U.S. stocks; two, they offer the long-term benefit of dividends. The U.S. stock market performed very well over the past 10 years, gaining almost 200%. Superior economic growth and the strong performance of companies such as Amazon, Apple and Microsoft helped propel that growth. However, this strong performance has also resulted in U.S. stocks now trading at a substantial valuation premium—of 33% to 61%—over comparable stocks trading on international exchanges (see table). At some point this valuation gap will likely close, but the present gap heightens the appeal of top international stocks,…