ETFs offer an innovative approach to investing because they combine features of an individual stock, with the benefits of a traditional mutual fund.

 

1.  Cost and tax efficiency - As passively managed portfolios, ETFs tend to realize fewer capital gains than actively managed mutual funds.
 
2.  Trading flexibility - ETFs can be bought and sold at current market prices at any time during the trading day, unlike mutual funds and unit investment trusts, which can only be traded at the end of the trading day. As publicly traded securities, their shares can be purchased on margin and sold short, enabling the use of hedging strategies, and traded using stop orders and limit orders, which allow investors to specify the price points at which they are willing to trade.
 
3.  A wide range of fund choices - ETFs offer exposure to a diverse variety of markets, including broad-based indexes, broad-based international and country-specific indexes, industry sector-specific indexes, bond indexes, and commodities.
 
4.  Low expenses - ETFs generally have lower costs than other investment products because most ETFs are not actively managed and because they are insulated from the costs of having to buy and sell securities to accommodate shareholder purchases and redemptions. ETFs typically have lower marketing, distribution and accounting expenses.
 
5.  You always know what you are getting!  Unlike traditional mutual funds, where there is a portfolio manager buying and selling different stocks every day, you always know what companies make up the Exchange Traded Funds. You never have to worry that your fund manager will take a big bet in the wrong direction with ETFs.  This allows clients "peace of mind" and money managers, like myself, better control at managing your investments.

 

At CAIM LLC, we often use ETFs to effectively manage smaller accounts, and give our larger accounts the proper diversification to control the ups and downs in a portfolio over the long-term.  It's an especially great way to put money away for children and grandchildren, without the hassle of having to pick individual stocks.   With ETFs, our clients save more money, make more money over the long-term and sleep better at night.