Chasing yield isn’t a good idea for retired passive-income investors who can’t afford to take on significant capital downside risks. Undoubtedly, chasing yield, in general, can be harmful to one’s wealth, even if the dividend (or distribution) stays intact or even grows further. At the end of the day, capital gains matter, even for investors who aren’t looking to buy low and sell high. At the end of the day, dividends and capital gains potential are what income investors should seek to achieve.
And while it’s nicer to have the yield do more of the heavy lifting for total return, I think dividend growth and stability are underrated attributes, especially for retirees who might be drawn to the yield more than the underlying business fundamentals. Indeed, one should invest in a stock for the business first, rather than invest for the yield, and hope that things work out for the better.
In any case, building a portfolio of high-yielding stocks can be tricky, especially for firms with questionable balance sheets. For passive-income investors seeking to get more yield by means of an exchange-traded fund (ETF), there are intriguing covered call options out there, which don’t necessarily increase one’s risk of downside.
But, of course, there are trade-offs, and with covered calls, it’s the risk of missing out on potential capital gains. Capped upside is never great, especially if you’re going for superior total returns over time. But there is a class of higher-growth covered call ETFs out there that can offer more growth potential and supercharged yields.
Source: Getty Images
Here’s a growthier covered call ETF with a huge yield
In this piece, we’ll check out an interesting covered call ETF that yields a towering 10% at the time of this writing. Of course, the yield tends to fluctuate quite a bit in any given month. But if you’re comfortable with covered calls and want more yield rather than upside potential, an ETF like Hamilton Enhanced Canadian Covered Call ETF (TSX:HDIV) could be worth keeping tabs on going into the new year.
So, what’s the deal with the HDIV ETF? The ETF bets on a broad basket of Canadian sector ETFs, many of which offer hefty yields. Additionally, the ETF stacks on covered call premium income, which makes for a more attractive yield, but at the cost of call option-induced upside caps. With generous payouts monthly and the potential to do well in flat markets (the TSX Index will be due for a breather after a shockingly good 2025 of gains), the HDIV stands out as a must-watch, at least for the income-oriented investor.
Further, the ETF touts greater growth potential than other covered-call ETFs, in part due to the 25% cash leverage.
Could that be a way of minimizing the impact of capped upside?
Perhaps. But leverage tends to increase risk and volatility, and for many investors, raising the bar on risk isn’t the way to go about getting more yield. That said, 25% leverage is far less than the two- or three-times leveraged ETFs (way too much leverage) many investors might be more familiar with. Though 25% isn’t an obscene amount, leverage is leverage, and it could make the down markets a bit more painful to deal with if you’re not used to choppy waters.
The bottom line
In any case, the HDIV is a riskier covered call ETF, but definitely growthier, especially in up markets. In the past year, shares have gained close to 20%, which has absolutely crushed the performance of most other covered-call ETFs. It won’t be the right fit for more conservative income investors, but it definitely brings a unique strategy to the table, with 25% leverage that increases the risk/reward scenario by some degree.
