BlackRock Asset Management Canada Ltd. has expanded its exchange traded fund family with the addition of four new iShares "Core Series" funds, as well as a fifth new ETF that provides an unhedged option to get exposure to dividend-paying U.S. companies.
The "Core Series" fund family by BlackRock caters to investors who want to buy and hold. The four new funds bring the iShares Core group to a total of 14 funds within Canada.
The new funds are: iShares Core S&P U.S. Total Market Index ETF (XUU), iShares Core S&P U.S. Total Market Index ETF (CAD-Hedged) (XUH), iShares Core MSCI All Country World ex Canada Index ETF (XAW) and iShares Core MSCI EAFE IMI Index ETF (CAD-Hedged) (XFH).
iShares Core S&P U.S. Total Market Index ETF and iShares Core S&P U.S. Total Market Index ETF (CAD-Hedged) offers investors broad exposure to U.S large, mid, small and mirco capitalized companies. XUH is 100 per cent hedged to the Canadian dollar.
iShares Core MSCI All Country World ex Canada Index ETF provides access to large, mid and small cap stocks across 22 developed markets countries (excluding Canada) and 23 emerging markets countries.
iShares Core MSCI EAFE IMI Index ETF (CAD-Hedged) captures large, mid and small cap representation across developed markets countries around the world, excluding the US and Canada, and is 100 per cent hedged to the Canadian dollar.
Management fees for the new funds range from 0.10 per cent to 0.20 per cent.
In addition to expanding the Core funds, iShares has launched a fifth ETF: iShares U.S. High Dividend Equity Index ETF (XHU). The introduction of the iShares U.S. High Dividend Equity Index ETF provides investors with exposure to a diversified portfolio of 75 high-quality U.S. dividend-paying stocks. Hedged to the U.S. dollar, XHU offers investors the opportunity to capture the current strength of the U.S. currency while also earning income.
The fund is a complement to the Canadian-dollar-hedged fund iShares US High Dividend Equity Index ETF CAD-Hedged (XHD), which has attracted nearly $170-million in assets under management since its inception in 2012.