Should I hold ETFs long-term?
ETFs can be a great investment for long-term investors and those with shorter-term time horizons. They can be especially valuable to beginning investors. That's because they won't require the time, effort, and experience needed to research individual stocks.
For most ETFs, selling after less than a year is taxed as a short-term capital gain. ETFs held for longer than a year are taxed as long-term gains. If you sell an ETF, and buy the same (or a substantially similar) ETF after less than 30 days, you may be subject to the wash sale rule.
Hold ETFs throughout your working life. Hold ETFs as long as you can, give compound interest time to work for you. Sell ETFs to fund your retirement. Don't sell ETFs during a market crash.
ETFs are subject to market fluctuation and the risks of their underlying investments. ETFs are subject to management fees and other expenses. Unlike mutual funds, ETF shares are bought and sold at market price, which may be higher or lower than their NAV, and are not individually redeemed from the fund.
| Symbol | Name | 10 Year Total Returns (As of March 31, 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| PSI | Invesco Semiconductors ETF | 765.02% |
| XSD | SPDR® S&P Semiconductor ETF | 610.79% |
| XLK | Technology Select Sector SPDR® ETF | 554.92% |
| IYW | iShares US Technology ETF | 542.45% |
It's relatively simple: You add up all of your investments, and withdraw 4% of that total during your first year of retirement. In subsequent years, you adjust the dollar amount you withdraw to account for inflation.
For most standard, unleveraged ETFs that track an index, the maximum you can theoretically lose is the amount you invested, driving your investment value to zero. However, it's rare for broad-market ETFs to go to zero unless the entire market or sector it tracks collapses entirely.
According to our calculations, a $1000 investment made in February 2014 would be worth $5,971.20, or a gain of 497.12%, as of February 5, 2024, and this return excludes dividends but includes price increases. Compare this to the S&P 500's rally of 178.17% and gold's return of 55.50% over the same time frame.
In 1980, had you invested a mere $1,000 in what went on to become the top-performing stock of S&P 500, then you would be sitting on a cool $1.2 million today.
If you buy substantially identical security within 30 days before or after a sale at a loss, you are subject to the wash sale rule. This prevents you from claiming the loss at this time.
Why is an ETF not a good investment?
There are many ways an ETF can stray from its intended index. That tracking error can be a cost to investors. Indexes do not hold cash but ETFs do, so a certain amount of tracking error in an ETF is expected. Fund managers generally hold some cash in a fund to pay administrative expenses and management fees.
Low Liquidity
If an ETF is thinly traded, there can be problems getting out of the investment, depending on the size of your position relative to the average trading volume. The biggest sign of an illiquid investment is large spreads between the bid and the ask.
Holding too many ETFs in your portfolio introduces inefficiencies that in the long term will have a detrimental impact on the risk/reward profile of your portfolio.
| Ticker | Fund name | 5-year return |
|---|---|---|
| SOXX | iShares Semiconductor ETF | 30.70% |
| XLK | Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund | 24.57% |
| IYW | iShares U.S. Technology ETF | 24.09% |
| FTEC | Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF | 22.79% |
| Symbol | Name | 5-Year Return |
|---|---|---|
| GBTC | Grayscale Bitcoin Trust | 53.74% |
| USD | ProShares Ultra Semiconductors | 43.98% |
| FNGO | MicroSectors FANG+ Index 2X Leveraged ETNs | 41.45% |
| FNGU | MicroSectors FANG+™ Index 3X Leveraged ETN | 40.88% |
| ETF | Assets Under Management | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) | $70 billion | 0.10% |
| VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) | $16.3 billion | 0.35% |
| Invesco S&P MidCap Momentum ETF (XMMO) | $1.6 billion | 0.34% |
| SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) | $1.8 billion | 0.35% |
The answer depends on several factors when deciding how many ETFs you should own. Generally speaking, fewer than 10 ETFs are likely enough to diversify your portfolio, but this will vary depending on your financial goals, ranging from retirement savings to income generation.
One simple rule of thumb I tend to adopt is going by the 4-3-2-1 ratios to budgeting. This ratio allocates 40% of your income towards expenses, 30% towards housing, 20% towards savings and investments and 10% towards insurance.
Under the Investment Company Act, private investment funds (e.g. hedge funds) are generally prohibited from acquiring more than 3% of an ETF's shares (the 3% Limit).
If an ETF still has large trading volumes, a price that isn't moving radically up and down with each new trade, and fairly small bid-ask spreads (see the next section), then the market price is likely a better indicator of portfolio's true value than the NAV, and it is safe to proceed with a trade.
Does an ETF require a holding period?
Please note that just because the ETF reports on Form 1099-DIV that its distribution was a qualified dividend does not automatically make it qualified for the investor. The investor must have held the ETF for at least 61 days during the 121-day period beginning 60 days before the ex-dividend date.
Inverse ETFs aren't for long term investors since they are designed to be held for a period of not more than a day.
Specifically, a fund is prohibited from: acquiring more than 3% of a registered investment company's shares (the “3% Limit”); investing more than 5% of its assets in a single registered investment company (the “5% Limit”); or. investing more than 10% of its assets in registered investment companies (the “10% Limit”).
How many ETFs are enough? The answer depends on several factors when deciding how many ETFs you should own. Generally speaking, fewer than 10 ETFs are likely enough to diversify your portfolio, but this will vary depending on your financial goals, ranging from retirement savings to income generation.
At least once a year, funds must pass on any net gains they've realized. As a fund shareholder, you could be on the hook for taxes on gains even if you haven't sold any of your shares.
