Can I Trade Options on an Index?

Passive investing has exploded in recent years. Investing in broad-market indexes has surged in popularity and costs less than ever before. You can take this approach to the next level by incorporating option trading in addition to index investing.  The easiest way to trade options while index investing is with the use of Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs).   Investors looking for lower-cost, …

MoneyShow.com Interview

I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed by MoneyShow.com’s Kate Stalter. Kate does many interviews with market experts as well as financial advisors around the country. We briefly discussed the Snider Investment Method, Snider Advisors, and our new SIM ETF Portfolio. You can listen to the interview or read the transcript here. (Capture Gains with ETFs and Covered Calls)

A Visual Guide to ETFs

After announcing the managed SIM-ETF portfolio we fielded a lot of phone calls from interested clients asking us to further explain exactly what ETF’s are. With over 1,400 exchange traded products on the market, it is not surprising that we regularly get this question, and as we have written before, not all ETFs are created equal.

Snider ETF Portfolio: Defined

Since our release of the new Snider Method ETF Portfolio, we have received several calls with interest in implementing the new strategy. The new strategy takes the time tested Traditional Snider Method and implements the use of low-cost ETFs, along with a new allocation system. While we have no reason to stray from the Traditional Snider Method, the new ETF portfolio can offer other values depending on your objectives. Below you will find a list of popular questions that we have been receiving regarding this new strategy.

ETFs and the Snider Method

In the Snider Investment Method, positions are typically composed of various individual stocks to generate portfolio income. However, in smaller accounts, Lattco may generate Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) instead of individual stocks. ETFs are generated in smaller accounts because this helps diversify the portfolio and reduce company specific risk, which is at its greatest when an account only has one or two positions. But what are ETFs and how do they work? Read on to find out.

Not All ETFs Are Created Equal

Although exchange traded funds (ETFs) provide an effective and easy way to gain exposure to different asset classes or sectors, not all of them are the same. ETFs that are created to track the same sector, related indexes, and even the same index will vary in performance because of a variety of different factors. As ETFs gain even more popularity and as more varieties such as actively managed ETFs come onto the scene, it is becoming increasingly more important to recognize the differences between these funds.