Toronto-based Evolve Funds Group Inc. on Wednesday announced the launch of Evolve Global Healthcare Enhanced Yield ETF, a new global healthcare ETF with a covered call strategy.
Units of the ETF began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange Wednesday under the ticker symbols LIFE (hedged units) and LIFE.B (unhedged units.)
The fund seeks to replicate, to the extent reasonably possible before fees and expenses, the performance of the Solactive global healthcare 20 index Canadian dollar hedged, while mitigating downside risk, according to the firm’s announcement. The fund invests primarily in the equity constituents of the index, while writing covered call options on up to 33% of the portfolio securities, at the discretion of the manager.
“The population is aging, the middle class is increasing, and healthcare technology is advancing,” says Kirk Cooper, chief investment officer at Evolve ETFs, in a statement. “These factors help create demand for global healthcare companies. Active management of covered calls provides a balance between generating yield and participating in any potential upside performance of the sector.”