Exchange Traded Funds

Exchange-Traded Funds

Course Description:

 An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a basket of securities designed to replicate the performance of a stock or bond index (e.g., S&P 500 Index or Lehman Brothers 20+ Yea. Treasury Index.) ETFs are listed on an exchange, and unlike regular open-end mutual funds, ETFs can be bought and sold throughout the trading day. They can also be sold short and bought on margin. In brief, anything you might do with a stock, you can do with an ETF. Most ETFs also charge lower annual expenses than even the least costly index mutual funds. However, as with stocks, investors must pay a commission to buy and sell ETF shares. In contrast to most mutual funds, ETFs have no investment minimums. Investors can literally buy a single share of an ETF in the secondary market through their broker (an online broker or the traditional type.) All the above features have led to the rapid growth of ETFs since the first offering came to fruition in 1993. An increasing number of financial professionals, including CPAs, are turning their attention to this unique breed of investment products.

Who Should Attend:  All CPA's

Learning Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Recognize the evolution of ETFs.
• Identify the key advantages and drawbacks to investors of ETFs.
• Recognize the most notable ETFs on the market.
• Identify the resources that you can utilize to incorporate ETFs into your practice.