First Trust Canada Launches Canada's First Full Suite of U.S. Sector ETFs

TORONTO, Oct. 30, 2014 /CNW/ - FT Portfolios Canada Co. ("First Trust Canada"), a privately owned company is pleased to announce the launch of the first full suite of TSX listed U.S. sector ETFs (the "First Trust ETFs").

First Trust Canada will be offering the following nine funds and each of the First Trust ETFs will seek to replicate, to the extent possible, the performance of the applicable StrataQuant^® sector index set forth below  to achieve its investment objective:

Each StrataQuant^® sector index results from applying the AlphaDEX™ methodology to the Russell 1000® Index (a market index representing the large capitalization segment of the U.S. equity universe), then selecting the constituent securities for the applicable index from those qualifying stocks included in the applicable sector.

"First Trust Canada is pleased to offer Canada's first family of U.S. sector ETFs investing in specific segments of the U.S. economy," says Fraser Howell, CEO and President of First Trust Canada. The First Trust AlphaDEX™ U.S. Sectors follow "enhanced indices" which employ First Trust's proprietary AlphaDEX™ stock selection methodology. The AlphaDEX™ methodology combines: (1) the traditional benefits of ETFs: intraday liquidity, generally lower expenses and daily transparency; and (2) the added advantages of the AlphaDEX™ methodology: the potential to outperform a benchmark and the selection and weighting of stocks based on investment merit.

"Our new U.S. sectors offerings will provide Canadians the opportunity to invest in equity sectors that have been underrepresented in the Canadian market such as Health Care, Consumer Staples and Technology. These Canadian domiciled ETFs provide investors with exposure to the U.S. market without the complications of holding comparable U.S. domiciled ETFs. More specifically, Canadian tax payers holding U.S. domiciled ETFs may be subject to increasingly detailed reporting requirements by the Canadian Revenue Agency as well as potential U.S. estate tax obligations. Our products may offer a way to reduce these complexities." said Karl Cheong, Senior Vice President of First Trust Portfolios Canada.

About First Trust

The First Trust companies are a well-respected global enterprise with a history in the U.S. market since 1991 and in Canada since 1996. As of September 30, 2014, First Trust Advisors L.P., the portfolio advisor for the First Trust AlphaDEX™ ETFs, has approximately US $29 billion in ETF assets under management and more than US $99 billion total assets under supervision or management. First Trust is the enterprise name used for the various businesses conducted in Europe, Mexico, Canada and the U.S.

Further information about FT Portfolios Canada's ETFs can be found at www.firsttrust.ca.  

Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investments in exchange traded funds. Please read the prospectus before investing. Exchange traded funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

SOURCE FT Portfolios Canada Co.