A good way to invest in the future is to bet on innovation. Companies that are continuously improving and making technological changes are more likely to rise in value than those that are just maintaining the status quo. And to get a good mix of growth stocks, an exchange-traded fund (ETF) can offer balance and minimize risk, especially when compared to investing in just a few stocks.
Bank of Montreal (TSX: BMO)(NYSE: BMO) offers a variety of ETFs to choose from, and one that gives investors exposure to "disruptive innovations" and "global mega trends" is the BMO MSCI Innovation Index ETF (TSX: ZINN). The ETF's focus is on a number of different themes, including next-generation internet and autonomous technology.
As of Dec. 17, its top holdings were credit card companies Visa (NYSE: V) and Mastercard (NYSE: MA), which are the only two stocks accounting for more than 5% of the total holdings. Chipmaker Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) is in the third spot at 4.7% followed by COVID-19 vaccine maker Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA), which has a weight of 3.9%. However, with more than 330 holding in the fund, most of the stocks in this ETF won't even account for 1% on their own. While there are some strong pillars in the ETF, it's still a very diverse investment.
The fund launched in January and its returns thus far are flat at around 0.4%. But that's even with growth stocks falling in value in recent months. For long-term investors who are willing to hold onto their investments for years, the MSCI Innovation Index could make for a safe buy-and-forget ETF to build their portfolios around.
