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Profits from gaming

How can I invest in gaming?

Q – I’d like some ideas on how to get in on the gaming issue. There are game producers and then of course the infrastructure folks, particularly chip makers who are so busy on gaming that they are shorting auto manufacturers. ETFs would be interesting. – David C.

A – If you’re looking for a Canadian ETF, there is only one that I know of in this sector. It’s the Evolve E-Gaming Index ETF, which trades on the TSX under the symbol HERO. It’s a new fund, launched in June 2019, so we don’t have much history to work with. But what we have is impressive; the fund gained 68% over the year to Jan. 19.

This is a broadly-based international portfolio with 77 positions in a wide range of countries. The U.S. and Japan each account for about a quarter of the assets, with China at about 19% and Singapore at 11%. Top holdings include Sea Ltd., Activision Blizzard, Nintendo, NetEase, and Electronic Arts.

If you want to look at the U.S. market, consider Wedbush ETFMG Video Game Tech ETF (NYSE: GAMR), currently trading at around US$87. This was the first ETF to target the video game industry. We recommended it in the Internet Wealth Builder in November 2017, and it has just about doubled in value since.

Like HERO, this is a global ETF. U.S. stocks comprise 28.9% of the portfolio, developed Asia has 23.4%, and Japan has 16.5%. Top holdings are Gamestop Corp., Bilibili Inc., Zynga Inc., and Activision Blizzard. – G.P.