Before retirement, check how much of the same company you own

By Jenna Lofton

Special to Financial Independence Hub

A Canadian equity ETF, a dividend ETF and a few bank stocks. That sounds like a bit of variety, doesn’t it? Open the funds’ holdings lists, though, and you may find you’ve bought the same company three ways.

Before adding another fund to a retirement portfolio, I like to answer one basic question first: how much of this company is already in there?

Start with your accounts

Decide which accounts go into the math. If your savings are spread across an RRSP, a TFSA and a non-registered account, looking at just one can hide part of the picture. This discussion of home-country bias makes the case for treating your accounts as one portfolio.

Use current market values, put everything in one currency and include your cash. That total is the number you’ll divide by.

One easy mistake to avoid: the stocks inside your funds are already counted in the funds’ value. Add them again and you’ve double-counted the same dollars.

Follow one company through your funds

Here’s a hypothetical C$100,000 portfolio: C$40,000 in the iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETF (XIU), C$20,000 in the iShares Canadian Select Dividend Index ETF (XDV), C$5,000 in Royal Bank of Canada shares and C$35,000 in cash. Treat these as market values on the holdings date below. This is an arithmetic example, not a suggested retirement allocation.

XIU tracks a large-company Canadian index, while XDV focuses on Canadian dividend payers. The funds have different mandates, but both hold Royal Bank.

BlackRock’s holdings files dated Oct 5, 2026 put Royal Bank at 9.48% of XIU and 8.61% of XDV. Multiply each fund’s value by that weight:

XIU: C$40,000 × 9.48% = C$3,792

XDV: C$20,000 × 8.61% = C$1,722

Direct Royal Bank shares: C$5,000

Add those up and you’ve got an estimated C$10,514 of exposure to Royal Bank shares. Divide by the C$100,000 total and that’s about 10.5% of the portfolio.

So that 5% in direct shares is only part of the story. Include the funds and your exposure more than doubles.

Tempted to add 9.48% and 8.61%? I’d put the calculator down for a second. Each percentage has to be scaled by how much you actually have in that fund.

What the number tells you

Finding overlap doesn’t mean you’ve made a mistake. You may want that exposure. I’d just rather discover the total while reviewing the portfolio than after that company has a rough week.

The math has blind spots, too. It only tells you about one company’s shares. It can’t tell you how your other holdings will react to the same bad news, and five different banks can all get hit by the same housing slowdown. A full diversification check also looks at sectors, countries and asset classes.

Buying another ETF won’t necessarily fill a gap. This guide to ETFs for retirees explains how a single asset-allocation ETF can work as a broad base. Check any additions to see what they change across your portfolio.

Make it a habit

Pull the full holdings list from each fund provider. A company missing from the top ten can still be sitting a few rows down. Record the dates and use matching dates where possible. Repeat the calculation for your other large positions.

Then compare the results with your target allocation and withdrawal needs. Matching investments to a retirement cash-flow plan is worth a read here. Money you’ll spend soon has a different job than money that can stay invested for years.

There’s no magic overlap number where everyone should start selling. Before making changes, consider trading costs, potential taxes and your circumstances, with qualified advice where needed.

A simple spreadsheet is enough to keep track. You may find you’ve given a favourite company a bigger role than you intended.

Method note: Estimates use rounded equity weights. ETF premiums or discounts and derivative exposures limit precision; this calculation excludes extra exposure through index futures. This example is educational and isn’t an investment recommendation.

Jenna Lofton is the founder of StockHitter, where she helps everyday investors make sense of the stock market. She covers growth stocks, income investing, AI infrastructure, and financial products, bringing clear explanations and practical research to topics that can feel overwhelming.