By Ambrose O’Callaghan
Canadian equities have re-emerged as a market leader in 2025 and 2026, supported by strength in financials, energy, and other essential sectors that have long defined the country’s economy. While U.S. markets have been driven by AI enthusiasm, Canada has benefitted from broader market participation, and the steady performance of companies tied to real assets, cash flow generation, and dividend growth.
Canada’s market momentum
Canada’s market leadership has historically stemmed from a handful of powerful sectors that have delivered resilience and strong income potential The perception of a frothy technology space in the U.S., combined with expanding breadth, have given Canadian markets a chance to lap their American counterparts.
The Canadian market is still dominated by the financial sector. Other prominent sectors including energy, materials, and even the emerging information technology. The S&P/TSX Composite Index has climbed 38% since January 1, 2025. Meanwhile, the S&P 500, while gaining momentum in recent weeks, has failed to keep pace with the red-hot Canadian equity market.
Source: Yahoo Finance (SPC: 5,881.63 – 7,501.24; SPTSE: 24,678 – 33,833.35)
The Canadian dividend leaders
The Harvest Canadian Dividend Leaders Income ETF (TSX: HLIF)[i]targets companies that have a long history of paying out dividends and increasing their dividend payouts. Indeed, HLIF holds two of the only Canadian equities that qualify as dividend kings:
54 Years | Canadian Utilities Ltd.
Canadian Utilities is engaged in the electricity, natural gas, renewables, pipelines, and liquids businesses in Canada, and in select locations internationally. In January 2026, the company extended its dividend growth streak to 54 years.
51 Years | Fortis Inc.
Fortis is another electric and gas utility giant that operates in Canada, the United States, and in the Caribbean. It has delivered 51 consecutive years of dividend payout increases.
Dividend aristocrats in HLIF
That’s not to mention the dividend aristocrats that are held in HLIF, including Thomson Reuters – with 33 straight years of dividend growth, Enbridge – with 31 consecutive years of dividend growth, Canadian Natural Resources – 26 straight years of dividend payout increases, and TC Energy – with 26 consecutive dividend increases.
HLIF | A portfolio of Canadian dividend leaders
The Harvest Canadian Dividend Leaders Income ETF (TSX: HLIF)[ii] delivers access to the titans that anchor Canada’s economy. These are dominant players with oligopolistic characteristics, possessing substantial market shares, strong financial reserves, and decades of dividend payouts.
HLIF is overlayed with an active covered call writing strategy to generate monthly cash distributions. It last paid out a monthly cash distribution of $0.07 as at May 2026.
Annual Performance
As at April 30, 2026
| Ticker | 1M | 3M | 6M | YTD | 1Y | 2Y | 3Y | SI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HLIF | 2.53 | 9.84 | 18.23 | 12.07 | 37.18 | 26.98 | 17.74 | 13.19 |
Disclaimer
Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investing in Harvest Exchange Traded Funds (managed by Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.). Please read the relevant prospectus before investing. The indicated rates of return are the historical annual compounded total returns (except for figures of one year or less, which are simple total returns) including changes in unit value and reinvestment of all distributions and do not take into account sales, redemption, distribution or optional charges or income taxes payable by any securityholder that would have reduced returns. The funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. Tax investment and all other decisions should be made with guidance from a qualified professional.
The current yield represents an annualized amount that is comprised of 12 unchanged monthly distributions (using the most recent month’s distribution figure multiplied by 12) as a percentage of the closing market price of the Fund. The current yield does not represent historical returns of the ETF but represents the distribution an investor would receive if the targeted distribution stayed the same going forward.
[i] Formerly the Harvest Canadian Equity Income Leaders ETF
[ii] Formerly the Harvest Canadian Equity Income Leaders ETF
