We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Cold Blast Wrecks Havoc in U.S.: ETFs to Win & Lose
Read MoreHide Full Article
A severe cold snap wrecked havoc in the central and southern parts of the United States, with extremely low temperatures not seen in decades and a dangerous blast of snow and ice. This has paralyzed many corners of the economy, which has just started to recover from the pandemic crisis.
The temperature in Dallas is already colder than in Anchorage, Alaska, CBS News reports. According to forecasts by the Weather Company, high temperatures in the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan area are expected to be below freezing from Feb 14 through Thursday Feb 18 and reach only 35 degrees Fahrenheit (“F”) on Feb 19. The low temperature in Dallas is expected to bottom around 1 degree F. The last time temperatures dipped below 5 degrees F was 88 years ago.
The National Weather Service has issued winter and ice storm warnings for millions of Americans. It said the storm is expected to travel up the Northeast through Feb 16, bringing heavy snow, ice and freezing temperatures.
In such scenario, some corners of the investing area have been in the spotlight with a few expected to benefit from the extreme cold weather while a few others may lose.
Oil
The coldest weather in 30 years badly hit Texas — by far the country's largest crude producer — shutting oil refineries and forcing restrictions from natural gas pipeline operators. Oil production in Midland, the capital of the Permian basin, fell as much as one million barrels a day. According to consultant Energy Aspects Ltd., some of biggest refineries in North America were shut down with more than 3 million barrels of daily oil-processing capacity idled amid the record-setting cold.
WTI jumped to $60 per barrel for the first time since January 2020 while Brent climbed to above $63 per barrel. As such, United States Oil Fund (USO - Free Report) and United States Brent Oil Fund (BNO - Free Report) are expected to see smooth trading this week (read: ETFs to Shine as Oil Gains on Stimulus Optimism).
USO is the most popular ETF in the oil space with an AUM of $3.3 billion. It seeks an average daily percentage change in USO’s net asset value, for any period of 30 successive valuation days, to be within plus/minus 10% of the average daily percentage change in the price of the Benchmark Oil Futures Contract over the same period. The fund has 0.73% in expense ratio.
On the other hand, BNO tracks the daily price movements of Brent crude oil on a daily basis through futures contracts. It is the near month futures contract traded on the ICE Futures Exchange. If the near month futures contract is within two weeks of expiration, the benchmark will be the next month contract to expire. The ETF has amassed $364.4 million in its asset base and charges 90 bps in annual fees (read: Oil & Energy ETFs Rallying on Output Cuts, Can the Rally Last?).
Natural Gas
A blast of cold snap left millions of homes and businesses in Texas without power, leading to blackouts that are now spreading to the other states in the central United States. At least a dozen states — from New Jersey to Oregon — had reported outages, with Texas reporting more than 3.5 million, according to PowerOutage.us. The winter storm took a tool on nearly half the Texas wind power generation capacity. ERCOT estimates wind generation ranks as the second-largest source of electricity in Texas, accounting for 23% of state power supplies.
The power outages have spurred the demand for natural gas for both heating and power generation. Investors could tap the surge with the help of United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG - Free Report) and United States 12 Month Natural Gas Fund (UNL - Free Report) .
Both UNG and UNL provide direct exposure to the price of natural gas on a daily basis through futures contracts. UNG tracks the futures contract on natural gas as traded on the NYMEX while UNL reflects the daily changes in the price of natural gas delivered at the Henry Hub Louisiana. UNG is the popular ETF with AUM of $354.4 million while UNL has just $7.9 million in its asset base. From the cost point of view, the former is cheap, charging 90 bps in annual fees against 1.28% for UNG.
Transport
Freezing temperatures also prompted road closures and the cancellation of flights. About 2,280 flights within, into and out of the United States was canceled on Feb 14 and more than 1,700 flights were called off on Feb 15, according to FlightAware.com, a flight tracking site. Dallas and Houston have been particularly hard hit, with hundreds of cancellations each day (read: Airlines Drag Down Transportation Q4 Earnings: ETFs in Focus).
The pure-play airline ETF — U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS - Free Report) — is expected to trade lower this week. It provides exposure to the global airline industry, including airline operators and manufacturers from all over the world, by tracking the U.S. Global Jets Index. The product holds 40 securities. It has gathered $2.9 billion in its asset base while charging investors 60 bps in annual fees. It has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a High risk outlook.
Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox?
Zacks’ free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >>
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Shutterstock
Cold Blast Wrecks Havoc in U.S.: ETFs to Win & Lose
A severe cold snap wrecked havoc in the central and southern parts of the United States, with extremely low temperatures not seen in decades and a dangerous blast of snow and ice. This has paralyzed many corners of the economy, which has just started to recover from the pandemic crisis.
The temperature in Dallas is already colder than in Anchorage, Alaska, CBS News reports. According to forecasts by the Weather Company, high temperatures in the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan area are expected to be below freezing from Feb 14 through Thursday Feb 18 and reach only 35 degrees Fahrenheit (“F”) on Feb 19. The low temperature in Dallas is expected to bottom around 1 degree F. The last time temperatures dipped below 5 degrees F was 88 years ago.
The National Weather Service has issued winter and ice storm warnings for millions of Americans. It said the storm is expected to travel up the Northeast through Feb 16, bringing heavy snow, ice and freezing temperatures.
In such scenario, some corners of the investing area have been in the spotlight with a few expected to benefit from the extreme cold weather while a few others may lose.
Oil
The coldest weather in 30 years badly hit Texas — by far the country's largest crude producer — shutting oil refineries and forcing restrictions from natural gas pipeline operators. Oil production in Midland, the capital of the Permian basin, fell as much as one million barrels a day. According to consultant Energy Aspects Ltd., some of biggest refineries in North America were shut down with more than 3 million barrels of daily oil-processing capacity idled amid the record-setting cold.
WTI jumped to $60 per barrel for the first time since January 2020 while Brent climbed to above $63 per barrel. As such, United States Oil Fund (USO - Free Report) and United States Brent Oil Fund (BNO - Free Report) are expected to see smooth trading this week (read: ETFs to Shine as Oil Gains on Stimulus Optimism).
USO is the most popular ETF in the oil space with an AUM of $3.3 billion. It seeks an average daily percentage change in USO’s net asset value, for any period of 30 successive valuation days, to be within plus/minus 10% of the average daily percentage change in the price of the Benchmark Oil Futures Contract over the same period. The fund has 0.73% in expense ratio.
On the other hand, BNO tracks the daily price movements of Brent crude oil on a daily basis through futures contracts. It is the near month futures contract traded on the ICE Futures Exchange. If the near month futures contract is within two weeks of expiration, the benchmark will be the next month contract to expire. The ETF has amassed $364.4 million in its asset base and charges 90 bps in annual fees (read: Oil & Energy ETFs Rallying on Output Cuts, Can the Rally Last?).
Natural Gas
A blast of cold snap left millions of homes and businesses in Texas without power, leading to blackouts that are now spreading to the other states in the central United States. At least a dozen states — from New Jersey to Oregon — had reported outages, with Texas reporting more than 3.5 million, according to PowerOutage.us. The winter storm took a tool on nearly half the Texas wind power generation capacity. ERCOT estimates wind generation ranks as the second-largest source of electricity in Texas, accounting for 23% of state power supplies.
The power outages have spurred the demand for natural gas for both heating and power generation. Investors could tap the surge with the help of United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG - Free Report) and United States 12 Month Natural Gas Fund (UNL - Free Report) .
Both UNG and UNL provide direct exposure to the price of natural gas on a daily basis through futures contracts. UNG tracks the futures contract on natural gas as traded on the NYMEX while UNL reflects the daily changes in the price of natural gas delivered at the Henry Hub Louisiana. UNG is the popular ETF with AUM of $354.4 million while UNL has just $7.9 million in its asset base. From the cost point of view, the former is cheap, charging 90 bps in annual fees against 1.28% for UNG.
Transport
Freezing temperatures also prompted road closures and the cancellation of flights. About 2,280 flights within, into and out of the United States was canceled on Feb 14 and more than 1,700 flights were called off on Feb 15, according to FlightAware.com, a flight tracking site. Dallas and Houston have been particularly hard hit, with hundreds of cancellations each day (read: Airlines Drag Down Transportation Q4 Earnings: ETFs in Focus).
The pure-play airline ETF — U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS - Free Report) — is expected to trade lower this week. It provides exposure to the global airline industry, including airline operators and manufacturers from all over the world, by tracking the U.S. Global Jets Index. The product holds 40 securities. It has gathered $2.9 billion in its asset base while charging investors 60 bps in annual fees. It has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a High risk outlook.
Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox?
Zacks’ free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >>