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Should You Invest in the First Trust IndustrialsProducer Durables AlphaDEX ETF (FXR)?

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The First Trust IndustrialsProducer Durables AlphaDEX ETF (FXR - Free Report) was launched on 05/08/2007, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Industrials - Broad segment of the equity market.

While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.

Sector ETFs are also funds of convenience, offering many ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Industrials - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 10, placing it in bottom 38%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $1.83 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Industrials - Broad segment of the equity market. FXR seeks to match the performance of the StrataQuant Industrials Index before fees and expenses.

The StrataQuant Industrials Index is a modified equal-dollar weighted index designed by the AMEX to objectively identify and select stocks from the Russell 1000 Index that may generate positive alpha relative to traditional passive style indices through the use of the AlphaDEX screening methodology.

Costs

Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts, other things remaining the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.64%, making it one of the more expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.59%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector--about 64.30% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Materials round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Generac Holdings Inc. (GNRC - Free Report) accounts for about 1.40% of total assets, followed by Builders Firstsource, Inc. (BLDR - Free Report) and Bill.com Holdings, Inc. (BILL - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 13.31% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

So far this year, FXR return is roughly 24%, and is up about 41.41% in the last one year (as of 10/22/2021). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $40.88 and $61.64.

The ETF has a beta of 1.33 and standard deviation of 27.58% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 133 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

First Trust IndustrialsProducer Durables AlphaDEX ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, FXR is a great option for investors seeking exposure to the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

Vanguard Industrials ETF (VIS - Free Report) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Industrials 25/50 Index and the Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI - Free Report) tracks Industrial Select Sector Index. Vanguard Industrials ETF has $5.44 billion in assets, Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF has $18.45 billion. VIS has an expense ratio of 0.10% and XLI charges 0.12%.

Bottom Line

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.

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