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Should SPDR S&P 400 Mid Cap Value ETF (MDYV) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Designed to provide broad exposure to the Mid Cap Value segment of the US equity market, the SPDR S&P 400 Mid Cap Value ETF (MDYV - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 11/08/2005.

The fund is sponsored by State Street Global Advisors. It has amassed assets over $1.63 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Value

With market capitalization between $2 billion and $10 billion, mid cap companies usually contain higher growth prospects than large cap companies, and are considered less risky than their small cap counterparts. Thus they have a nice balance of growth potential and stability.

Value stocks have lower than average price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios. They also have lower than average sales and earnings growth rates. While value stocks have outperformed growth stocks in nearly all markets when you consider long-term performance, growth stocks are more likely to outpace value stocks in strong bull markets.

Costs

Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.15%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.71%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector--about 18.80% of the portfolio. Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, First Horizon Corporation (FHN - Free Report) accounts for about 1.09% of total assets, followed by Medical Properties Trust Inc. (MPW - Free Report) and Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. (RS - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 8.81% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

MDYV seeks to match the performance of the S&P MidCap 400 Value Index before fees and expenses. The S&P MidCap 400 Value Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization value sector in the U.S. equity market.

The ETF has lost about -2.38% so far this year and it's up approximately 4.45% in the last one year (as of 04/22/2022). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $64.04 and $72.84.

The ETF has a beta of 1.21 and standard deviation of 29.83% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 298 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

SPDR S&P 400 Mid Cap Value ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, MDYV is a great option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Value segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The iShares Russell MidCap Value ETF (IWS - Free Report) and the Vanguard MidCap Value ETF (VOE - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell MidCap Value ETF has $14.87 billion in assets, Vanguard MidCap Value ETF has $17.17 billion. IWS has an expense ratio of 0.23% and VOE charges 0.07%.

Bottom-Line

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.

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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