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Is ProShares Russell 2000 Dividend Growers ETF (SMDV) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The ProShares Russell 2000 Dividend Growers ETF (SMDV - Free Report) made its debut on 02/03/2015, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Value category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.

Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.

If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.

Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.

Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.

Fund Sponsor & Index

The fund is managed by Proshares, and has been able to amass over $768.71 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Small Cap Value. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Russell 2000 Dividend Growth Index.

The Russell 2000 Dividend Growth Index targets companies that are currently members of the Russell 2000 Index and have increased dividend payments each year for at least 10 years.

Cost & Other Expenses

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.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.40% for SMDV, making it one of the more expensive products in the space.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 2.47%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector - about 32.70% of the portfolio. Industrials and Utilities round out the top three.

When you look at individual holdings, Lindsay Corp (LNN - Free Report) accounts for about 1.27% of the fund's total assets, followed by Badger Meter Inc (BMI - Free Report) and Franklin Electric Co Inc (FELE - Free Report) .

SMDV's top 10 holdings account for about 11.69% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -10.71% and is down about -6% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 10/24/2022), respectively. SMDV has traded between $55.50 and $67.71 during this last 52-week period.

The fund has a beta of 0.74 and standard deviation of 28.62% for the trailing three-year period, which makes SMDV a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 100 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

ProShares Russell 2000 Dividend Growers ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Small Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) tracks Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF has $22.47 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF has $59.58 billion. DGRO has an expense ratio of 0.08% and VIG charges 0.06%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Small Cap Value.

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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