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Should Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1500 SmallMid ETF (PRFZ) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Launched on 09/20/2006, the Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1500 SmallMid ETF (PRFZ - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Small Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $2.03 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Small Cap Blend

With more potential comes more risk, and small cap companies, with market capitalization below $2 billion, epitomizes this way of thinking.

Blend ETFs are aptly named, since they tend to hold a mix of growth and value stocks, as well as show characteristics of both kinds of equities.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.39%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.25%.

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 18.60% of the portfolio. Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Scorpio Tankers Inc (STNG - Free Report) accounts for about 0.60% of total assets, followed by Consol Energy Inc (CEIX - Free Report) and Super Micro Computer Inc (SMCI - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 3.08% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

PRFZ seeks to match the performance of the FTSE RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid Index before fees and expenses. The FTSE RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid Index is comprised of approximately 1,500 U.S. stocks. The FTSE US 1500 Small-Mid Index is designed to track the performance of small and medium-sized U.S. equity stocks selected based on the following four fundamental measures of firm size: book value, income, cash flow and dividends.

The ETF has gained about 6.21% so far this year and is down about -4.40% in the last one year (as of 01/23/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $145.71 and $187.88.

The ETF has a beta of 1.16 and standard deviation of 30.61% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 1447 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1500 SmallMid ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, PRFZ is a reasonable option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM - Free Report) and the iShares Core S&P SmallCap ETF (IJR - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 2000 ETF has $54.47 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P SmallCap ETF has $68.80 billion. IWM has an expense ratio of 0.19% and IJR charges 0.06%.

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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