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Is WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity ETF (HEDJ) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Making its debut on 01/04/2010, smart beta exchange traded fund WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity ETF (HEDJ - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the European Equity ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.
A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.
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.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
HEDJ is managed by Wisdomtree, and this fund has amassed over $1.35 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the European Equity ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Index.
The WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Index is designed to provide exposure to European equities while at the same time neutralizing exposure to fluctuations between the Euro and the U.S. dollar.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.58% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.55%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
When you look at individual holdings, Stellantis Nv (STLAM) accounts for about 6.49% of the fund's total assets, followed by Asml Holding Nv (ASML - Free Report) and Lvmh Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Se (MC - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 26.66% of HEDJ's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, HEDJ has added about 15.04%, and is up roughly 28.59% in the last one year (as of 09/28/2023). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $31.06 and $41.97.
HEDJ has a beta of 0.89 and standard deviation of 16.79% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 130 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the European Equity ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares MSCI Eurozone ETF (EZU - Free Report) tracks MSCI EMU Index and the Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF (VGK - Free Report) tracks FTSE Developed Europe All Cap Index. IShares MSCI Eurozone ETF has $7.24 billion in assets, Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF has $17.82 billion. EZU has an expense ratio of 0.52% and VGK charges 0.11%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the European Equity ETFs.
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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Is WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity ETF (HEDJ) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Making its debut on 01/04/2010, smart beta exchange traded fund WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity ETF (HEDJ - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the European Equity ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.
A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.
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.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
HEDJ is managed by Wisdomtree, and this fund has amassed over $1.35 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the European Equity ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Index.
The WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Index is designed to provide exposure to European equities while at the same time neutralizing exposure to fluctuations between the Euro and the U.S. dollar.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.58% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.55%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
When you look at individual holdings, Stellantis Nv (STLAM) accounts for about 6.49% of the fund's total assets, followed by Asml Holding Nv (ASML - Free Report) and Lvmh Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Se (MC - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 26.66% of HEDJ's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, HEDJ has added about 15.04%, and is up roughly 28.59% in the last one year (as of 09/28/2023). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $31.06 and $41.97.
HEDJ has a beta of 0.89 and standard deviation of 16.79% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 130 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the European Equity ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares MSCI Eurozone ETF (EZU - Free Report) tracks MSCI EMU Index and the Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF (VGK - Free Report) tracks FTSE Developed Europe All Cap Index. IShares MSCI Eurozone ETF has $7.24 billion in assets, Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF has $17.82 billion. EZU has an expense ratio of 0.52% and VGK charges 0.11%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the European Equity ETFs.
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.