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Should First Trust Small Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF (FYC) Be on Your Investing Radar?
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The First Trust Small Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF (FYC - Free Report) was launched on 04/19/2011, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $214.06 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Small Cap Growth
Sitting at a market capitalization below $2 billion, small cap companies tend to be high-potential stocks compared to its large and mid cap counterparts, but come with higher risk.
Growth stocks have higher than average sales and earnings growth rates. While these are expected to grow faster than the broader market, they also have higher valuations. Something to keep in mind is the higher level of volatility that is affiliated with growth stocks. Compared to value stocks, growth stocks are a safer bet in a strong bull market, but don't perform as strongly in almost all other financial environments.
Costs
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.71%, making it one of the more expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.40%.
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 18.70% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Healthcare round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Modine Manufacturing Company (MOD - Free Report) accounts for about 0.90% of total assets, followed by Consol Energy Inc. (CEIX - Free Report) and Remitly Global, Inc. (RELY - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 8.19% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
FYC seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Small Cap Growth Index before fees and expenses. The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Small Cap Growth Index is an enhanced which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 700 Small Cap Growth Index.
The ETF has lost about -6.12% so far this year and is down about -12.28% in the last one year (as of 10/31/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $51.50 and $63.88.
The ETF has a beta of 1.20 and standard deviation of 25.25% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 264 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust Small Cap Growth AlphaDEX 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, FYC is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Growth area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
The iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO - Free Report) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF (VBK - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF has $8.42 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF has $12.34 billion. IWO has an expense ratio of 0.24% and VBK 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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Should First Trust Small Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF (FYC) Be on Your Investing Radar?
The First Trust Small Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF (FYC - Free Report) was launched on 04/19/2011, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $214.06 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Small Cap Growth
Sitting at a market capitalization below $2 billion, small cap companies tend to be high-potential stocks compared to its large and mid cap counterparts, but come with higher risk.
Growth stocks have higher than average sales and earnings growth rates. While these are expected to grow faster than the broader market, they also have higher valuations. Something to keep in mind is the higher level of volatility that is affiliated with growth stocks. Compared to value stocks, growth stocks are a safer bet in a strong bull market, but don't perform as strongly in almost all other financial environments.
Costs
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.71%, making it one of the more expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.40%.
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 18.70% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Healthcare round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Modine Manufacturing Company (MOD - Free Report) accounts for about 0.90% of total assets, followed by Consol Energy Inc. (CEIX - Free Report) and Remitly Global, Inc. (RELY - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 8.19% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
FYC seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Small Cap Growth Index before fees and expenses. The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Small Cap Growth Index is an enhanced which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 700 Small Cap Growth Index.
The ETF has lost about -6.12% so far this year and is down about -12.28% in the last one year (as of 10/31/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $51.50 and $63.88.
The ETF has a beta of 1.20 and standard deviation of 25.25% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 264 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust Small Cap Growth AlphaDEX 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, FYC is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Growth area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
The iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO - Free Report) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF (VBK - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF has $8.42 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF has $12.34 billion. IWO has an expense ratio of 0.24% and VBK 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.