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Should Invesco Defensive Equity ETF (DEF) Be on Your Investing Radar?
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Launched on 12/15/2006, the Invesco Defensive Equity ETF is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $254.36 M, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Large Cap Growth
Large cap companies usually have a market capitalization above $10 billion. Considered a more stable option, large cap companies boast more predictable cash flows and are less volatile than their mid and small cap counterparts.
While growth stocks do boast higher than average sales and earnings growth rates, and they are expected to grow faster than the wider market, investors should note these kinds of stocks have higher valuations. Further, growth stocks have a higher level of volatility associated with them. When you consider growth versus value, growth stocks are usually the clear winner in strong bull markets but tend to fall flat in nearly all other 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 0.59%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.14%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Financials sector--about 17.10% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Industrials round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Mccormick & Co Inc/md (MKC - Free Report) accounts for about 1.08% of total assets, followed by Cme Group Inc (CME - Free Report) and Duke Realty Corp .
The top 10 holdings account for about 10.64% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
DEF seeks to match the performance of the Guggenheim Defensive Equity Index before fees and expenses. The Guggenheim Defensive Equity Index is comprised of approximately 100 stocks selected from the S&P 500 Index based on investment and other screening criteria. The companies selected have potentially superior risk-return profiles during periods of stock market weakness while still offering the potential for gains during periods of market strength.
The ETF has added roughly 21.59% so far this year and is up about 14.80% in the last one year (as of 10/15/2019). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $41.71 and $54.45.
The ETF has a beta of 0.75 and standard deviation of 11.24% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 100 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
Invesco Defensive Equity ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, DEF is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF - Free Report) and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF has $44.92 B in assets, Invesco QQQ has $74.81 B. IWF has an expense ratio of 0.19% and QQQ charges 0.20%.
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 Invesco Defensive Equity ETF (DEF) Be on Your Investing Radar?
Launched on 12/15/2006, the Invesco Defensive Equity ETF is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $254.36 M, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Large Cap Growth
Large cap companies usually have a market capitalization above $10 billion. Considered a more stable option, large cap companies boast more predictable cash flows and are less volatile than their mid and small cap counterparts.
While growth stocks do boast higher than average sales and earnings growth rates, and they are expected to grow faster than the wider market, investors should note these kinds of stocks have higher valuations. Further, growth stocks have a higher level of volatility associated with them. When you consider growth versus value, growth stocks are usually the clear winner in strong bull markets but tend to fall flat in nearly all other 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 0.59%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.14%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Financials sector--about 17.10% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Industrials round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Mccormick & Co Inc/md (MKC - Free Report) accounts for about 1.08% of total assets, followed by Cme Group Inc (CME - Free Report) and Duke Realty Corp .
The top 10 holdings account for about 10.64% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
DEF seeks to match the performance of the Guggenheim Defensive Equity Index before fees and expenses. The Guggenheim Defensive Equity Index is comprised of approximately 100 stocks selected from the S&P 500 Index based on investment and other screening criteria. The companies selected have potentially superior risk-return profiles during periods of stock market weakness while still offering the potential for gains during periods of market strength.
The ETF has added roughly 21.59% so far this year and is up about 14.80% in the last one year (as of 10/15/2019). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $41.71 and $54.45.
The ETF has a beta of 0.75 and standard deviation of 11.24% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 100 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
Invesco Defensive Equity ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, DEF is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF - Free Report) and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF has $44.92 B in assets, Invesco QQQ has $74.81 B. IWF has an expense ratio of 0.19% and QQQ charges 0.20%.
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.