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Is iShares Emerging Markets Dividend ETF (DVYE) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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Making its debut on 02/23/2012, smart beta exchange traded fund iShares Emerging Markets Dividend ETF (DVYE - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Broad Emerging Market ETFs category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.

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.

By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.

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

DVYE is managed by Blackrock, and this fund has amassed over $623.35 million, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Broad Emerging Market ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index.

The Dow Jones Emerging Markets Select Dividend Index measures the performance of the companies in emerging market countries that have provided relatively high dividend yields on a consistent basis over time.

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.

Annual operating expenses for DVYE are 0.49%, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 7.39%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk, but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

Looking at individual holdings, Gmk Norilskiy Nikel (GMKN) accounts for about 2.75% of total assets, followed by Severstal (CHMF) and Magnitogorskiy Metallurgicheskiy K (MAGN).

The top 10 holdings account for about 21.27% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -24.86% so far this year and is down about -19.97% in the last one year (as of 06/11/2020). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $25.94 and $41.99.

The fund has a beta of 0.91 and standard deviation of 21.16% for the trailing three-year period, which makes DVYE a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 120 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

IShares Emerging Markets Dividend ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Emerging Market ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.

IShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG - Free Report) tracks MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index and the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO - Free Report) tracks FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index. IShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has $51.01 billion in assets, Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF has $57.74 billion. IEMG has an expense ratio of 0.13% and VWO charges 0.10%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Broad Emerging Market 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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