ETF Asset Flow Roundup of Last Week

Last week acted as a breather for Wall Street in recent times as the joint efforts of the Fed and the U.S. government led to a market rally. The S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq gained 10.3%, 12.8% and 9.1% last week, respectively, on the $2-trillion U.S. stimulus support and the Fed’s announcement of corporate bond buying and unlimited QE. Several global markets too followed suit (read: US Stimulus Should Support These 7 ETFs).

Amid this scenario, we highlight ETF asset flows from Mar 22 to Mar 26 (per etf.com).

Investment-Grade Corporate Bond ETF Tops

Failing to contain the coronavirus-led acute market rout by its crisis-era policy launch, the Fed announced a fresh set of stimuli on Mar 23. The Fed added that the purchases of Treasury and mortgage securities are unlimited.

Among other steps, the Fed confirmed it would buy investment-grade exchange-traded funds that track the corporate bond market, a first for the U.S. central bank. However, the Fed cannot own more than 20% of any one ETF or 10% of individual corporate bonds.

The very announcement has led iShares iBoxx USD Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD - Free Report) to haul in about $4.68 billion in assets last week (read: All-Out Fed Support: Buy Highly-Rated Corporate Bond ETFs).

Gold Maintains Glow

Gold recorded their biggest weekly gain since late 2008 on Mar 27, probably on greenback weakness. Gold bullion SPDR Gold Trust (GLD - Free Report) has raked in about $2.25 billion in assets.

S&P 500 Gathers Assets

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO - Free Report) and SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY - Free Report) have added about $1.26 billion and $1.01 billion in assets, respectively, in the past week. As the S&P 500 has been extremely battered, investors tapped its cheaper valuation.

Short-Term Treasuries Gain Investors’ Favor

SPDR Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL - Free Report) and iShares 1-3 Year Treasury Bond ETF (SHY - Free Report) added about $1.38 billion and $1.08 billion, respectively. Liquidity is the need of the hour as financial markets have been going berserk in the past month. So, short-term bond ETFs like BIL and SHY that yield about 1.89% and 2.02% annually amid a very low yield environment garnered solid investor interest (read: Invest in These Cash-Like ETFs).

Emerging Markets Lose

Emerging markets ETF Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO - Free Report) lost about $581.7 billion as investors fled the risky investing area. The greenback strength may have made investors cautious about emerging market investing.

Ultra-Short Income ETFs Shed Assets Too

PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active ETF (MINT - Free Report) and JPMorgan Ultra-Short Income ETF (JPST - Free Report) shed about $704.7 million and $580 million in assets, respectively.

Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox?

Zacks’ free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >>

Zacks Names "Single Best Pick to Double"

From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.

It’s a little-known chemical company that’s up 65% over last year, yet still dirt cheap. With unrelenting demand, soaring 2022 earnings estimates, and $1.5 billion for repurchasing shares, retail investors could jump in at any time.

This company could rival or surpass other recent Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Boston Beer Company which shot up +143.0% in little more than 9 months and NVIDIA which boomed +175.9% in one year.

Free: See Our Top Stock and 4 Runners Up >>