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5 Best ETFs of Last Week

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The start of the year 2021 has been great for global stocks with most of the indices enjoying a boom. An unprecedented fiscal and monetary stimulus across the globe, a coronavirus relief package worth $900 billion in the United States, Democrats’ control over Senate (indicating the chances of more fiscal aid) and most importantly the start of vaccination globally have been the catalysts.

All these have strengthened hopes for a faster-than-expected economic recovery. Key U.S. equity indexes hit all-time highs last week. All-world ETF iShares MSCI ACWI ETF (ACWI - Free Report) was up 2.6% last week while the S&P 500, the Nasdaq -100 and the Dow Jones gained about 3.6%, 5.9% and 3.4%, respectively.

Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few ETFs that won last week.

ETFs in Focus    

Marijuana – Global X Cannabis ETF ) – Up 22.8%

Biden’s victory and Democratic power in the Congress could speed up the legalization of marijuana at the federal level, thereby providing a boost to the U.S. cannabis industry. Moreover, voters in Arizona, Montana, New Jersey and South Dakota recently voted in favor of the adult use of cannabis, bringing the total number of states that have cleared it for that purpose to 15. The industry is also thriving with mergers and acquisitions. No wonder, POTX gained handsomely last week.

Fintech – Simplify Volt Fintech Disruption ETF ) – Up 20.4%

The actively managed Simplify Volt Fintech Disruption ETF looks to concentrate in those few disruptive companies poised to dominate the new era of fintech and then enhance the concentrated exposures with options. The COVID-19 outbreak has brightened the necessity of the tech-driven and contactless transactions. The latest bitcoin rally has been befitting the space. Some fintech (the likes of PayPal and Square) quick adoption of this cryptocurrency adoptions have been favorable for the fund.

Clean Energy – SPDR Kensho Clean Power ETF (CNRG - Free Report) ) – Up 19.6%

The alternative energy space has always been supported by the Democratic leaders. Now that Democrats have strengthen their positions in the Congress, the stocks and ETFs in the space will get a boost.  Biden is forming a plan — a Clean Energy Revolution — to address the issue of climate emergency. He sees America becoming a 100% clean energy economy and net-zero emissions no later than 2050 (read: ETFs to Watch Ahead of Georgia Senate Runoff).

The underlying S&P Kensho Clean Power Index comprises U.S.-listed equity securities of companies domiciled across developed and emerging markets worldwide that are included in the Clean Power sector.          

Autonomous Car – Simplify Volt Robocar Disruption and Tech ETF (VCAR - Free Report) ) – Up 19.6%

The global autonomous cars market reached a value of nearly $818.6 billion in 2019, having witnessed a CAGR of 12.7% since 2015. Though the market is expected to decline 5.6% in 2020 to $772.8 billion, the market is likely to see a CAGR of 12.7% from 2021 and reach $1,191.8 billion in 2023. The market is expected to touch $1,642.9 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 17.4%, and $3,195.0 billion in 2030 at a CAGR of 14.2%, per an article from Research and Markets.

The ETF seeks to concentrate in those few disruptive companies poised to dominate autonomous driving and then enhance the concentrated exposures with options. The fund is a pricey choice with an expense ratio of 1.09%.

Blockchain – Transformational Data Sharing Amplify ETF (BLOK - Free Report) ) – Up 18.9%

The fund is an actively managed ETF that seeks to provide total return by investing at least 80% of its net assets in the equity securities of companies actively involved in the development and utilization of transformational data sharing technologies.

In recent weeks, the fund has been a beneficiary of the bitcoin rally. Bitcoin touched the $40,000-level last week. Some analysts are expecting bitcoin to hit a $50,000-mark, though it will likely remain unmaintainable due to extreme volatility (read: Bitcoin Tests $40K, May Hit "$50K to $100K": ETFs to Play).

Since “the blockchain in Bitcoin literally acts a ledger; it keeps track of the balances for all users and updates them as money changes hands,” BLOK has every reason to gain traction.

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