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Is Invesco Global Short Term High Yield Bond ETF (PGHY) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The Invesco Global Short Term High Yield Bond ETF (PGHY - Free Report) was launched on 06/20/2013, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.

A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.

However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.

Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.

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

Managed by Invesco, PGHY has amassed assets over $241.94 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs. PGHY, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the DB Global Short Maturity High Yield Bond Index.

DB Global Short Maturity High Yield Bond Index tracks US and foreign short-term, non-investment grade bonds denominated in US dollars and is rebalanced quarterly and re-weighted annually.

Cost & Other Expenses

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.35% for PGHY, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 5.31%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.

Looking at individual holdings, Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio (AGPXX) accounts for about 1.86% of total assets, followed by Cash/receivables/payables (-CASH-) and Ashland Llc-4.75%-08-15-2022 (044209AF1).

PGHY's top 10 holdings account for about 5.51% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

So far this year, PGHY has added roughly 2.12%, and is up about 8.32% in the last one year (as of 07/19/2021). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $21.38 and $22.25.

The fund has a beta of 0.29 and standard deviation of 10.32% for the trailing three-year period, which makes PGHY a high risk choice in this particular space. With about 469 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Invesco Global Short Term High Yield Bond ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF (JNK - Free Report) tracks Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Very Liquid Index and the iShares iBoxx High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG - Free Report) tracks Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index. SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF has $8.75 billion in assets, iShares iBoxx High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has $19.67 billion. JNK has an expense ratio of 0.40% and HYG charges 0.49%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the High-Yield/Junk Bond 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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