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5 Hot Equity ETFs of Last Week Amid Volatility

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Wall Street saw wild swings last week with major indices logging in losses. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.6% and 1.1%, respectively, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 0.7%. Concerns over slowing economic recovery and the a possible tapering of the stimulus weighed on investors’ sentiment.

This is especially true as COVID-19 infections are surging across the United States and around the globe due to the highly contagious delta variant that has sparked worries over new lockdown measures. The sell-off intensified following the release of the minutes of Fed’s last meeting, which indicates a tapering. The central bank is planning to scale back its massive monthly bond purchases, which helped to bolster credit and liquidity in the market throughout the pandemic, before the end of the year. The dual tailwinds are expected to put a pause on the ongoing economic recovery (read: Is Fed Preparing for QE Taper? ETFs to Buy).

Given this, ETFs overall gathered about $18 billion capital last week (Aug 16-19), bringing in inflows of $563.2 billion year to date. U.S. equity ETFs led the way higher last week with $12.1 billion inflows, closely followed by $2.9 billion in U.S. fixed income ETFs and $1.9 billion in international equity ETFs, per etf.com.

We have highlighted five ETFs that were the top asset flow creators of last week and can continue to be investors’ darlings should the current market trends prevail:

SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY - Free Report)

SPY topped asset flow creation last week, gathering $5.2 billion in capital. It tracks the S&P 500 Index and holds 505 stocks in its basket with information technology, healthcare, consumer discretionary, communication services and financials being the top five, with a double-digit allocation each. The ETF charges investors 9 bps in annual fees and trades in an average daily volume of 55.1 million shares. It has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 (Buy) with a Medium risk outlook.

Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF (SPLV - Free Report)

SPLV has accumulated $1.3 billion in capital, taking its total AUM to $9.4 billion. This ETF provides exposure to stocks with the lowest realized volatility over the past 12 months. It tracks the S&P 500 Low Volatility Index and holds 113 securities in its basket. SPLV has amassed $9.4 billion in its asset base and trades in a heavy volume of around 2.3 million shares a day on average. It charges 25 bps in annual fees and has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a Medium risk outlook (read: ETF Strategies to Combat Delta Variant Woes & Market Uncertainty).

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO - Free Report)

VOO has gathered $815.5 million in capital. It also tracks the S&P 500 Index and holds 507 stocks in its basket with information technology, healthcare, consumer discretionary, communication services and financials being the top five with a double-digit allocation each. With AUM of 246.9 billion, the ETF charges investors 3 bps in annual fees and trades in an average daily volume of 3.6 million shares. It has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 with a Medium risk outlook

Total International Stock ETF (VXUS - Free Report)

This fund has gathered around $703 million in its asset base last week. It offers exposure to companies located in developed and emerging markets, excluding the United States. The ETF follows the FTSE Global All Cap ex US Index and holds a broad basket of 7597 stocks with AUM of $49.4 billion. It charges 8 bps in fees per year from investors and trades in an average daily volume 2.6 million shares. VXUS has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook.

Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV - Free Report)

This ETF accumulated nearly $538 million in capital last week and offers exposure to the broad healthcare space. It follows the Health Care Select Sector Index, holding 64 stocks in its basket. The fund has AUM of $32.9 billion and trades in a heavy volume of around 8.6 million shares. Pharma, and healthcare equipment and supplies account for nearly 28% share each from a sector look, while healthcare providers and services, and biotech round off the next spots with a double-digit exposure each. The product charges 12 bps in annual fees and has a Zacks ETF Rank #1 (Strong Buy) with a Medium risk outlook (read: 5 ETFs to Bet on Fed's Stimulus Tapering Concerns, Weak Data).
 

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