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Is WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (EPI) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 02/22/2008, the WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (EPI - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination of such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by Wisdomtree. It has amassed assets over $661.10 million, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs. Before fees and expenses, EPI seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree India Earnings Index.
The WisdomTree India Earnings Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of companies incorporated and traded in India that are profitable and that are eligible to be purchased by foreign investors as of the index measurement date. Weighted Index based on their earnings in their fiscal year prior to the Index measurement date adjusted for foreign investors.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
With one of the most expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.84%.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 7.53%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) accounts for about 8.01% of total assets, followed by Infosys Ltd and Housing Development Finance Co (HDFC).
The top 10 holdings account for about 35.88% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, EPI has lost about -13.84%, and is down about -5.13% in the last one year (as of 07/12/2022). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $29.42 and $39.26.
The fund has a beta of 0.75 and standard deviation of 27.32% for the trailing three-year period, which makes EPI a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 474 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree India Earnings ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares India 50 ETF (INDY - Free Report) tracks Nifty 50 Index and the iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA - Free Report) tracks MSCI India Total Return Index. IShares India 50 ETF has $558.58 million in assets, iShares MSCI India ETF has $4.03 billion. INDY has an expense ratio of 0.90% and INDA charges 0.65%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) 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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Is WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (EPI) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 02/22/2008, the WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (EPI - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination of such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by Wisdomtree. It has amassed assets over $661.10 million, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs. Before fees and expenses, EPI seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree India Earnings Index.
The WisdomTree India Earnings Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of companies incorporated and traded in India that are profitable and that are eligible to be purchased by foreign investors as of the index measurement date. Weighted Index based on their earnings in their fiscal year prior to the Index measurement date adjusted for foreign investors.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
With one of the most expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.84%.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 7.53%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) accounts for about 8.01% of total assets, followed by Infosys Ltd and Housing Development Finance Co (HDFC).
The top 10 holdings account for about 35.88% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, EPI has lost about -13.84%, and is down about -5.13% in the last one year (as of 07/12/2022). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $29.42 and $39.26.
The fund has a beta of 0.75 and standard deviation of 27.32% for the trailing three-year period, which makes EPI a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 474 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree India Earnings ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares India 50 ETF (INDY - Free Report) tracks Nifty 50 Index and the iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA - Free Report) tracks MSCI India Total Return Index. IShares India 50 ETF has $558.58 million in assets, iShares MSCI India ETF has $4.03 billion. INDY has an expense ratio of 0.90% and INDA charges 0.65%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) 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.