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Is WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DGRW) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DGRW - Free Report) made its debut on 05/22/2013, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.

Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.

If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.

This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.

This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.

Fund Sponsor & Index

The fund is sponsored by Wisdomtree. It has amassed assets over $6.65 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. DGRW, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index.

The WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index is a fundamentally weighted index that consists of dividend-paying stocks with growth characteristics.

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.

With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.28%.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 2.20%.

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.

Representing 22.10% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Information Technology sector; Consumer Staples and Healthcare round out the top three.

When you look at individual holdings, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ - Free Report) accounts for about 5.46% of the fund's total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) .

DGRW's top 10 holdings account for about 37.86% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF has lost about -12.71% so far, and is down about -2.98% over the last 12 months (as of 09/22/2022). DGRW has traded between $55.42 and $66.20 in this past 52-week period.

DGRW has a beta of 0.88 and standard deviation of 22% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 298 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) tracks Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF has $22.44 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF has $59.33 billion. DGRO has an expense ratio of 0.08% and VIG charges 0.06%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Large Cap Value.

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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