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Is First Trust NASDAQ100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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The First Trust NASDAQ100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW - Free Report) made its debut on 04/19/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
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.
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.
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.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $1.18 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index is the equal-weighted version of the NASDAQ-100 Index which includes 100 of the largest non-financial securities listed on NASDAQ based on market capitalization.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.57%.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.56%.
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.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector - about 41.60% of the portfolio. Healthcare and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Mercadolibre, Inc. (MELI - Free Report) accounts for about 1.38% of the fund's total assets, followed by Atlassian Corporation Plc (class A) (TEAM - Free Report) and Constellation Energy (CEG - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 11.9% of QQEW's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, QQEW has lost about -21.95%, and is down about -23.05% in the last one year (as of 11/22/2022). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $81.64 and $119.13.
The ETF has a beta of 1.04 and standard deviation of 27.82% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ100 Equal Weighted ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth ETF has $70.20 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $159.65 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.04% and QQQ charges 0.20%.
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 Growth.
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 First Trust NASDAQ100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The First Trust NASDAQ100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW - Free Report) made its debut on 04/19/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
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.
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.
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.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $1.18 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index is the equal-weighted version of the NASDAQ-100 Index which includes 100 of the largest non-financial securities listed on NASDAQ based on market capitalization.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.57%.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.56%.
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.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector - about 41.60% of the portfolio. Healthcare and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Mercadolibre, Inc. (MELI - Free Report) accounts for about 1.38% of the fund's total assets, followed by Atlassian Corporation Plc (class A) (TEAM - Free Report) and Constellation Energy (CEG - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 11.9% of QQEW's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, QQEW has lost about -21.95%, and is down about -23.05% in the last one year (as of 11/22/2022). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $81.64 and $119.13.
The ETF has a beta of 1.04 and standard deviation of 27.82% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ100 Equal Weighted ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth ETF has $70.20 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $159.65 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.04% and QQQ charges 0.20%.
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 Growth.
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.