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Is SPDR Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focus ETF (ONEV) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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Launched on 12/02/2015, the SPDR Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focus ETF (ONEV - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.

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

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.

By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.

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

ONEV is managed by State Street Global Advisors, and this fund has amassed over $566.77 million, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focused Factor Index before fees and expenses.

The Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focused Factor Index reflects the performance of a segment of large-capitalization U.S. equity securities demonstrating a combination of core factors high value, high quality, and low size characteristics, with a focus factor comprising low volatility 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 0.20%.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.67%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector - about 18.40% of the portfolio. Financials and Information Technology round out the top three.

Taking into account individual holdings, Hp Inc. (HPQ - Free Report) accounts for about 1.12% of the fund's total assets, followed by Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (WTW - Free Report) and Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (ADM - Free Report) .

ONEV's top 10 holdings account for about 7.68% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -6.17% so far this year and is down about -3.31% in the last one year (as of 12/08/2022). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $91.93 and $114.25.

ONEV has a beta of 0.97 and standard deviation of 24.99% for the trailing three-year period. With about 475 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

SPDR Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focus ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

IShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV - Free Report) tracks S&P 500 Index and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY - Free Report) tracks S&P 500 Index. IShares Core S&P 500 ETF has $301.86 billion in assets, SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $366.38 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% and SPY charges 0.09%.

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 Blend.

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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