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Should You Invest in the VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (PPH)?
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The VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (PPH - Free Report) was launched on 12/20/2011, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market.
While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.
Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Healthcare - Pharma is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 5, placing it in top 31%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Van Eck. It has amassed assets over $590.59 million, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market. PPH seeks to match the performance of the MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index before fees and expenses.
The MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index tracks the overall performance of companies involved in pharmaceuticals, including pharmaceutical research and development as well a production, marketing and sales of pharmaceuticals.
Costs
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.60%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Astrazeneca Plc (AZN - Free Report) accounts for about 5.51% of total assets, followed by Mckesson Corp (MCK - Free Report) and Eli Lilly & Co (LLY - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 51.72% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 1.25% so far this year and it's up approximately 3.76% in the last one year (as of 12/20/2022). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $66.73 and $83.96.
The ETF has a beta of 0.76 and standard deviation of 20.89% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 27 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, PPH is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
Invesco Dynamic Pharmaceuticals ETF (PJP - Free Report) tracks Dynamic Pharmaceutical Intellidex Index and the iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF (IHE - Free Report) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Select Pharmaceuticals Index. Invesco Dynamic Pharmaceuticals ETF has $325.31 million in assets, iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF has $409.51 million. PJP has an expense ratio of 0.56% and IHE charges 0.39%.
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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Should You Invest in the VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (PPH)?
The VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (PPH - Free Report) was launched on 12/20/2011, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market.
While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.
Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Healthcare - Pharma is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 5, placing it in top 31%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Van Eck. It has amassed assets over $590.59 million, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market. PPH seeks to match the performance of the MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index before fees and expenses.
The MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index tracks the overall performance of companies involved in pharmaceuticals, including pharmaceutical research and development as well a production, marketing and sales of pharmaceuticals.
Costs
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.60%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Astrazeneca Plc (AZN - Free Report) accounts for about 5.51% of total assets, followed by Mckesson Corp (MCK - Free Report) and Eli Lilly & Co (LLY - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 51.72% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 1.25% so far this year and it's up approximately 3.76% in the last one year (as of 12/20/2022). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $66.73 and $83.96.
The ETF has a beta of 0.76 and standard deviation of 20.89% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 27 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, PPH is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
Invesco Dynamic Pharmaceuticals ETF (PJP - Free Report) tracks Dynamic Pharmaceutical Intellidex Index and the iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF (IHE - Free Report) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Select Pharmaceuticals Index. Invesco Dynamic Pharmaceuticals ETF has $325.31 million in assets, iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF has $409.51 million. PJP has an expense ratio of 0.56% and IHE charges 0.39%.
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.