Designed to provide broad exposure to the Broad Developed World ETFs category of the market, the Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta World Low Vol Plus Equity ETF (GLOV Quick QuoteGLOV - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund launched on 03/15/2022.

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.

Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide 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.

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

Managed by Goldman Sachs Funds, GLOV has amassed assets over $614.89 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Broad Developed World ETFs. GLOV, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the GOLDMAN SACHS ACTBT WORLD LW VL PL EQ ID.

The Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta World Low Vol Plus Equity Index delivers exposure to large and mid-capitalization equity securities of developed market issuers, including the United States.

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.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.25% for this ETF, which makes it one of the cheaper products in the space.

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

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.

When you look at individual holdings, Apple Inc (AAPL Quick QuoteAAPL - Free Report) accounts for about 2.49% of the fund's total assets, followed by Microsoft Corp (MSFT Quick QuoteMSFT - Free Report) and Oreilly Automotive Inc (ORLY Quick QuoteORLY - Free Report) .

GLOV's top 10 holdings account for about 7.08% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has added about 3.66% so far.

With about 387 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta World Low Vol Plus Equity ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Developed World ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

IShares MSCI ACWI ETF (ACWI Quick QuoteACWI - Free Report) tracks MSCI All Country World Index and the Vanguard Total World Stock ETF (VT Quick QuoteVT - Free Report) tracks FTSE Global All Cap Index. IShares MSCI ACWI ETF has $19.47 billion in assets, Vanguard Total World Stock ETF has $26.47 billion. ACWI has an expense ratio of 0.32% and VT charges 0.07%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Broad Developed World 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.