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Is WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DNL) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DNL - Free Report) made its debut on 06/16/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the World ETFs category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.

Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.

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 $481.66 million, making it one of the larger ETFs in the World ETFs. Before fees and expenses, DNL seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index.

The WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of dividend paying stocks with growth characteristics in the developed and emerging markets outside of the United States.

Cost & Other Expenses

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.

Annual operating expenses for DNL are 0.42%, which makes it one of the cheaper products in the space.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 4.55%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

Taking into account individual holdings, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd accounts for about 7.34% of the fund's total assets, followed by Lvmh Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Se (MC - Free Report) and Unilever Plc (ULVR).

Performance and Risk

The ETF has gained about 6% so far this year and is down about -8.94% in the last one year (as of 03/02/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $27.20 and $40.37.

DNL has a beta of 0.93 and standard deviation of 25.17% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 307 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the World ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.

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 $23.45 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF has $63.97 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 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.

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