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Is WisdomTree U.S. Total Dividend ETF (DTD) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The WisdomTree U.S. Total Dividend ETF (DTD - Free Report) was launched on 06/16/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value 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.

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.

On the other hand, some investors who believe that it is possible to beat the market by superior stock selection opt to invest in another class of funds that track non-cap weighted strategies--popularly known as 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.

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

Managed by Wisdomtree, DTD has amassed assets over $1.06 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index.

The WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index is a fundamentally-weighted index that defines the dividend-paying portion of the U.S. equity market.

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 0.28% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.86%.

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.

DTD's heaviest allocation is in the Financials sector, which is about 15.60% of the portfolio. Its Information Technology and Healthcare round out the top three.

Taking into account individual holdings, Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM - Free Report) accounts for about 3.25% of the fund's total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) .

DTD's top 10 holdings account for about 21.46% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the WisdomTree U.S. Total Dividend ETF has lost about -0.82% so far, and is down about -5.92% over the last 12 months (as of 03/31/2023). DTD has traded between $54.26 and $65.68 in this past 52-week period.

The ETF has a beta of 0.91 and standard deviation of 17.69% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 829 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

WisdomTree U.S. Total Dividend ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

IShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (IWD - Free Report) tracks Russell 1000 Value Index and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Value Index. IShares Russell 1000 Value ETF has $49.94 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $100.07 billion. IWD has an expense ratio of 0.18% and VTV charges 0.04%.

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 Value.

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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