Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Is Invesco S&P MidCap 400 GARP ETF (GRPM) a Strong ETF Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Designed to provide broad exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend category of the market, the Invesco S&P MidCap 400 GARP ETF (GRPM - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund launched on 12/03/2010.

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.

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

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.

These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination 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

Managed by Invesco, GRPM has amassed assets over $280.74 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the S&P MIDCAP 400 GARP INDEX .

The S&P MidCap 400 GARP Index seeks to track companies with consistent fundamental growth, reasonable valuation, solid financial strength, and strong earning power.

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.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.35% for GRPM, making it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.96%.

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.

GRPM's heaviest allocation is in the Consumer Discretionary sector, which is about 29.80% of the portfolio. Its Industrials and Energy round out the top three.

Taking into account individual holdings, Matador Resources Co (MTDR - Free Report) accounts for about 3.26% of the fund's total assets, followed by Chord Energy Corp (CHRD - Free Report) and Murphy Usa Inc (MUSA - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 25.43% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has gained about 7.12% so far this year and it's up approximately 0% in the last one year (as of 12/21/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $82.10 and $99.54.

The fund has a beta of 1.20. With about 59 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Invesco S&P MidCap 400 GARP ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF (VO - Free Report) tracks CRSP US Mid Cap Index and the iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF (IJH - Free Report) tracks S&P MidCap 400 Index. Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF has $57.93 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF has $75.54 billion. VO has an expense ratio of 0.04% and IJH charges 0.05%.

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 - Mid 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.

Published in