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Should Goldman Sachs MarketBeta U.S. 1000 Equity ETF (GUSA) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Launched on 04/05/2022, the Goldman Sachs MarketBeta U.S. 1000 Equity ETF (GUSA - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Goldman Sachs Funds. It has amassed assets over $1.48 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Blend

Large cap companies usually have a market capitalization above $10 billion. Overall, they are usually a stable option, with less risk and more sure-fire cash flows than mid and small cap companies.

Blend ETFs are aptly named, since they tend to hold a mix of growth and value stocks, as well as show characteristics of both kinds of equities.

Costs

Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.11%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.37%.

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.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Information Technology sector--about 28.20% of the portfolio. Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) accounts for about 6.72% of total assets, followed by Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) and Amazon.com Inc (AMZN - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 27.24% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

GUSA seeks to match the performance of the SOLACTIVE GBS US 1000 INDEX before fees and expenses. The Solactive GBS United States 1000 Index measures the performance of equity securities of large and mid-capitalization equity issuers covering approximately the largest 1,000 of the free-float market capitalization in the United States.

The ETF has lost about -0.66% so far this year and is up about 25.62% in the last one year (as of 01/03/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $32.89 and $41.47.

The ETF has a beta of 1.01 and standard deviation of 19.64% for the trailing three-year period. With about 1012 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Goldman Sachs MarketBeta U.S. 1000 Equity ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, GUSA is a reasonable option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV - Free Report) and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Core S&P 500 ETF has $397.26 billion in assets, SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $490.48 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% and SPY charges 0.09%.

Bottom-Line

Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are excellent vehicles for long term investors.

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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