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Is SPDR Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focus ETF (ONEV) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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Launched on 12/02/2015, the SPDR Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focus ETF (ONEV - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.

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.

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.

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.

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 State Street Global Advisors, ONEV has amassed assets over $628.24 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. ONEV seeks to match the performance of the Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focused Factor Index before fees and expenses.

The Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focused Factor Index reflects the performance of a segment of large-capitalization U.S. equity securities demonstrating a combination of core factors high value, high quality, and low size characteristics, with a focus factor comprising low volatility characteristics.

Cost & Other Expenses

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.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.20% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 1.76%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

ONEV's heaviest allocation is in the Industrials sector, which is about 21.60% of the portfolio. Its Consumer Discretionary and Healthcare round out the top three.

Taking into account individual holdings, Cencora Inc (COR - Free Report) accounts for about 1.45% of the fund's total assets, followed by Centene Corp (CNC - Free Report) and Mckesson Corp (MCK - Free Report) .

ONEV's top 10 holdings account for about 10.26% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF return is roughly 4.19% so far this year and was up about 13.98% in the last one year (as of 04/25/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $99.61 and $124.18.

The fund has a beta of 0.97 and standard deviation of 15.37% for the trailing three-year period. With about 471 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

SPDR Russell 1000 Low Volatility Focus ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

IShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV - Free Report) tracks S&P 500 Index and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY - Free Report) tracks S&P 500 Index. IShares Core S&P 500 ETF has $437.51 billion in assets, SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $510.33 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% and SPY charges 0.09%.

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 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.

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