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Should You Invest in the Invesco Global Water ETF (PIO)?

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Designed to provide broad exposure to the Industrials - Water segment of the equity market, the Invesco Global Water ETF (PIO - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 06/13/2007.

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.

Additionally, sector ETFs offer convenient ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Industrials - Water is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 2, placing it in top 13%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $291.59 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Industrials - Water segment of the equity market. PIO seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ OMX Global Water Index before fees and expenses.

The NASDAQ OMX Global Water Index is designed to track the performance of companies worldwide that are creating products that conserve and purify water for homes, businesses and industries.

Costs

Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts, other things remaining the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.75%, making it one of the most expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.76%.

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.

Looking at individual holdings, Nomura Micro Science Co Ltd accounts for about 9.10% of total assets, followed by Pentair Plc (PNR - Free Report) and Roper Technologies Inc (ROP - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 57.22% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF return is roughly 7.08% so far this year and is up about 19.65% in the last one year (as of 05/08/2024). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $31.37 and $43.11.

The ETF has a beta of 1.03 and standard deviation of 18.37% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 47 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.

Alternatives

Invesco Global Water 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, PIO is a good option for those seeking exposure to the Industrials ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

First Trust Water ETF (FIW - Free Report) tracks ISE Clean Edge Water Index and the Invesco Water Resources ETF (PHO - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ OMX US Water Index. First Trust Water ETF has $1.70 billion in assets, Invesco Water Resources ETF has $2.15 billion. FIW has an expense ratio of 0.53% and PHO charges 0.60%.

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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