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Is SPDR Russell 1000 Yield Focus ETF (ONEY) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.

A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.

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.

This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.

Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.

Fund Sponsor & Index

The fund is managed by State Street Global Advisors. ONEY has been able to amass assets over $863.11 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Russell 1000 Yield Focused Factor Index.

The Russell 1000 Yield 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 high yield characteristics.

Cost & Other Expenses

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 cousins, other things remaining the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.20%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.04%.

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.

For ONEY, it has heaviest allocation in the Consumer Staples sector --about 13.90% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Utilities round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Bristol Myers Squibb Co (BMY - Free Report) accounts for about 2.45% of total assets, followed by Altria Group Inc (MO - Free Report) and Gilead Sciences Inc (GILD - Free Report) .

ONEY's top 10 holdings account for about 13.06% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the SPDR Russell 1000 Yield Focus ETF has gained about 14.41% so far, and was up about 28.92% over the last 12 months (as of 10/15/2024). ONEY has traded between $86.22 and $112.63 in this past 52-week period.

The fund has a beta of 1.11 and standard deviation of 16.74% for the trailing three-year period. With about 293 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

SPDR Russell 1000 Yield Focus 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 $61.12 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $130.61 billion. IWD has an expense ratio of 0.19% 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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