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Should Invesco S&P SmallCap Momentum ETF (XSMO) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Launched on 03/03/2005, the Invesco S&P SmallCap Momentum ETF (XSMO - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $1.09 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

Why Small Cap Growth

Sitting at a market capitalization below $2 billion, small cap companies tend to be high-potential stocks compared to its large and mid cap counterparts, but come with higher risk.

While growth stocks do boast higher than average sales and earnings growth rates, and they are expected to grow faster than the wider market, investors should note these kinds of stocks have higher valuations. Also, growth stocks are a type of equity that carries more risk compared to others. Even though growth stocks are more likely to outperform their value counterparts in strong bull markets, value stocks have a record of delivering better returns in almost all markets than growth stocks.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.39%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.51%.

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 Industrials sector--about 30.50% of the portfolio. Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Carpenter Technology Corp (CRS - Free Report) accounts for about 3.47% of total assets, followed by Jackson Financial Inc (JXN - Free Report) and Mueller Industries Inc (MLI - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 24.38% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

XSMO seeks to match the performance of the S&P SMALLCAP 600 MOMENTUM INDEX before fees and expenses. The S&P Smallcap 600 Momentum Index is composed of securities with strong growth characteristics selected from the Russell 2000 Index.

The ETF has added roughly 16.95% so far this year and it's up approximately 45.01% in the last one year (as of 10/23/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $45.31 and $68.14.

The ETF has a beta of 1.05 and standard deviation of 22.93% for the trailing three-year period. With about 117 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Invesco S&P SmallCap Momentum 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, XSMO is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Growth area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO - Free Report) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF (VBK - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF has $12.09 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF has $18.27 billion. IWO has an expense ratio of 0.24% and VBK charges 0.07%.

Bottom-Line

An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also 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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