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Is First Trust Technology AlphaDEX ETF (FXL) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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The First Trust Technology AlphaDEX ETF (FXL - Free Report) was launched on 05/08/2007, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Technology ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader 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.
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.
Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.
While this space offers a number of choices to investors, including simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies, not all these strategies have been able to deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by First Trust Advisors, and has been able to amass over $1.44 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Technology ETFs. FXL seeks to match the performance of the StrataQuant Technology Index before fees and expenses.
The StrataQuant Technology Index is a modified equal-dollar weighted index designed by the AMEX to objectively identify and select stocks from the Russell 1000 Index that may generate positive alpha relative to traditional passive style indices through the use of the AlphaDEX screening methodology.
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.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.62% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
FXL's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.34%.
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.
FXL's heaviest allocation is in the Information Technology sector, which is about 81.50% of the portfolio. Its Industrials and Telecom round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Applovin Corp. (class A) (APP - Free Report) accounts for about 2.62% of the fund's total assets, followed by Palantir Technologies Inc. (class A) (PLTR - Free Report) and Meta Platforms Inc. (class A) (META - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 19.65% of FXL's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, FXL has added roughly 18.46%, and is up about 36.54% in the last one year (as of 11/11/2024). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $112.85 and $151.57.
The ETF has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 25.41% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust Technology AlphaDEX ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Technology ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK - Free Report) tracks Technology Select Sector Index and the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT - Free Report) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Information Technology 25/50 Index. Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF has $73.62 billion in assets, Vanguard Information Technology ETF has $82.62 billion. XLK has an expense ratio of 0.09% and VGT charges 0.10%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Technology ETFs.
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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Is First Trust Technology AlphaDEX ETF (FXL) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The First Trust Technology AlphaDEX ETF (FXL - Free Report) was launched on 05/08/2007, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Technology ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader 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.
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.
Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.
While this space offers a number of choices to investors, including simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies, not all these strategies have been able to deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by First Trust Advisors, and has been able to amass over $1.44 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Technology ETFs. FXL seeks to match the performance of the StrataQuant Technology Index before fees and expenses.
The StrataQuant Technology Index is a modified equal-dollar weighted index designed by the AMEX to objectively identify and select stocks from the Russell 1000 Index that may generate positive alpha relative to traditional passive style indices through the use of the AlphaDEX screening methodology.
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.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.62% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
FXL's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.34%.
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.
FXL's heaviest allocation is in the Information Technology sector, which is about 81.50% of the portfolio. Its Industrials and Telecom round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Applovin Corp. (class A) (APP - Free Report) accounts for about 2.62% of the fund's total assets, followed by Palantir Technologies Inc. (class A) (PLTR - Free Report) and Meta Platforms Inc. (class A) (META - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 19.65% of FXL's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, FXL has added roughly 18.46%, and is up about 36.54% in the last one year (as of 11/11/2024). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $112.85 and $151.57.
The ETF has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 25.41% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust Technology AlphaDEX ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Technology ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK - Free Report) tracks Technology Select Sector Index and the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT - Free Report) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Information Technology 25/50 Index. Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF has $73.62 billion in assets, Vanguard Information Technology ETF has $82.62 billion. XLK has an expense ratio of 0.09% and VGT charges 0.10%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Technology ETFs.
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.