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Is ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF (REGL) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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The ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF (REGL - Free Report) was launched on 02/03/2015, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Value 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.
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.
There are some investors, though, who think it's possible to beat the market with great stock selection; this group likely invests in another class of funds known as smart beta, which track non-cap weighted strategies.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
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 Proshares. REGL has been able to amass assets over $1.62 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Mid Cap Value. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats Index.
The S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats Index targets companies that are currently members of the S&P MidCap 400 Index and have increased dividend payments each year for at least 15 years.
Cost & Other Expenses
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.
With one of the most expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.40%.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 2.24%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Representing 30.20% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Financials sector; Utilities and Industrials round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Williams-Sonoma Inc (WSM - Free Report) accounts for about 2.88% of the fund's total assets, followed by Unum Group (UNM - Free Report) and Ugi Corp (UGI - Free Report) .
REGL's top 10 holdings account for about 21.31% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF has added about 2.03% so far, and it's up approximately 15.25% over the last 12 months (as of 01/30/2025). REGL has traded between $71.47 and $88.79 in this past 52-week period.
REGL has a beta of 0.86 and standard deviation of 16.50% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 49 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Mid Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) tracks Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF has $31.03 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF has $89.61 billion. DGRO has an expense ratio of 0.08% and VIG charges 0.06%.
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 - Mid 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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Is ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF (REGL) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF (REGL - Free Report) was launched on 02/03/2015, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Value 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.
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.
There are some investors, though, who think it's possible to beat the market with great stock selection; this group likely invests in another class of funds known as smart beta, which track non-cap weighted strategies.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
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 Proshares. REGL has been able to amass assets over $1.62 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Mid Cap Value. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats Index.
The S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats Index targets companies that are currently members of the S&P MidCap 400 Index and have increased dividend payments each year for at least 15 years.
Cost & Other Expenses
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.
With one of the most expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.40%.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 2.24%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Representing 30.20% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Financials sector; Utilities and Industrials round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Williams-Sonoma Inc (WSM - Free Report) accounts for about 2.88% of the fund's total assets, followed by Unum Group (UNM - Free Report) and Ugi Corp (UGI - Free Report) .
REGL's top 10 holdings account for about 21.31% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF has added about 2.03% so far, and it's up approximately 15.25% over the last 12 months (as of 01/30/2025). REGL has traded between $71.47 and $88.79 in this past 52-week period.
REGL has a beta of 0.86 and standard deviation of 16.50% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 49 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Mid Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) tracks Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF has $31.03 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF has $89.61 billion. DGRO has an expense ratio of 0.08% and VIG charges 0.06%.
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 - Mid 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.