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Is WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend ETF (DEM) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 07/13/2007, the WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend ETF (DEM - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Broad Emerging Market ETFs 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.
If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.
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.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree, and has been able to amass over $2.89 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Broad Emerging Market ETFs. DEM, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend Index.
The WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of the highest dividend yielding stocks selected from the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Dividend Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.63% for DEM, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
DEM's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 5.33%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
Looking at individual holdings, China Construction Bank-H accounts for about 4.42% of total assets, followed by Vale Sa (VALE3) and Mediatek Inc.
DEM's top 10 holdings account for about 24.59% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, DEM has added about 8.37%, and was up about 4.70% in the last one year (as of 05/13/2025). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $37.51 and $45.39.
DEM has a beta of 0.60 and standard deviation of 15.75% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 519 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Emerging Market ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.
Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO - Free Report) tracks FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index and the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG - Free Report) tracks MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index. Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF has $85.64 billion in assets, iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has $87.34 billion. VWO has an expense ratio of 0.07% and IEMG charges 0.09%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Broad Emerging Market 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 WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend ETF (DEM) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 07/13/2007, the WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend ETF (DEM - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Broad Emerging Market ETFs 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.
If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.
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.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree, and has been able to amass over $2.89 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Broad Emerging Market ETFs. DEM, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend Index.
The WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of the highest dividend yielding stocks selected from the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Dividend Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.63% for DEM, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
DEM's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 5.33%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
Looking at individual holdings, China Construction Bank-H accounts for about 4.42% of total assets, followed by Vale Sa (VALE3) and Mediatek Inc.
DEM's top 10 holdings account for about 24.59% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, DEM has added about 8.37%, and was up about 4.70% in the last one year (as of 05/13/2025). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $37.51 and $45.39.
DEM has a beta of 0.60 and standard deviation of 15.75% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 519 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree Emerging Markets High Dividend ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Emerging Market ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.
Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO - Free Report) tracks FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index and the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG - Free Report) tracks MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index. Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF has $85.64 billion in assets, iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has $87.34 billion. VWO has an expense ratio of 0.07% and IEMG charges 0.09%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Broad Emerging Market 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.