A smart beta exchange traded fund, the WisdomTree International High Dividend ETF (DTH Quick QuoteDTH - Free Report) debuted on 06/16/2006, and offers broad exposure to the Broad Developed World ETFs category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.

Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.

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.

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.

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

Managed by Wisdomtree, DTH has amassed assets over $441.88 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Broad Developed World ETFs. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree International High Dividend Index before fees and expenses.

The WisdomTree International High Dividend Index is a fundamentally weighted Index that measures the performance of companies with high dividend yields selected from the WisdomTree International Equity Index.

Cost & Other Expenses

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 0.58%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.

DTH's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 4.15%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk, but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

Taking into account individual holdings, Us Dollaraccounts for about 79.94% of the fund's total assets, followed by Euro and Hsbc Holdings Plc (HSBA).

Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 114.95% of DTH's total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the WisdomTree International High Dividend ETF has gained about 25.73% so far, and is up about 25.75% over the last 12 months (as of 07/01/2025). DTH has traded between $37.33 and $46.83 in this past 52-week period.

The fund has a beta of 0.65 and standard deviation of 15.47% for the trailing three-year period, which makes DTH a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 599 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .

Alternatives

WisdomTree International High Dividend ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Developed World ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

iShares MSCI EAFE ETF (EFA) tracks MSCI EAFE Index and the iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF (IEFA) tracks MSCI EAFE Investable Market Index. iShares MSCI EAFE ETF has $64.49 billion in assets, iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF has $142.8 billion. EFA has an expense ratio of 0.32% and IEFA changes 0.07%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Broad Developed World 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.