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Is VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 04/24/2012, the VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
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.
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
The fund is sponsored by Van Eck. It has amassed assets over $12.73 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index before fees and expenses.
The Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index tracks the overall performance of the 20 most attractively priced companies with sustainable competitive advantages.
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.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.47%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.32%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
MOAT's heaviest allocation is in the Information Technology sector, which is about 27.7% of the portfolio. Its Industrials and Healthcare round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Estee Lauder Cos Inc/the (EL) accounts for about 2.95% of total assets, followed by Applied Materials Inc (AMAT) and Boeing Co/the (BA).
MOAT's top 10 holdings account for about 26.86% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 3.37% so far this year and was up about 10.05% in the last one year (as of 07/22/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $76.53 and $98.73
The ETF has a beta of 1.01 and standard deviation of 18.90% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 56 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) tracks S&P 500 Index and the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) tracks S&P 500 Index. SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $646.63 billion in assets, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has $694.54 billion. SPY has an expense ratio of 0.09% and VOO changes 0.03%.
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 - Large Cap Blend
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 VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 04/24/2012, the VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
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.
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
The fund is sponsored by Van Eck. It has amassed assets over $12.73 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index before fees and expenses.
The Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index tracks the overall performance of the 20 most attractively priced companies with sustainable competitive advantages.
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.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.47%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.32%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
MOAT's heaviest allocation is in the Information Technology sector, which is about 27.7% of the portfolio. Its Industrials and Healthcare round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Estee Lauder Cos Inc/the (EL) accounts for about 2.95% of total assets, followed by Applied Materials Inc (AMAT) and Boeing Co/the (BA).
MOAT's top 10 holdings account for about 26.86% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 3.37% so far this year and was up about 10.05% in the last one year (as of 07/22/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $76.53 and $98.73
The ETF has a beta of 1.01 and standard deviation of 18.90% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 56 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) tracks S&P 500 Index and the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) tracks S&P 500 Index. SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $646.63 billion in assets, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has $694.54 billion. SPY has an expense ratio of 0.09% and VOO changes 0.03%.
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 - Large Cap Blend
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.