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Is Schwab Fundamental Emerging Markets Equity ETF (FNDE) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 08/13/2013, the Schwab Fundamental Emerging Markets Equity ETF (FNDE - 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 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.
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.
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.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Charles Schwab. FNDE has been able to amass assets over $8 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Broad Emerging Market ETFs. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Russell RAFI Emerging Markets Large Co. Index (Net).
The RAFI Fundamental High Liquidity Emerging Markets Index measures the performance of large sized companies, based on their fundamental size and weight, in emerging market countries.
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.
With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.39%.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.74%.
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.
Looking at individual holdings, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing accounts for about 5.12% of total assets, followed by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Hon Hai Precision Industry Ltd.
The top 10 holdings account for about 27.28% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added roughly 27.82% so far this year and it's up approximately 22.05% in the last one year (as of 11/03/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $26.66 and $37.42
The ETF has a beta of 0.62 and standard deviation of 16.22% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 409 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
Schwab Fundamental Emerging Markets Equity ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Emerging Market ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO) tracks FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index and the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) tracks MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index. Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF has $103.97 billion in assets, iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has $114.81 billion. VWO has an expense ratio of 0.07% and IEMG changes 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 Schwab Fundamental Emerging Markets Equity ETF (FNDE) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 08/13/2013, the Schwab Fundamental Emerging Markets Equity ETF (FNDE - 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 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.
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.
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.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Charles Schwab. FNDE has been able to amass assets over $8 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Broad Emerging Market ETFs. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Russell RAFI Emerging Markets Large Co. Index (Net).
The RAFI Fundamental High Liquidity Emerging Markets Index measures the performance of large sized companies, based on their fundamental size and weight, in emerging market countries.
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.
With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.39%.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.74%.
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.
Looking at individual holdings, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing accounts for about 5.12% of total assets, followed by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Hon Hai Precision Industry Ltd.
The top 10 holdings account for about 27.28% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added roughly 27.82% so far this year and it's up approximately 22.05% in the last one year (as of 11/03/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $26.66 and $37.42
The ETF has a beta of 0.62 and standard deviation of 16.22% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 409 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
Schwab Fundamental Emerging Markets Equity ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Emerging Market ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO) tracks FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index and the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) tracks MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index. Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF has $103.97 billion in assets, iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has $114.81 billion. VWO has an expense ratio of 0.07% and IEMG changes 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.