Launched on 08/08/2017, the First Trust Dow 30 Equal Weight ETF (EDOW Quick QuoteEDOW - 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 long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the 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.

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.

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 First Trust Advisors, and has been able to amass over $230.75 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. EDOW, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average Equal Weight Index.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average Equal Weight Index is an equally weighted index designed to be a price neutral version of the price-weighted DJIA.

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.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.50%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 1.32%.

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.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector - about 20.8% of the portfolio. Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) accounts for about 4.53% of total assets, followed by Apple Inc. (AAPL) and International Business Machines Corporation (IBM).

Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 37.88% of EDOW's total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the First Trust Dow 30 Equal Weight ETF has gained about 15.17% so far, and was up about 12.97% over the last 12 months (as of 12/18/2025). EDOW has traded between $32.19 $41.75 in this past 52-week period.

EDOW has a beta of 0.87 and standard deviation of 12.79% for the trailing three-year period. With about 31 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .

Alternatives

First Trust Dow 30 Equal Weight 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 $713.26 billion in assets, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has $810.9 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.