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Is WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend ETF (DGS) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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The WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend ETF (DGS - Free Report) made its debut on 10/30/2007, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Broad Emerging Market ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.
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.
These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination 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 $1.63 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Broad Emerging Market ETFs. Before fees and expenses, DGS seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend Index.
The WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of primarily small cap stocks selected from the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Dividend Index. Companies included in the Index fall within the bottom 10% of total market capitalization of 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 0.58% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.96%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Taking into account individual holdings, Dreyfus Trsy Oblig Cash Mgmt Cl Insaccounts for about 35.58% of the fund's total assets, followed by Indian Rupee and Taiwan Dollar.
DGS's top 10 holdings account for about 92.73% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 20.76% and it's up approximately 19.27% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 12/26/2025), respectively. DGS has traded between $43.34 and $58.99 during this last 52-week period.
DGS has a beta of 0.62 and standard deviation of 13.35% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 1042 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend 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 $103.53 billion in assets, iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has $119.57 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 WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend ETF (DGS) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend ETF (DGS - Free Report) made its debut on 10/30/2007, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Broad Emerging Market ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.
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.
These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination 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 $1.63 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Broad Emerging Market ETFs. Before fees and expenses, DGS seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend Index.
The WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of primarily small cap stocks selected from the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Dividend Index. Companies included in the Index fall within the bottom 10% of total market capitalization of 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 0.58% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.96%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Taking into account individual holdings, Dreyfus Trsy Oblig Cash Mgmt Cl Insaccounts for about 35.58% of the fund's total assets, followed by Indian Rupee and Taiwan Dollar.
DGS's top 10 holdings account for about 92.73% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 20.76% and it's up approximately 19.27% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 12/26/2025), respectively. DGS has traded between $43.34 and $58.99 during this last 52-week period.
DGS has a beta of 0.62 and standard deviation of 13.35% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 1042 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend 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 $103.53 billion in assets, iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has $119.57 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.