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Is Direxion NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares (QQQE) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 03/21/2012, the Direxion NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares (QQQE - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth 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.
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.
While this space offers a number of choices to investors, including simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies, not all these strategies have been able to deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by Direxion, QQQE has amassed assets over $1.14 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index consists of companies in the NASDAQ-100 Index but each of the securities is initially set at a weight of 1.00% of the Index. The NASDAQ-100 Index includes 100 of the largest non-financial securities listed on NASDAQ based on capitalization.
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 0.35%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
QQQE's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.53%.
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.
For QQQE, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 38.6% of the portfolio --while Industrials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Western Digital Corp (WDC) accounts for about 1.57% of the fund's total assets, followed by Micron Technology Inc (MU) and Seagate Technology Holdings (STX).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 13.77% of QQQE's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -2.32% and it's up approximately 16.5% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 03/16/2026), respectively. QQQE has traded between $76.98 and $106.21 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 1.06 and standard deviation of 16.92% for the trailing three-year period, which makes QQQE a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 102 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
Direxion NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VUG) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $191.41 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $383 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.03% and QQQ changes 0.18%.
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 Growth
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 Direxion NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares (QQQE) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 03/21/2012, the Direxion NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares (QQQE - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth 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.
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.
While this space offers a number of choices to investors, including simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies, not all these strategies have been able to deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by Direxion, QQQE has amassed assets over $1.14 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index consists of companies in the NASDAQ-100 Index but each of the securities is initially set at a weight of 1.00% of the Index. The NASDAQ-100 Index includes 100 of the largest non-financial securities listed on NASDAQ based on capitalization.
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 0.35%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
QQQE's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.53%.
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.
For QQQE, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 38.6% of the portfolio --while Industrials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Western Digital Corp (WDC) accounts for about 1.57% of the fund's total assets, followed by Micron Technology Inc (MU) and Seagate Technology Holdings (STX).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 13.77% of QQQE's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -2.32% and it's up approximately 16.5% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 03/16/2026), respectively. QQQE has traded between $76.98 and $106.21 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 1.06 and standard deviation of 16.92% for the trailing three-year period, which makes QQQE a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 102 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
Direxion NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VUG) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $191.41 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $383 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.03% and QQQ changes 0.18%.
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 Growth
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.