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Is Invesco S&P 100 Equal Weight ETF (EQWL) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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Launched on 12/01/2006, the Invesco S&P 100 Equal Weight ETF (EQWL - 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.

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.

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.

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 Invesco. It has amassed assets over $2.8 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. EQWL, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Russell Top 200 Equal Weight Index.

The S&P 100 Equal Weight Index is designed to provide equal-weighted exposure to the securities of the largest 200 companies in the US equity market.

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.

With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.25%.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 1.59%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.

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

When you look at individual holdings, Salesforce Inc (CRM) accounts for about 1.43% of the fund's total assets, followed by Palantir Technologies Inc (PLTR) and Servicenow Inc (NOW).

EQWL's top 10 holdings account for about 12.22% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

So far this year, EQWL return is roughly 11.19%, and it's up approximately 15.22% in the last one year (as of 09/30/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $112.69 and $135.57.

The ETF has a beta of 0.89 and standard deviation of 12.81% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .

Alternatives

Invesco S&P 100 Equal Weight ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) tracks S&P 500 Index and the Vanguard 500 Index Fund ETF Shares (VOO) tracks S&P 500 Index. iShares Core S&P 500 ETF has $880.28 billion in assets, Vanguard 500 Index Fund ETF Shares has $1045.45 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% 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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