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Is Invesco KBW Premium Yield Equity REIT ETF (KBWY) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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Launched on 12/02/2010, the Invesco KBW Premium Yield Equity REIT ETF (KBWY - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Real Estate 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.

A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.

But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.

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.

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

Because the fund has amassed over $285.2 million, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Real Estate ETFs. KBWY is managed by Invesco. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the KBW Nasdaq Premium Yield Equity REIT Index before fees and expenses.

The KBW Nasdaq Premium Yield Equity REIT Index is a dividend weighted index seeking to reflect the performance of approximately 24 to 40 small- and mid-cap equity REITs in the US.

Cost & Other Expenses

Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.

With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.35%.

KBWY's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 9.07%.

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 KBWY, it has heaviest allocation in the Real Estate sector --about 100% of the portfolio.

Looking at individual holdings, Innovative Industrial Properties Inc (IIPR) accounts for about 6.91% of total assets, followed by Gladstone Commercial Corp (GOOD) and Community Healthcare Trust Inc (CHCT).

Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 45.13% of KBWY's total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has added roughly 12.84% so far this year and is up about 14.25% in the last one year (as of 10/16/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $14.97 and $19.19

The ETF has a beta of 1.01 and standard deviation of 19.50% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 30 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .

Alternatives

Invesco KBW Premium Yield Equity REIT ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the Real Estate ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.

State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) tracks Real Estate Select Sector Index and the Schwab U.S. REIT ETF (SCHH) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Select REIT Index. State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF has $7.77 billion in assets, Schwab U.S. REIT ETF has $10.81 billion. XLRE has an expense ratio of 0.08% and SCHH changes 0.07%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Real Estate 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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