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Is Schwab Fundamental U.S. Broad Market Index ETF (FNDB) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The Schwab Fundamental U.S. Broad Market Index ETF (FNDB) made its debut on 08/13/2013, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Style Box - All Cap Value category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.

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.

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.

By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.

The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.

Fund Sponsor & Index

Because the fund has amassed over $277.33 M, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - All Cap Value. FNDB is managed by Charles Schwab. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Russell RAFI US Index.

The Russell RAFI US Index measures the performance of the constituent companies by fundamental overall company scores.

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.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.25%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.26%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector - about 16.80% of the portfolio. Financials and Industrials round out the top three.

When you look at individual holdings, Apple Inc Common Stock Usd.00001 (AAPL - Free Report) accounts for about 3.95% of the fund's total assets, followed by Exxon Mobil Corp Common Stock (XOM - Free Report) and At+t Inc Common Stock Usd1.0 (T - Free Report) .

Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 18.38% of FNDB's total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

So far this year, FNDB return is roughly 14.72%, and is down about -1.64% in the last one year (as of 09/02/2019). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $31.73 and $40.14.

The fund has a beta of 1.01 and standard deviation of 12.18% for the trailing three-year period, which makes FNDB a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 1639 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Schwab Fundamental U.S. Broad Market Index ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - All Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

Invesco High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers ETF (PEY) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers 50 Index and the iShares Core S&P U.S. Value ETF (IUSV) tracks S&P 900 Value Index. Invesco High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers ETF has $831.13 M in assets, iShares Core S&P U.S. Value ETF has $5.72 B. PEY has an expense ratio of 0.54% and IUSV charges 0.04%.

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 - All Cap Value.

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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