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Is WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Fund (IHDG) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 05/07/2014, the WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Fund (IHDG - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Broad Developed World ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.
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.
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
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree, and has been able to amass over $516.71 M, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Broad Developed World ETFs. IHDG, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Index.
The WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Index is designed to provide exposure to the developed market companies while at the same time neutralizing exposure to fluctuations between the value of foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar.
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.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.58% for IHDG, making it one of the more expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.49%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Industria De Diseno Textil (ITX) accounts for about 4.44% of total assets, followed by Unilever Nv (UNA) and Novo Nordisk A/s (NOVOB).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 30.69% of IHDG's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added roughly 28.23% so far this year and is up about 20.48% in the last one year (as of 11/18/2019). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $26.92 and $35.16.
The fund has a beta of 0.77 and standard deviation of 11.34% for the trailing three-year period, which makes IHDG a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 274 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Fund is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Developed World ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares MSCI EAFE ETF (EFA - Free Report) tracks MSCI EAFE Index and the iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF (IEFA - Free Report) tracks MSCI EAFE Investable Market Index. IShares MSCI EAFE ETF has $61.90 B in assets, iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF has $70.44 B. EFA has an expense ratio of 0.31% and IEFA charges 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 Broad Developed World 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 International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Fund (IHDG) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 05/07/2014, the WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Fund (IHDG - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Broad Developed World ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.
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.
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
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree, and has been able to amass over $516.71 M, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Broad Developed World ETFs. IHDG, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Index.
The WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Index is designed to provide exposure to the developed market companies while at the same time neutralizing exposure to fluctuations between the value of foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar.
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.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.58% for IHDG, making it one of the more expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.49%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Industria De Diseno Textil (ITX) accounts for about 4.44% of total assets, followed by Unilever Nv (UNA) and Novo Nordisk A/s (NOVOB).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 30.69% of IHDG's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added roughly 28.23% so far this year and is up about 20.48% in the last one year (as of 11/18/2019). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $26.92 and $35.16.
The fund has a beta of 0.77 and standard deviation of 11.34% for the trailing three-year period, which makes IHDG a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 274 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Fund is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Developed World ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares MSCI EAFE ETF (EFA - Free Report) tracks MSCI EAFE Index and the iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF (IEFA - Free Report) tracks MSCI EAFE Investable Market Index. IShares MSCI EAFE ETF has $61.90 B in assets, iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF has $70.44 B. EFA has an expense ratio of 0.31% and IEFA charges 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 Broad Developed World 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.