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Should You Invest in the Fidelity MSCI Materials Index ETF (FMAT)?

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If you're interested in broad exposure to the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market, look no further than the Fidelity MSCI Materials Index ETF (FMAT - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 10/21/2013.

An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.

Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Materials - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 4, placing it in top 25%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by Fidelity. It has amassed assets over $534.53 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market. FMAT seeks to match the performance of the MSCI USA IMI Materials Index before fees and expenses.

The MSCI USA IMI Materials Index represents the performance of the materials sector in the U.S. equity market.

Costs

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.08%, making it the least expensive product in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.51%.

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 Materials sector--about 100% of the portfolio.

Looking at individual holdings, Linde Plc Common Stock Eur.001 (LIN - Free Report) accounts for about 13.21% of total assets, followed by Sherwin Williams Co/the Common Stock Usd1.0 (SHW - Free Report) and Air Products + Chemicals Inc Common Stock Usd1.0 (APD - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 48.71% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -3.83% so far this year and it's up approximately 17.31% in the last one year (as of 02/17/2022). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $41 and $50.42.

The ETF has a beta of 1.14 and standard deviation of 26.56% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 120 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Fidelity MSCI Materials Index ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, FMAT is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Materials ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB - Free Report) tracks Materials Select Sector Index and the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF (GUNR - Free Report) tracks Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index. Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF has $7.39 billion in assets, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF has $7.39 billion. XLB has an expense ratio of 0.10% and GUNR charges 0.46%.

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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