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Should WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend ETF (DON) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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The WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend ETF (DON - Free Report) was launched on 06/16/2006, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Mid Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Wisdomtree. It has amassed assets over $3.30 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Value

Mid cap companies, with market capitalization in the range of $2 billion and $10 billion, offer investors many things that small and large companies don't, including less risk and higher growth opportunities. Thus, companies that fall under this category provide a stable and growth-heavy investment.

Carrying lower than average price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios, value stocks also have lower than average sales and earnings growth rates. When you look at long-term performance, value stocks have outperformed growth stocks in nearly all markets. But in strong bull markets, growth stocks are more likely to be winners.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.38%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.65%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Financials sector--about 24.30% of the portfolio. Industrials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Chesapeake Energy Corp accounts for about 1.35% of total assets, followed by Packaging Corp Of America (PKG - Free Report) and International Paper Co (IP - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 9% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

DON seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend Index before fees and expenses. The WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of the mid-capitalization segment of the US dividend-paying market.

The ETF has added about 2.36% so far this year and is down about -3.90% in the last one year (as of 01/10/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $37.67 and $45.36.

The ETF has a beta of 1.05 and standard deviation of 29.71% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 351 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, DON is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Value segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The iShares Russell MidCap Value ETF (IWS - Free Report) and the Vanguard MidCap Value ETF (VOE - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell MidCap Value ETF has $13.34 billion in assets, Vanguard MidCap Value ETF has $16.46 billion. IWS has an expense ratio of 0.23% and VOE charges 0.07%.

Bottom-Line

Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are excellent vehicles for long term investors.

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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