Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Should You Invest in the Invesco Global Water ETF (PIO)?

Read MoreHide Full Article

If you're interested in broad exposure to the Industrials - Water segment of the equity market, look no further than the Invesco Global Water ETF (PIO - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 06/13/2007.

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.

Investor-friendly, sector ETFs provide many options to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Industrials - Water is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 5, placing it in top 31%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $268.35 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Industrials - Water segment of the equity market. PIO seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ OMX Global Water Index before fees and expenses.

The NASDAQ OMX Global Water Index is designed to track the performance of companies worldwide that are creating products that conserve and purify water for homes, businesses and industries.

Costs

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 0.75%, making it one of the most expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.04%.

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, Pentair Plc (PNR - Free Report) accounts for about 9.27% of total assets, followed by Danaher Corp (DHR - Free Report) and Roper Technologies Inc (ROP - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 58.70% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the Invesco Global Water ETF has gained about 11.03% so far, and it's up approximately 13.79% over the last 12 months (as of 08/31/2023). PIO has traded between $28.37 and $37.04 in this past 52-week period.

The ETF has a beta of 0.96 and standard deviation of 18.19% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 44 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.

Alternatives

Invesco Global Water 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, PIO is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

First Trust Water ETF (FIW - Free Report) tracks ISE Clean Edge Water Index and the Invesco Water Resources ETF (PHO - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ OMX US Water Index. First Trust Water ETF has $1.45 billion in assets, Invesco Water Resources ETF has $1.91 billion. FIW has an expense ratio of 0.53% and PHO charges 0.59%.

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.

Published in