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Is SPDR Russell 1000 Yield Focus ETF (ONEY) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The SPDR Russell 1000 Yield Focus ETF (ONEY - Free Report) was launched on 12/02/2015, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.

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.

If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.

Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.

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

ONEY is managed by State Street Global Advisors, and this fund has amassed over $736.87 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Russell 1000 Yield Focused Factor Index.

The Russell 1000 Yield Focused Factor Index reflects the performance of a segment of large-capitalization U.S. equity securities demonstrating a combination of core factors high value, high quality, and low size characteristics, with a focus factor comprising high yield characteristics.

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 ONEY are 0.20%, which makes it one of the cheaper products in the space.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.38%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk, but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

For ONEY, it has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector --about 17.50% of the portfolio --while Energy and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Pioneer Natural Resources Co accounts for about 1.70% of total assets, followed by Devon Energy Corp (DVN - Free Report) and Dow Inc (DOW - Free Report) .

ONEY's top 10 holdings account for about 13.39% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has added roughly 1.04% and it's up approximately 7.77% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 09/22/2023), respectively. ONEY has traded between $83.32 and $102.43 during this last 52-week period.

The ETF has a beta of 1.12 and standard deviation of 19.28% for the trailing three-year period. With about 301 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

SPDR Russell 1000 Yield Focus ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

IShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (IWD - Free Report) tracks Russell 1000 Value Index and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Value Index. IShares Russell 1000 Value ETF has $49.82 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $99.19 billion. IWD has an expense ratio of 0.19% and VTV 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 - Large 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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