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Should VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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The VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT - Free Report) was launched on 04/24/2012, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Van Eck. It has amassed assets over $12.91 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Blend

Large cap companies usually have a market capitalization above $10 billion. Overall, they are usually a stable option, with less risk and more sure-fire cash flows than mid and small cap companies.

Blend ETFs usually hold a mix of growth and value stocks as well as stocks that exhibit both value and growth characteristics.

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 0.46%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.96%.

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.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Information Technology sector--about 22.40% of the portfolio. Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Domino's Pizza Inc (DPZ - Free Report) accounts for about 2.94% of total assets, followed by Transunion (TRU - Free Report) and Alphabet Inc (GOOGL - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 27.04% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

MOAT seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index before fees and expenses. The Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index tracks the overall performance of the 20 most attractively priced companies with sustainable competitive advantages.

The ETF has added about 30.29% so far this year and was up about 28.07% in the last one year (as of 12/18/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $63.71 and $84.98.

The ETF has a beta of 1.04 and standard deviation of 19.25% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 55 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, MOAT is a good option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV - Free Report) and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Core S&P 500 ETF has $394.06 billion in assets, SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $449.23 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% and SPY charges 0.09%.

Bottom-Line

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.

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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