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Should FlexShares US Quality Large Cap ETF (QLC) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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If you're interested in broad exposure to the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market, look no further than the FlexShares US Quality Large Cap ETF (QLC - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 09/23/2015.

The fund is sponsored by Flexshares. It has amassed assets over $207.58 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Blend

Large cap companies typically have a market capitalization above $10 billion. They tend to be stable companies with predictable cash flows and are usually less volatile than mid and small cap companies.

Blend ETFs are aptly named, since they tend to hold a mix of growth and value stocks, as well as show characteristics of both kinds of equities.

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 0.25%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.09%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, 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 31.30% of the portfolio. Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Apple Inc Common Stock Usd 0.00001 (AAPL - Free Report) accounts for about 6.80% of total assets, followed by Microsoft Corp Common Stock Usd 0.00000625 (MSFT - Free Report) and Nvidia Corp Common Stock Usd 0.001 (NVDA - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 32.33% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

QLC seeks to match the performance of the Northern Trust Quality Large Cap Index before fees and expenses. The Northern Trust Quality Large Cap Index is designed to measure the performance of a universe of large capitalization securities which demonstrate characteristics of better quality, attractive valuation and positive momentum.

The ETF return is roughly 13.18% so far this year and it's up approximately 32.88% in the last one year (as of 05/16/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $45.42 and $59.82.

The ETF has a beta of 1.01 and standard deviation of 17.02% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 177 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

FlexShares US Quality Large Cap 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, QLC is a great option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

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 $462.72 billion in assets, SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $523.31 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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