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Should First Trust Large Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FEX) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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The First Trust Large Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FEX - Free Report) was launched on 05/08/2007, 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 First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $1.21 billion, making it one of the larger 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. Overall, they are usually a stable option, with less risk and more sure-fire cash flows 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

When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.60%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.19%.

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 Industrials sector--about 16.90% of the portfolio. Financials and Information Technology round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Super Micro Computer, Inc. (SMCI - Free Report) accounts for about 1.33% of total assets, followed by Nvidia Corporation (NVDA - Free Report) and Deckers Outdoor Corporation (DECK - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 6.18% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

FEX seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Large Cap Core Index before fees and expenses. The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Large Cap Core Index is an enhanced index which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 500 Large Cap Index.

The ETF has gained about 8.44% so far this year and was up about 21.38% in the last one year (as of 06/25/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $76.85 and $99.24.

The ETF has a beta of 1.06 and standard deviation of 16.79% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 376 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

First Trust Large Cap Core AlphaDEX 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, FEX is a reasonable 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 $481.64 billion in assets, SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $521.50 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% and SPY charges 0.09%.

Bottom-Line

Retail and institutional investors increasingly turn to passively managed ETFs because they offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; these kind of funds 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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