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Is First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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A smart beta exchange traded fund, the First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW - Free Report) debuted on 04/19/2006, and offers broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth 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.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Because the fund has amassed over $1.96 billion, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. QQEW is managed by First Trust Advisors. Before fees and expenses, QQEW seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index.
The NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index is the equal-weighted version of the NASDAQ-100 Index which includes 100 of the largest non-financial securities listed on NASDAQ based on market capitalization.
Cost & Other Expenses
Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.
Annual operating expenses for QQEW are 0.57%, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.75%.
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 QQEW, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 37.20% of the portfolio --while Healthcare and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Charter Communications, Inc. (class A) (CHTR - Free Report) accounts for about 1.27% of the fund's total assets, followed by Fortinet, Inc. (FTNT - Free Report) and Mercadolibre, Inc. (MELI - Free Report) .
QQEW's top 10 holdings account for about 11.96% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, QQEW return is roughly 4.75%, and was up about 16.44% in the last one year (as of 08/29/2024). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $97.89 and $127.80.
The fund has a beta of 1.02 and standard deviation of 21.62% for the trailing three-year period, which makes QQEW a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 102 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth ETF has $134.63 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $286.99 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.04% and QQQ charges 0.20%.
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 Growth.
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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Is First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW) a Strong ETF Right Now?
A smart beta exchange traded fund, the First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted ETF (QQEW - Free Report) debuted on 04/19/2006, and offers broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth 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.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Because the fund has amassed over $1.96 billion, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. QQEW is managed by First Trust Advisors. Before fees and expenses, QQEW seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index.
The NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index is the equal-weighted version of the NASDAQ-100 Index which includes 100 of the largest non-financial securities listed on NASDAQ based on market capitalization.
Cost & Other Expenses
Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.
Annual operating expenses for QQEW are 0.57%, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.75%.
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 QQEW, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 37.20% of the portfolio --while Healthcare and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Charter Communications, Inc. (class A) (CHTR - Free Report) accounts for about 1.27% of the fund's total assets, followed by Fortinet, Inc. (FTNT - Free Report) and Mercadolibre, Inc. (MELI - Free Report) .
QQEW's top 10 holdings account for about 11.96% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, QQEW return is roughly 4.75%, and was up about 16.44% in the last one year (as of 08/29/2024). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $97.89 and $127.80.
The fund has a beta of 1.02 and standard deviation of 21.62% for the trailing three-year period, which makes QQEW a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 102 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth ETF has $134.63 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $286.99 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.04% and QQQ charges 0.20%.
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 Growth.
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.