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Is SoFi Select 500 ETF (SFY) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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A smart beta exchange traded fund, the SoFi Select 500 ETF (SFY - Free Report) debuted on 04/11/2019, 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.
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
The fund is managed by Sofi, and has been able to amass over $978.34 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. SFY, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the SOLACTIVE SOFI US 500 GROWTH INDEX .
The Solactive SoFi US 500 Growth Index follows a rules-based methodology that tracks the performance of 500 of the largest U.S.-listed companies weighted based on a proprietary mix of their market capitalization and fundamental factors.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for SFY are 0.05%, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.01%.
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.
For SFY, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 37.30% of the portfolio --while Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Nvidia Corp (NVDA - Free Report) accounts for about 14.59% of the fund's total assets, followed by Amazon.com Inc (AMZN - Free Report) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 42.62% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the SoFi Select 500 ETF has added about 32.54% so far, and was up about 44.42% over the last 12 months (as of 11/13/2024). SFY has traded between $79.85 and $111.96 in this past 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.03 and standard deviation of 19.29% for the trailing three-year period. With about 504 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
SoFi Select 500 ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
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 $151.62 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $312.43 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 SoFi Select 500 ETF (SFY) a Strong ETF Right Now?
A smart beta exchange traded fund, the SoFi Select 500 ETF (SFY - Free Report) debuted on 04/11/2019, 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.
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
The fund is managed by Sofi, and has been able to amass over $978.34 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. SFY, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the SOLACTIVE SOFI US 500 GROWTH INDEX .
The Solactive SoFi US 500 Growth Index follows a rules-based methodology that tracks the performance of 500 of the largest U.S.-listed companies weighted based on a proprietary mix of their market capitalization and fundamental factors.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for SFY are 0.05%, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.01%.
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.
For SFY, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 37.30% of the portfolio --while Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Nvidia Corp (NVDA - Free Report) accounts for about 14.59% of the fund's total assets, followed by Amazon.com Inc (AMZN - Free Report) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 42.62% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the SoFi Select 500 ETF has added about 32.54% so far, and was up about 44.42% over the last 12 months (as of 11/13/2024). SFY has traded between $79.85 and $111.96 in this past 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.03 and standard deviation of 19.29% for the trailing three-year period. With about 504 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
SoFi Select 500 ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
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 $151.62 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $312.43 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.