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Is Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows 100 ETF (CALF) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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Making its debut on 06/16/2017, smart beta exchange traded fund Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows 100 ETF (CALF - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Value 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.

A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.

If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.

These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination of such characteristics.

Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.

Fund Sponsor & Index

CALF is managed by Pacer Etfs, and this fund has amassed over $5.96 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Small Cap Value. CALF seeks to match the performance of the Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows Index before fees and expenses.

The Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows Index uses an objective, rules-based methodology to provide exposure to small-capitalization U.S. companies with high free cash flow yields.

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.

With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.59%.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.24%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.

Representing 21.90% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Consumer Discretionary sector; Information Technology and Industrials round out the top three.

Taking into account individual holdings, Patterson-Uti Energy Inc (PTEN - Free Report) accounts for about 2.45% of the fund's total assets, followed by Qorvo Inc (QRVO - Free Report) and Insight Enterprises Inc (NSIT - Free Report) .

CALF's top 10 holdings account for about 21.92% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -13.82% so far this year and is down about -19.39% in the last one year (as of 03/06/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $37.70 and $49.16.

The fund has a beta of 1.20 and standard deviation of 23.67% for the trailing three-year period. With about 101 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows 100 ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Small Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

Avantis U.S. Small Cap Value ETF (AVUV - Free Report) tracks ---------------------------------------- and the Vanguard Small-Cap Value ETF (VBR - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Small Cap Value Index. Avantis U.S. Small Cap Value ETF has $14.87 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Value ETF has $30.08 billion. AVUV has an expense ratio of 0.25% and VBR charges 0.07%.

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 - Small Cap Value.

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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