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Is WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DNL) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Designed to provide broad exposure to the World ETFs category of the market, the WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DNL - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund launched on 06/16/2006.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
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.
On the other hand, some investors who believe that it is possible to beat the market by superior stock selection opt to invest in another class of funds that track non-cap weighted strategies--popularly known as smart beta.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
While this space offers a number of choices to investors, including simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies, not all these strategies have been able to deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree, and has been able to amass over $513.47 million, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the World ETFs. Before fees and expenses, DNL seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index.
The WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of dividend paying stocks with growth characteristics in the developed and emerging markets outside of the United States.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
With one of the least expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.42%.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.79%.
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.
When you look at individual holdings, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd accounts for about 5.13% of the fund's total assets, followed by Industria De Diseno Textil (ITX) and Gsk Plc (GSK - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 36.58% of DNL's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, DNL has gained about 2.70%, and is down about -2.13% in the last one year (as of 03/25/2025). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $35.56 and $40.81.
The fund has a beta of 0.95 and standard deviation of 17.70% for the trailing three-year period, which makes DNL a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 304 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the World ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) tracks Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF has $31.57 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF has $87.16 billion. DGRO has an expense ratio of 0.08% and VIG charges 0.05%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the World ETFs.
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 WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DNL) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Designed to provide broad exposure to the World ETFs category of the market, the WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF (DNL - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund launched on 06/16/2006.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
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.
On the other hand, some investors who believe that it is possible to beat the market by superior stock selection opt to invest in another class of funds that track non-cap weighted strategies--popularly known as smart beta.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
While this space offers a number of choices to investors, including simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies, not all these strategies have been able to deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree, and has been able to amass over $513.47 million, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the World ETFs. Before fees and expenses, DNL seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index.
The WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of dividend paying stocks with growth characteristics in the developed and emerging markets outside of the United States.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
With one of the least expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.42%.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.79%.
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.
When you look at individual holdings, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd accounts for about 5.13% of the fund's total assets, followed by Industria De Diseno Textil (ITX) and Gsk Plc (GSK - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 36.58% of DNL's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, DNL has gained about 2.70%, and is down about -2.13% in the last one year (as of 03/25/2025). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $35.56 and $40.81.
The fund has a beta of 0.95 and standard deviation of 17.70% for the trailing three-year period, which makes DNL a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 304 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
WisdomTree Global ex-U.S. Quality Dividend Growth ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the World ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) tracks Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG - Free Report) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. IShares Core Dividend Growth ETF has $31.57 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF has $87.16 billion. DGRO has an expense ratio of 0.08% and VIG charges 0.05%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the World ETFs.
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.