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The U.S. economy has been chugging along at a decent pace so far this year. Wall Street performed moderately last week with the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq rising about 1.4%, 0.8% and 1.7%, respectively. Subdued jobs growth, downbeat new home sales and strong retail sales data were primary highlights of the week. Meanwhile, global markets were preoccupied with the Brexit issue. Against this backdrop, let’s take a look at the ETF areas that were the toppers of the week and the ones that failed (read: Crucial St. Patrick's Day Amid Brexit: Ireland ETF in Focus).
Talks of improvement in the US-china trade relation probably provided a boost to this shipping ETF. BDRY is an actively managed ETF that seeks to provide exposure to daily changes in the price of dry bulk freight futures by tracking the performance of a portfolio consisting of a three-month strip of the nearest calendar quarter of futures contracts on specified indexes that measure rates for shipping dry bulk freight.
SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF (XES - Free Report) ) – Up 7.3%
This energy fund benefited from oil prices gain in the past week. OPEC-led cuts aided the liquid commodity in staying steady. XES tracks the S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services Select Industry Index, which measures the performance of the companies engaged in the oil and gas equipment and services industry. It holds 40 securities in its basket and charges 35 bps in annual fees.
The biotech sector has been on a tear this year amid ongoing industry consolidation, attractive valuations and a strong broad market. In fact, this year, biotech stocks have witnessed their best-ever start to a year since 2012. In particular, the surge of technological involvement in the advancement of diagnoses and treatment across the health care spectrum has been driving this ETF higher (read: What's Behind the Biotech ETF Rally to Start 2019?).
This is an actively managed ETF focusing on companies that are expected to benefit from extension and enhancement of the quality of human and other life by incorporating technological and scientific developments, improvements and advancements in genomics into their business.
Since the broader market has been steady for the month, reflecting decline in volatility. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq increased about 1.4% and 1.7%, respectively, in the past week (as of Mar 15, 2019).
The underlying S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index measures the movements of a combination of VIX futures and is designed to track changes in the expectation for one month in the future.
WisdomTree Dynamic Bearish US Equity ETF – Down 2.3%
With an ascent in the stock market, this inverse ETF has been an underperformer. The underlying Index includes long equity positions or long U.S. Treasury positions and short equity positions. It charges 48 bps in fees.
As the greenback gained strength in recent times, gold related investments lost strength. The underlying Sprott Zacks Junior Gold Miners Index looks to track performance of small-capitalization gold companies whose stocks are listed on major U.S. and Canadian exchanges.
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Best & Worst ETFs of Last Week
The U.S. economy has been chugging along at a decent pace so far this year. Wall Street performed moderately last week with the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq rising about 1.4%, 0.8% and 1.7%, respectively. Subdued jobs growth, downbeat new home sales and strong retail sales data were primary highlights of the week. Meanwhile, global markets were preoccupied with the Brexit issue. Against this backdrop, let’s take a look at the ETF areas that were the toppers of the week and the ones that failed (read: Crucial St. Patrick's Day Amid Brexit: Ireland ETF in Focus).
Best ETFs
Breakwave Dry Bulk Shipping ETF (BDRY - Free Report) – Up 14.5%
Talks of improvement in the US-china trade relation probably provided a boost to this shipping ETF. BDRY is an actively managed ETF that seeks to provide exposure to daily changes in the price of dry bulk freight futures by tracking the performance of a portfolio consisting of a three-month strip of the nearest calendar quarter of futures contracts on specified indexes that measure rates for shipping dry bulk freight.
SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF (XES - Free Report) ) – Up 7.3%
This energy fund benefited from oil prices gain in the past week. OPEC-led cuts aided the liquid commodity in staying steady. XES tracks the S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services Select Industry Index, which measures the performance of the companies engaged in the oil and gas equipment and services industry. It holds 40 securities in its basket and charges 35 bps in annual fees.
ARK Genomic Revolution Multi-Sector ETF (ARKG - Free Report) ) – Up 7.3%
The biotech sector has been on a tear this year amid ongoing industry consolidation, attractive valuations and a strong broad market. In fact, this year, biotech stocks have witnessed their best-ever start to a year since 2012. In particular, the surge of technological involvement in the advancement of diagnoses and treatment across the health care spectrum has been driving this ETF higher (read: What's Behind the Biotech ETF Rally to Start 2019?).
This is an actively managed ETF focusing on companies that are expected to benefit from extension and enhancement of the quality of human and other life by incorporating technological and scientific developments, improvements and advancements in genomics into their business.
Worst ETFs
ProShares VIX Short-Term Futures (VIXY - Free Report) ) – Down 13.9%
Since the broader market has been steady for the month, reflecting decline in volatility. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq increased about 1.4% and 1.7%, respectively, in the past week (as of Mar 15, 2019).
The underlying S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index measures the movements of a combination of VIX futures and is designed to track changes in the expectation for one month in the future.
WisdomTree Dynamic Bearish US Equity ETF – Down 2.3%
With an ascent in the stock market, this inverse ETF has been an underperformer. The underlying Index includes long equity positions or long U.S. Treasury positions and short equity positions. It charges 48 bps in fees.
ALPS Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF (SGDJ - Free Report) ) – Down 1.9%
As the greenback gained strength in recent times, gold related investments lost strength. The underlying Sprott Zacks Junior Gold Miners Index looks to track performance of small-capitalization gold companies whose stocks are listed on major U.S. and Canadian exchanges.
Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox?
Zacks’ free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >>