Since PowerShares debuted its first active ETFs in the spring of 2008, this corner of the exchange-traded product market has grown tremendously. Though many active ETFs have been somewhat slow to accumulate assets, the increase in the size of the lineup highlights the trend towards vehicles that combine active management with the exchange-traded structure [see also Free Report: How To Pick The Right ETF Every Time].
There are now dozens of actively-managed ETFs offering exposure to a number of asset classes, including stocks, bonds, and currencies. The following tables present all of the active ETFs currently available to U.S. investors, including expense information, inception date, and the applicable benchmark. New active ETFs are added as they are launched, providing a real time list of active ETFs [filter by active / passive and other fields with the free ETF Screener].
Equity ETFs
There are a number of different active equity ETFs, including funds that offer exposure to both domestic and international equity markets. Three of the PowerShares funds on the list were the first active ETF products to hit the market in 2008, and since then several other issuers, including AdvisorShares and Columbia, have jumped into the space:
| Ticker | Name | Issuer | Benchmark | Inception | Expense |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AADR | WCM/BNY Mellon Focused Growth ADR ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 07/2010 | 1.25% |
| ACCU | Accuvest Global Opportunities ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 01/2012 | 1.25% |
| FWDD | Madrona Forward Domestic ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 06/2011 | 1.12% |
| FWDI | Madrona Forward International ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 06/2011 | 1.12% |
| EMLP | North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | First Trust | n/a | 06/2012 | 0.95% |
| GVT | Concentrated Large Cap Value Strategy Fund | Columbia | n/a | 05/2009 | 0.79% |
| HDGE | Active Bear ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 01/2011 | 1.85% |
| PMA | Active Mega Cap Fund | PowerShares | n/a | 04/2008 | 0.75% |
| HECO | EcoLogical Strategy ETF | Hutington | n/a | 06/2012 | 0.95% |
| HUSE | U.S. Equity Rotation Strategy ETF | Hutington | n/a | 07/2012 | 0.95% |
| RPX | Growth Equity Strategy Fund | Columbia | n/a | 10/2009 | 0.89% |
| RWG | Large-Cap Growth Equity Strategy Fund | Columbia | n/a | 10/2009 | 0.89% |
| ONEF | Russell Equity ETF | Russell | n/a | 05/2010 | 0.51% |
| TTFS | TrimTabs Float Shrink ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 10/2011 | 0.99% |
Bond ETFs
Actively managed bond ETFs have become popular with investors, thanks in part to potential drawbacks of achieving fixed income exposure through an indexing strategy.
| Ticker | Name | Issuer | Benchmark | Inception | Expense |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FWDB | Madrona Forward Global Bond ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 06/2011 | 0.95% |
| GIY | Enhanced Core Bond ETF | Guggenheim | n/a | 06/2011* | 0.27% |
| GSY | Enhanced Ultra-Short Bond ETF | Guggenheim | 1-3 Month Treasury Bill Index | 06/2011* | 0.27% |
| ALD | Asia Local Debt Fund | WisdomTree | n/a | 03/2011 | 0.55% |
| ELD | Emerging Markets Local Debt Fund | WisdomTree | n/a | 08/2010 | 0.55% |
| GMMB | Intermediate Municipal Bond Strategy Fund | Columbia | Barclays 3-15 Year Blend Municipal Bond Index | 01/2010 | 0.35% |
| GMTB | Core Bond Strategy Fund | Columbia | Barclays Capital U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | 01/2010 | 0.35% |
| HYLD | Peritus High Yield ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 12/2010 | 1.35% |
| MINT | Enhanced Short Maturity Strategy Fund | PIMCO | Citigroup 3-Month Treasury Bill Index | 11/2009 | 0.35% |
| BABZ | Build America Bond Strategy Fund | PIMCO | Barclays Capital Build America Bond Index | 09/2010 | 0.45% |
| MUNI | Intermediate Municipal Bond Strategy Fund | PIMCO | Barclays Capital 1-15 Year Municipal Bond Index |
11/2009 | 0.35% |
| SMMU | Short Term Municipal Bond Strategy Fund | PIMCO | Barclays Capital 1-3 Year Municipal Bond Index | 02/2010 | 0.35% |
| PLK | Active Low Duration Fund | PowerShares | Barclays Capital 1–3 Year U.S. Treasury Index | 04/2008 | 0.30% |
| AUNZ | Australia & New Zealand Debt Fund | WisdomTree | n/a | 06/2008 | 0.45% |
| BOND | Total Return Exchange-Traded Fund | PIMCO | n/a | 01/2012 | 0.55% |
| EMCB | Emerging Markets Corporate Bond Fund | WisdomTree | n/a | 03/2012 | 0.60% |
| EU | Euro Debt Fund | WisdomTree | n/a | 05/2008 | 0.35% |
| ILB | Global Advantage Inflation-Linked Bond Strategy Fund | PIMCO | n/a | 05/2012 | 0.60% |
| RAVI | Ready Access Variable Income Fund | FlexShares | n/a | 10/2012 | 0.25% |
| *These ETFs began trading in early 2008; in June 2011, they were converted to active ETFs | |||||
Currency ETFs
In addition to managing several active bond ETFs, WisdomTree also maintains a suite of actively-manged currency products [see also Euro Free Europe ETFdb Portfolio]:
| Ticker | Name | Issuer | Inception | Expense |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BZF | Dreyfus Brazilian Real Fund | WisdomTree | 05/2008 | 0.45% |
| CCX | Dreyfus Commodity Currency Fund | WisdomTree | 09/2010 | 0.55% |
| CEW | Dreyfus Emerging Currency Fund | WisdomTree | 05/2009 | 0.55% |
| CYB | Dreyfus Chinese Yuan Fund | WisdomTree | 05/2008 | 0.45% |
| ICN | Dreyfus Indian Rupee Fund | WisdomTree | 05/2008 | 0.45% |
| JYF | Dreyfus Japanese Yen Fund | WisdomTree | 05/2008 | 0.35% |
| SZR | Dreyfus South African Rand Fund | WisdomTree | 06/2008 | 0.45% |
Real Estate ETFs
As part of its expansion into the active ETF space, PowerShares debuted an active real estate ETF in 2008:
| Ticker | Name | Issuer | Benchmark | Inception | Expense |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSR | Active U.S. Real Estate Fund | PowerShares | FTSE NAREIT Equity REITs Index | 11/2008 | 0.80% |
Multi-Asset ETFs
In addition to the funds highlighted above that focus on a single asset class, there are a number of actively-managed ETPs that offer exposure to multiple asset classes:
| Ticker | Name | Issuer | Benchmark | Inception | Expense |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GAL | SPDR Global Allocation ETF | State Street | n/a | 04/2012 | 0.35% |
| GTAA | Cambria Global Tactical ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 10/2010 | 1.29% |
| INKM | SPDR Income Allocation ETF | State Street | n/a | 04/2012 | 0.70% |
| MATH | Meidell Tactical Advantage ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 06/2011 | 1.60% |
| RRGR | Global Alpha & Beta ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 07/2012 | 1.40% |
Alternative ETFs
In recent years, a number of actively-managed alternative ETFs have also become available to investors [For more ETF analysis, make sure to sign up for our free ETF newsletter or try a free seven day trial to ETFdb Pro]:
| Ticker | Name | Issuer | Benchmark | Inception | Expense |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALGS | Accuvest Global Long Short ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 07/2010 | 1.50% |
| ALT | Diversified Alternatives Trust | iShares | n/a | 10/2009 | 1.02% |
| RLY | SPDR Multi-Asset Real Return ETF | State Street | n/a | 04/2012 | 0.70% |
| RRF | Global Real Return Fund | WisdomTree | n/a | 07/2011 | 0.60% |
| SSAM | Rockledge SectorSAM ETF | AdvisorShares | n/a | 01/2012 | 1.50% |
| WDTI | WisdomTree Managed Futures Strategy Fund | WisdomTree | n/a | 01/2011 | 0.95% |
Disclosure: No positions at time of writing.
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