As the ETF world continues to grow, issuers have spread out into a variety of market segments in order to obtain the coveted first-mover advantage and gain large asset bases. Yet with the rapid proliferation of the industry, many are beginning to circle back to some of the most popular market segments such as bonds, broad stock funds, or emerging market equities in order to chip away at market leaders and establish new products in these sought after spaces. While a number of new funds have sought to offer more segmented exposure, a few have focused in on price as a key way to differentiate themselves from their entrenched competitors. [click to continue…]
As the ETF world continues to grow, the competitive landscape continues to evolve. In recent years, a growing number of firms have attempted to differentiate themselves by offering unique exposure to asset classes and strategies not previously available–such as funds tracking the Philippine stock market or ETNs linked to the price of industrial metals such [...]
The rapid growth of the ETF industry in recent years has altered the investment landscape in more ways than one. The low expense ratios offered by most exchange-traded products have brought increased scrutiny on active managers and called into question their ability to add value to client portfolios. The immediate diversification offered by a basket [...]
An already tumultuous day took a terrifying turn in afternoon trading on Thursday, as several major U.S. indexes lost multiple percentage points in a matter of minutes before reclaiming big chunks of the ground lost. At 2:40 on Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down about 415 points, putting it on pace for one [...]
Once investors have narrowed down the universe of 900+ exchange-traded products to those that could potentially match the risk/return profile they’re seeking, the real work begins (see Five Free Tools For Finding The Right ETF). When comparing ETFs to find the best fit for a portfolio, one of the metrics most frequently analyzed is the [...]
The rise of the ETF industry has changed a lot about the business of investing. It has altered the way investors look at expenses, making it difficult to justify handing over 200 basis points (or more) each year to an active manager who can’t regularly beat a benchmark. It has also expanded the universe of [...]
Fidelity Investments announced today that it will offer its retail customers commission-free online trades for a suite of 25 iShares ETFs. The funds included in the commission-free platform include ETFs in all nine domestic equity style/size categories, as well as international equity and fixed income options. “Fidelity has partnered with the leading ETF provider in [...]
After launching more than 120 new funds last year, the ETF industry seems poised to continue its rapid growth in 2010. Numerous issuers have big plans for this year, with the number of new product launches expected to once again exceed 100 and perhaps even top last year’s results. A recent SEC filing shed some [...]
As 2009 draws to a close, it appears that this will be another “year of the mid cap.” Although equities of all sizes have posted strong gains this year (particularly when compared to 2008), mid caps have led the way, and mid cap ETFs have generally outperformed their small and large cap peers. Some investors [...]
Following a year that saw some of the worst performances in recent memory, many asset classes have bounced back in 2009. But some have performed better than others, and as the year draws to a close we take a look at some of the best-performing ETFs. The year’s top gainers include a few of the [...]
Leveraged ETFs were in the headlines a great deal in 2009, but most of the coverage was less than favorable. Misinformation on these products was widespread throughout the year, leading to confusion on many aspects of these products and some unfair generalizations. One of the primary points of discussion was the performance of leveraged ETFs [...]