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Ten Of The Worst Performing ETFs Of The First Quarter

Eric Dutram — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 21:03:04 +0000

Although equity markets generally headed higher in the first quarter of 2010, there were a few funds that were not so lucky and became the early leaders in the Laggard of The Year race. The S&P 500 finished the quarter up close to 6%, but European markets stumbled in the wake of an on-and-off crisis in Greece. Moreover, cuts by cash-strapped governments to certain subsidies weighed on alternative energy industries. Below, we offer a list of equity funds that turned in less-than-stellar performances in the first quarter of the year. For investors looking to scoop up some value funds (as well as the contrarians out there), this list could give provide some inspiration. 1. Claymore/MAC Global Solar Energy Index ETF (TAN) TAN, a fund tracking the global solar industry, was the biggest loser for the first quarter of 2010, sinking by 16.3%. The loss can be attributed to weakness in [...]

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WisdomTree To Shut Down 10 ETFs

Eric Dutram — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:40:05 +0000

WisdomTree, an ETF issuer specializing in international and fundamentally-weighted funds, announced the closure of ten of its funds, effective March 24th, 2010. The ETFs effected represent just 3% of WisdomTree’s $6 billion in assets under management and include several of the company’s international sector funds. The largest fund closing is WisdomTree International Communications Sector Fund (DGG) which had roughly $27 million in assets at the end of last year. “We proposed the closure of 10 ETFs in order to create capacity for future growth initiatives, and because we believe it is in the best interest of our customers and shareholders to dedicate our resources to areas of greater client interest,” said WisdomTree CEO Jonathan Steinberg. “We have no plans to make any further closures and are fully committed to maintaining and developing an innovative product line, including the introduction of new funds in the coming months.” The funds that will [...]

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ETF Plays Ahead Of The G-20 Finance Meeting

Eric Dutram — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:00:32 +0000

On September 4th and 5th the finance ministers and central bank governors of the 19 most powerful countries (along with the finance minister and central bank governor of the European Union) will meet in London to discuss preliminary ideas for preventing another financial crisis and steps for removing the trillions of stimulus dollars from the market without causing serious repercussions. While it is unlikely that any major surprises will come out of the summit, the conference may give the markets some direction before the crucial heads of state meeting in Pittsburgh later this month. Three types of ETFs are likely to be in focus following this weekend’s conference; financials, currency, and commodity ETFs. Financial ETFs: Possible Volatility Some recent proposals have been extremely populist in nature, such as the current proposal in Great Britain to tax currency transactions at .005% and give the proceeds to third world countries. While extreme [...]

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Five Financial ETFs Flying Under The Radar

Michael Johnston — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 08:30:40 +0000

Over the past year, the financial sector has been a favorite target of criticisms, frequently accused of outrageous greed that sparked the mortgage meltdown in the U.S., eventually spreading to nearly all corners of the global economy. Moreover, the volatility of financial companies has skyrocketed, perhaps best evidenced by the fact that Direxion’s 3x leveraged Daily Bull (FAS) and Bear (FAZ) Financial Funds (which are vulnerable to big losses in oscillating markets) are down more than 60% and 80%, respectively, since the start of year. These big swings and substantial losses have caused many investors to stay away from the financial sector altogether. While many banking and diversified finance ETFs have continued to trend down in the first half of 2009, the news out of the financial sector hasn’t been all bad. Here’s a look at five ETFs that have bucked the trend and posted strong returns year-to-date: iShares Dow Jones U.S. [...]

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Stress Tests Results Set Stage For Bank ETF Rally

Michael Johnston — Fri, 08 May 2009 05:01:06 +0000

Late Thursday afternoon, the U.S. Treasury Department released the much-awaited results of the government’s “stress tests” on 19 of the nation’s largest banks. Among the big names instructed to raise capital: Bank of America (BAC), Wells Fargo (WFC), and GMAC. In all, the government’s results indicate that 10 of the banks tested need to raise a total of $75 billion in capital. Bank of America (BAC): $33.9 billion Wells Fargo (WF): $13.7 billion GMAC: $11.1 billion Citigroup (C): $5.5 billion Regions Financial Corp. (RF): $2.5 billion SunTrust Banks (STI): $2.2 billion KeyCorp (KEY): $1.8 billion Morgan Stanley (MS): $1.8 billion Fifth Third (FITB): $1.1 billion PNC Financial Services: $600 million But the news out of Washington wasn’t all bad – JP Morgan (JPM), American Express (AXP), and Goldman Sachs (GS), along with 6 others, were told that their capital levels are sufficient to withstand a deeper recession: JP Morgan Chase (JPM) [...]

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ETF Database » DRF

Ten Of The Worst Performing ETFs Of The First Quarter

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WisdomTree To Shut Down 10 ETFs

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ETF Plays Ahead Of The G-20 Finance Meeting

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Five Financial ETFs Flying Under The Radar

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Stress Tests Results Set Stage For Bank ETF Rally

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