ETF Database » IAK

Ten ETFs No One Is Thankful For

Stoyan Bojinov — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 14:00:28 +0000

The ETF industry has grown by leaps and bounds over the last five years and innovation across products has brought forth a multitude of previously inaccessible investment strategies to mainstream investors. Aside from the vast expansion in the exchange-traded product universe, the last five years have been nothing short of a roller coaster ride. Global financial markets witnessed an unprecedented economic downturn after the collapse of the U.S. housing market, only to stage a truly remarkable recovery in the years following. There are now more than 1,350 ETPs available on the market, most of which are relatively new introductions to investors. Those with longer track records have endured some severe losses in recent years, putting a significant dent in many portfolios; of the 330 or so available prior to November 2006, close to half have delivered negative returns. Amidst the chaos in the markets in recent years, some exchange-traded products [...]

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ETF Update: Pipeline Continues To Fill

Michael Johnston — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:13 +0000

The summer months generally bring a slowdown in trading activity on Wall Street, so it isn’t surprising that product development activity has seemingly slowed a bit in the ETF industry as of late. After dozens of new product launches in previous months, just ten new ETFs debuted in July according to the ETF Launch Center. And as we near the midway point in August, only four new ETFs have started trading this month: the India Consumer ETF (INCO), Emerging Markets High Beta Low Income ETF (HILO), SmallCap 600 Equal Weight ETF (EWSM), and MidCap 400 Equal Weight ETF (EWMD). But while the pace of new launches may have slowed, issuers have remained busy behind the scenes laying groundwork for new ETPs that could begin trading later in 2011 (of course, many proposed ETFs may never see the light of day). Among the ideas stuffed into a bursting pipeline over the [...]

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Three ETFs To Watch This Week: IYK, IAK, FXB

Stoyan Bojinov — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 09:00:52 +0000

Wall Street managed to march higher early last week, however, domestic equities settled into range-bound trading for the remainder of the period given a lack of upbeat economic news and overall pessimism stemming from the situation in Egypt. Political instability and civil unrest in the region continue to put pressure on financial markets around the globe, especially as fears grow over the riots spreading to other countries in the area. Commodities have been quite volatile, with oil managing to slip just below $90 a barrel on Friday, while gold managed to hold support and inch higher. On Friday, the markets wobbled between positive and negative territory as investors digested a mixed jobs report, with data showing that job creation is still stagnant, despite a reduction in the overall joblessness rate to 9.0%. This week has a round of earnings from major industry leaders, especially from the consumer goods sector, and [...]

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Beyond XLF: Five Alternatives To The Popular Financial ETF

Michael Johnston — Tue, 11 May 2010 20:01:14 +0000

Over the past two years, the financial sector has seen more than its fair share of ups and downs. After being pushed to the brink of complete collapse after the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, financials recovered to reclaim big chunks of the ground lost and finish 2009 as one of the year’s best performers. The financial sector has been back in focus in recent weeks as the government brought fraud charges against Goldman Sachs and lawmakers in Washington have been scrambling to push through a comprehensive regulatory overhaul. The enduring volatility of this sector has done little to diminish its appeal to investors. While those with a long-term focus may have shied away from financials, the increased volatility has attracted more active investors who measure their holdings periods in hours and days, not years. By far the most popular ETF in the Financial Equity ETFdb Category Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF), [...]

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Financials Tax Puts Insurance ETFs In Focus

Michael Johnston — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 09:09:30 +0000

When the Obama administration unveiled last week its proposed Financial Crisis Responsibility tax, it appeared that the primary targets would be large banking institutions that had accepted billions of dollars in federal bailout funds last year. But a closer look at the proposal indicates that a handful of large insurance companies, many of whom did not take government aid to stay afloat during the downturn, could also be impacted. The timing of the proposal has made it politically popular. Many institutions that were in danger of becoming insolvent during the financial crisis have staged impressive recoveries, and many are expected to report record earnings and pay out bonuses that rival pre-crisis levels. The hefty payday for bankers has added fuel to the “Wall Street vs. Main Street” fire, sparking public outrage and now spurring action from Washington. The “bank tax” has been promoted as a means of recouping the costs [...]

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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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Size Does Matter (To a Point): Study of ETF Liquidity

Michael Johnston — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 07:00:36 +0000

As the ETF industry has exploded on to the scene in recent years, sponsors have aggressively launched funds in an attempt to gain market share. While many of these new ETFs have attracted sufficient investor funds to justify continued operation, some have failed to garner a level of investment necessary to support an active, liquid market and been shuttered. And then there are those that remain in business but are cited as having “insufficient liquidity.” Although there are certain rules of thumb – assets under management (AUM) of $25 million and daily volume of 25,000 are often cited as “liquidity thresholds” – there is no hard evidence to support these guidelines. In an effort to determine where illiquidity ends and an active market begins, I analyzed the impact of size and daily volume on the liquidity of various ETFs. To start, I divided ETFs into six baskets based on three-month average daily [...]

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ETF Database » IAK

Ten ETFs No One Is Thankful For

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ETF Update: Pipeline Continues To Fill

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Beyond XLF: Five Alternatives To The Popular Financial ETF

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Financials Tax Puts Insurance ETFs In Focus

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Five Financial ETFs Flying Under The Radar

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Size Does Matter (To a Point): Study of ETF Liquidity

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