ETF Database » UNL

Ten Unexpected Observations On YTD ETF Returns

Michael Johnston — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 16:00:16 +0000

With the finish line in sight, it’s fairly safe to say that 2011 will be remembered by most investors as a wild, back-and-forth year that brought plenty of both hope and despair. A hot start raised optimism of a continued recovery after a generally impressive 2011, but the summer months were anything but relaxing; major indexes suffered some of the worst losses since the recent recession. In examining the year-to-date performances for the 1,000+ ETPs that have been around since the beginning of the year, there are a number of interesting figures that jump out, including both pleasant surprises and bitter disappointments–and some that are just plain confusing [the complete, sortable, document is available in ETF Edge--sign up for a free 7-day trial to get full access]. 10. Commodities Holding Up This year has been a tumultuous period for risky assets, especially over the last several months. So I was [...]

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ProShares Debuts Geared Natural Gas ETFs

Michael Johnston — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 11:00:01 +0000

ProShares, the largest issuer of geared ETFs that has made a push into the alternatives space, adding two more products to its lineup late last week. The new Ultra DJ-UBS Natural Gas (BOIL) and UltraShort DJ-UBS Natural Gas (KOLD) are both linked to the Dow Jones-UBS Natural Gas Subindex, a benchmark that consists of natural gas futures contracts. BOIL will seek to deliver daily results that correspond to 200% of the change in the underlying index, while KOLD will target -200% of the daily returns of the benchmark. With the launch of the two new products ProShares now offers ten leveraged commodity funds, including ETFs linked to gold (UGL, GLL), silver (AGQ, ZSL), crude oil (UCO, SCO), and a broad basket of natural resource futures (UCD, CMD). “There has been strong demand for geared commodity ETFs, as investors have come to recognize the importance of commodities as part of their [...]

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Commodity ETF Investing: Five Factors To Consider

Michael Johnston — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 11:00:22 +0000

Commodity ETPs can be extremely powerful tools for tapping into an asset class capable of providing both return enhancement and diversification benefits. With dozens of products available–there are more than 120 U.S.-listed commodity ETFs according to the ETF screener–picking the right fund for your investment objectives and risk tolerances can be challenging. Beyond the type of commodity included, there can be several attributes of commodity ETPs that shape the risk/return profile; below, we look at five factors to consider when trying to narrow down the universe and find the right commodity ETF (or ETN): 1. Structure: ETC vs. ETN Most investors are familiar with the various product structures that are generally lumped together under the ETF umbrella, including exchange-traded notes, HOLDRs, and UITs. While the fine print of various security types may seem like inconsequential details, the nuances can have a meaningful impact on bottom line returns–especially in the commodity [...]

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iPath Debuts Seasonal Natural Gas ETN (DCNG)

Michael Johnston — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 11:00:41 +0000

iPath has introduced its Seasonal Natural Gas ETN (DCNG), giving investors yet another way to gain exposure to natural gas prices through exchange-traded products. The new ETN will be linked to the Barclays Capital Natural Gas Seasonal TR Index, a benchmark that is designed to reflect the returns that are potentially available by maintaining an unleveraged investment in a rolling position in Henry Hub Natural Gas futures contracts plus the rate of interest that could be earned on cash collateral invested in specified Treasury Bills. The index linked to the new ETN is composed of a single contract that expires in December and rolls annually. In October of each year the underlying index closes out the position in the current year contract and rolls into a natural gas futures contract expiring in December of the next year. Natural gas futures contracts are traded on the NYMEX, with contracts available monthly [...]

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Ten Worst Performing ETFs Of 2010

Michael Johnston — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 12:00:54 +0000

In general, 2010 has been a pretty solid year for most portfolios. Despite lingering concerns about unemployment and mounting debt burdens, most global equity markets have moved higher on the year. Commodity markets have been red hot, with prices of many natural resources climbing to new highs thanks to strong demand from emerging markets and a shaky dollar. And while bonds have shown exceptional volatility during the last 12 months, many fixed income securities have managed to deliver at least modest gains as well. But there have, of course, been some disappointments this year as well. Below, we offer up some potential inspiration for contrarian investors: a list of ten of the worst performing ETFs of 2010. Performance data is as of December 21, and this list excludes all leveraged and inverse funds, as well as any ETFs that began trading during the year: 10. iPath EUR/USD Exchange Rate ETN [...]

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Commodity ETF Investing: Four Strategies For Fighting Contango

Michael Johnston — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 15:00:10 +0000

As the ETF industry has grown and evolved, the product lineup has become increasingly sophisticated. Many of the products now hitting the market are designed to address issues posed by earlier indexed products, as issuers strive to devise new strategies for accessing both traditional and exotic asset classes. A number of issuers, led by Schwab and Vanguard, have lowered costs on stock and bond funds, seeking to attract cost-conscious investors. Last week, Rydex rolled out a suite of equal-weighted equity ETFs that many investors believe are a more appealing option than cap-weighted funds. And in the commodity space, a number of issuers have introduced products that seek to address what some perceive as an oversized impact of contango on fund returns. Contango occurs when longer-dated futures contracts are more expensive than those that are approaching expiration; in other words, the futures curve is upward-sloping. This may be the result of [...]

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Natural Gas ETFs: Investing In The Fuel Of The Future

Jared Cummans — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 12:34:36 +0000

If the world’s history of man-made disasters has taught us anything, it is to learn from our mistakes. The 1979 Three Mile Island and 1986 Chernobyl nuclear reactor incidents put a damper on nuclear power plant construction that the U.S. still has not recovered from. Now, we are faced with the worst environmental disaster in our nation’s history, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Over 100 days into the leak, BP claims to be just days away from permanently closing the well, but the leak will ultimately have long term-effect on how our nation views offshore drilling and the oil industry at-large. Many have their focus set on the spill, but few have looked past the leak itself into the future of America’s energy sources. With offshore drilling restrictions likely to go into effect, many will turn to alternate sources of fuel that are more accessible for extraction. Since solar and wind power are [...]

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Inside The Corn ETF (CORN)

Michael Johnston — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 13:15:34 +0000

In recent years, ETF assets have climbed towards $1 trillion and the number of products has surged past 1,000. Much of the growth in both products and assets has been attributable to commodity ETFs, as investors have embraced the exchange-traded structure as an efficient way to add the benefits of natural resource exposure to their portfolios. In addition to a number of broad-based products offering exposure to a basket of commodities, there are now a number of resource-specific exchange-traded commodity products. The most popular commodity-specific funds are found in the Oil & Gas ETFdb Category, offering exposure to energy resources such as crude oil and natural gas. But there are also targeted ETFs and ETNs offering exposure to everything from copper to sugar, offering investors a unique set of tools for either betting on or hedging against changes in commodity prices. One of the more unique commodity products out there [...]

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Corn ETF (CORN) Debuts

Michael Johnston — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 14:29:18 +0000

The last two years have seen a tremendous surge in the number of exchange-traded products available to U.S. investors. While there have been several “copycat” products to hit the market, the vast majority of new fund launches have focuses first-to-market ETFs unlike anything already out there. Skeptics have been saying for a while that all the good ideas are taken, but these theories have been repeatedly shot down as new ETFs have burst on to the scene and rapidly accumulated assets (see Most Successful New ETF Launches). Vermont-based Teucrium Trading LLC is hoping that the next smash hit in the ETF industry is corn. That’s right, corn. Teucrium is set to launch the Teucrium Corn Fund ETV (CORN) this week. CORN would be the first exchange-traded product to offer pure play exposure to corn prices. Like most commodity ETFs, CORN will achieve exposure to the underlying commodity through futures, in [...]

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UNG Springs A Leak

Michael Johnston — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:29:37 +0000

Since its launch in April 2007. the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) has endured a strange existence. After enjoying moderate success during its first 18 months–assets stood at more than $700 million at the end of 2008, UNG exploded as the natural gas craze hit and investors lined up for access to the “fuel of the future.” Cash inflows in 2009 topped $5.5 billion, fewer than only three other ETFs. UNG quickly became the third largest exchange-traded commodity product (behind only GLD and SLV) and famously spurred a series of meetings among regulators over the role of ETFs in commodity markets. But in recent months the ultra-popular natural gas ETF has sprung a leak. At the end of March, UNG had assets of just over $2.8 billion, down from $4.6 billion at the end of 2009. The bulk of this decline is attributable to ongoing weakness in natural gas [...]

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ETF Database » UNL

Ten Unexpected Observations On YTD ETF Returns

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Commodity ETF Investing: Five Factors To Consider

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Ten Worst Performing ETFs Of 2010

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Commodity ETF Investing: Four Strategies For Fighting Contango

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Natural Gas ETFs: Investing In The Fuel Of The Future

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Inside The Corn ETF (CORN)

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