Banking sector stress has eased with the Fed stepping in to offer emergency short-term loans for those banks and institutions in need, clearing the way for continued rate hikes for now, though Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has indicated that an end could be near, given bank sector stressors. Continued rate hikes increase recession risks, and for those advisors looking to increase their exposure to steadily performing blue-chip companies through a risk-managed lens, the Nationwide Dow Jones® Risk-Managed Income ETF (NDJI) is worth consideration.
The Fed raised interest rates another quarter point in March, and most Fed officials predict another quarter-point raise this year, ending the year at 5.1%, according to the Fed dot plot. Fed officials are resoundingly signaling that interest rates will be raised and held there all year, a policy that increases recession risk odds, creating an environment where blue-chip companies could be better positioned than broader equities. Blue-chip companies are known for their stability and ability to perform over prolonged periods, including during times of economic downturn, offering steadier income opportunities within equities.
NDJI is an actively managed fund that follows a proprietary, systematic, rules-based options trading model that seeks to generate high current monthly income and utilizes a replication strategy to invest in stocks included in the Dow Jones Industrial Average®. The Dow Jones is weighted by price and comprises 30 well-established U.S. companies, referred to as blue-chip companies.
NDJI utilizes a collar strategy to seek to provide monthly income while reducing volatility and offering a measure of downside protection. A collar strategy entails holding shares of underlying securities while simultaneously buying protective put options and writing calls for the same security. A put option gives its owner the right but not the obligation to sell the underlying asset at a specific price on a particular day until the put expires. In contrast, a call option gives its owner the right but not the obligation to buy the asset instead.
The monthly income that the Fund seeks to generate comes from a combination of dividends on the equity holdings and the premiums earned from the options collar. NDJI had a distribution yield of 7.03%, a 30-day SEC yield of 1.57%, and a trailing 12-month yield of 7.47%, all as of 02/28/2023. (Click this link to see the factsheet that has standardized performance and 30-day SEC yield.)
The model that NDJI employs sometimes signals that the written call options should be closed early; such signals can be generated when the market is moving upwards and exiting the call position would allow for more upside potential to be captured or if markets are falling and most of the premium has been captured already from the call.
The options collar is intended to reduce the Fund’s volatility and provide a measure of downside protection, or hedge, via the protective puts while seeking to generate income from the premiums earned from selling covered calls. Options that the Fund buys and sells generally expire one month from when they were bought or sold, and options are rolled the day before expiration on the third Friday of each month.
NDJI has an expense ratio of 0.68%.
For more news, information, and analysis, visit our Retirement Income Channel.
This article was prepared as part of Nationwide’s paid sponsorship of VettaFi.
ETFs, hedge funds, equities, bonds, and other asset classes have different risk profiles, which should be considered when investing. All investments contain risk and may lose value. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Shares of any ETF are bought and sold at market price (not NAV), may trade at a discount or premium to NAV and are not individually redeemed from the Fund. Brokerage commissions will reduce returns. The Fund’s return may not match or achieve a high degree of correlation with the return of the underlying index.
Click here for Fund Details – https://nationwidefinancial.com/products/investments/etfs/fund-details/NDJI?_ga=2.11313396.1540595139.1670867667-170884346.1669673379
The NDJI Prospectus may be accessed at: https://nationwidefunds.onlineprospectus.net/nationwidefunds/NDJI/index.php
Call 1-800-617-0004 to request a summary prospectus and/or a prospectus, or download prospectuses at etf.nationwidefinancial.com. These prospectuses outline investment objectives, risks, fees, charges and expenses, and other information that you should read and consider carefully before investing.
The results shown represent past performance; past performance does not guarantee future results. Current performance may be lower or higher than the past performance shown, which does not guarantee future results. Share price, principal value and return will vary, and you may have a gain or a loss when you sell your shares. Returns for periods less than one year are not annualized. Short-term performance, in particular, is not a good indication of the fund’s future performance, and an investment should not be made based solely on returns. To obtain the most recent month-end performance, go to etf.nationwidefinancial.com or call 1-877-893-1830.
Click this link the funds’ Standardized performance and 30-day SEC yield.
KEY RISKS: The Nationwide Nasdaq-100® Risk-Managed Income ETF, Nationwide S&P 500® Risk-Managed Income ETF, Nationwide Dow Jones® Risk-Managed Income ETF, and Nationwide Russell 2000® Risk-Managed Income ETF (collectively, the “Risk-Managed Income ETFs”) are subject to the risks of investing in equity securities, including tracking stock (a class of common stock that “tracks” the performance of a unit or division within a larger company). A tracking stock’s value may decline even if the larger company’s stock increases in value. The Risk-Managed Income ETFs are subject to the risks of investing in foreign securities (currency fluctuations, political risks, differences in accounting and limited availability of information, all of which are magnified in emerging markets).
The Risk-Managed Income ETFs may invest in more-aggressive investments such as derivatives (which create investment leverage and illiquidity and are highly volatile). The Risk-Managed Income ETFs employ a collared options strategy (using call and put options is speculative and can lead to losses because of adverse movements in the price or value of the reference asset). The success of the Risk-Managed Income ETFs’ investment strategy may depend on the effectiveness of the subadviser’s quantitative tools for screening securities and on data provided by third parties. The Risk-Managed Income ETFs expect to invest a portion of their assets to replicate the holdings of an index. Correlation between Fund performance and index performance may be affected by Fund expenses and because the Fund may not be invested fully in the securities of the index or may hold securities not included in the index.
The Risk-Managed Income ETFs frequently may buy and sell portfolio securities and other assets to rebalance its exposure to various market sectors. Higher portfolio turnover may result in higher levels of transaction costs paid by the Risk-Managed Income ETFs and greater tax liabilities for shareholders. The Risk-Managed Income ETFs may concentrate on specific sectors or industries, subjecting them to greater volatility than that of other ETFs. The Risk-Managed Income ETFs may hold large positions in a small number of securities, and an increase or decrease in the value of such securities may have a disproportionate impact on the Funds’ value and total return. Although the Risk-Managed Income ETFs intend to invest in a variety of securities and instruments, the Risk-Managed Income ETFs will be considered non-diversified.
Additional risks include: Collared options strategy risk, correlation risk, derivatives risk, foreign investment risk, and industry concentration risk.
The Fund expects to invest a portion of its assets to replicate the holdings of an index. Correlation between Fund performance and index performance may be affected by Fund expenses and because the Fund may not be invested fully in the securities of the index or may hold securities not included in the index. The Fund frequently may buy and sell portfolio securities and other assets to rebalance its exposure to various market sectors. Higher portfolio turnover may result in higher levels of transaction costs paid by the Fund and greater tax liabilities for shareholders. The Fund may concentrate on specific sectors or industries, subjecting it to greater volatility than that of other ETFs. The Fund may hold large positions in a small number of securities, and an increase or decrease in the value of such securities may have a disproportionate impact on the Fund’s value and total return. Although the Fund intends to invest in a variety of securities and instruments, the Fund will be considered nondiversified. Additional Fund risk includes: Collared options strategy risk, correlation risk, derivatives risk, foreign investment risk, and industry concentration risk.
Capital expenditures (CapX) – funds used by a company to acquire, upgrade, and maintain physical assets such as property, plants, buildings, technology, or equipment.
Consumer Price Index (CPI) – The price of a weighted average market basket of consumer goods and services purchased by households. Changes in measured CPI track changes in prices over time.
Operating expense (Op Ex) – An expense a business incurs through its normal business operations.
Dow Jones Industrial Average®: A price-weighted index composed of 30 “blue-chip” U.S. stocks. The index covers all industries except transportation and utilities, respectively.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average® is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC or its affiliates (“SPDJI”), and has been licensed for use by Nationwide Fund Advisors. Standard & Poor’s® and S&P® are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC (“S&P”); Dow Jones®, Dow Jones Industrial Average®, DJIA® and The Dow® are registered trademarks of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC (“Dow Jones”); and these trademarks have been licensed for use by SPDJI and sublicensed for certain purposes by Nationwide Fund Advisors. The Nationwide Dow Jones® Risk-Managed Income ETF (“NDJI”) is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by SPDJI, Dow Jones, S&P or their respective affiliates, and none of such parties make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in such product(s), nor do they have any liability for any errors, omissions or interruptions of the Dow Jones Industrial Average®.
Nasdaq-100® Index: A rules-based, market capitalization-weighted index of the 100 largest, most actively traded U.S companies listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange. The Index includes companies from various industries except for the financial industry, like commercial and investment banks. These non-financial sectors include retail, biotechnology, industrial, technology, health care, and others.
Nasdaq® and the Nasdaq-100® are registered trademarks of Nasdaq, Inc. (which, with its affiliates, is referred to as the “”Corporations””) and are licensed for use by Nationwide Fund Advisors. The Nationwide Nasdaq-100® Risk-Managed Income ETF (“NUSI”) has not been passed on by the Corporations as to their legality or suitability. NUSI is not issued, endorsed, sold or promoted by the Corporations. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO WARRANTIES AND BEAR NO LIABILITY WITH RESPECT TO THE PRODUCT.
Russell 2000® Index: An unmanaged index that measures the performance of the small-capitalization segment of the U.S. equity universe.
FTSE Russell (“Russell”) is the Index Provider for the Russell 2000® Index (“Russell 2000®” or the “Index”). Russell is not affiliated with the Fund, Nationwide Fund Advisors, the Distributor, nor any of their respective affiliates. Nationwide Fund Advisors has entered into a license agreement with Russell to use the Russell 2000®.
S&P 500®: Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, is a market-capitalization-weighted index of the 500 largest U.S. publicly traded companies.
The S&P 500® index is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC or its affiliates (“SPDJI”), and has been licensed for use by Nationwide Fund Advisors. Standard & Poor’s®, S&P®, and S&P 500® are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC (“S&P”); Dow Jones® is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC (“Dow Jones”); and these trademarks have been licensed for use by SPDJI and sublicensed for certain purposes by Nationwide Fund Advisors. The Nationwide S&P 500® Risk-Managed Income ETF (“NSPI”) is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by SPDJI, Dow Jones, S&P, or their respective affiliates, and none of such parties make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in such product(s) nor do they have any liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions of the S&P 500® Index.
Market index performance is provided by a third-party source Nationwide Funds Group deems to be reliable (Morningstar and U.S. Bank). Indexes are unmanaged and have been provided for comparison purposes only. No fees or expenses have been reflected. Individuals cannot invest directly in an index.
Nationwide Fund Advisors (NFA) is the registered investment advisor to Nationwide ETFs, which are distributed by Quasar Distributors LLC. NFA is not affiliated with any distributor, subadviser, or index provider contracted by NFA for the Nationwide ETFs. Representatives of the Nationwide ETF Sales Desk are registered with Nationwide Investment Services Corporation, member FINRA, Columbus, Ohio.
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The opinions and forecasts expressed herein are solely those of Tom Lydon, and may not actually come to pass. Information on this site should not be used or construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any product.
MFM-5094AO, Q-20230331-0633
