FlexShares Adds New Line of Dividend ETFs
Northern Trust’s FlexShares launched a suite of dividend exchange traded funds, adding to the growing number of income-generating investment options as investors scrounge for yields.
On Wednesday, three new FlexShares ETFs started trading:
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund (QDF) . QDF tries to reflect the performance of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Index, which holds high-quality income-oriented U.S. companies with a targeted overall beta similar to the Northern Trust 1250 Index, or the parent index.
Sector allocations include financials 19.5%, information technology 15.6%, energy 12.2%, consumer staples 10.1%, consumer discretionary 9.2%, health care 8.9%, industrials 7.8%, utilities 6.6%, telecom services 5.3% and materials 4.8%.
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (QDYN) . QDYN tries to reflect the performance of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Dynamic Index, which has a targeted overall beta that is between 1.0 to 1.5 times that of the parent index.
Sector allocations include financials 19.5%, information tech 15.6%, consumer discretionary 11.3%, energy 10.4%, industrials 10.4%, health care 8.8%, consumer staples 7.1%, utilities 6.5%, telecom services 5.3% and materials 5.1%.
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (QDEF) . QDEF tries to reflect the performance of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Defensive Index, which has a targeted overall beta that is between 0.5 to 1.0 times that of the parent index.
Sector allocations include financials 19.3%, information tech 15.7%, consumer staples 12.6%, energy 11.3%, consumer discretionary 9.2%, health care 8.9%, industrials 7.7%, utilities 6.7%, telecom services 5.4% and materials 3.3%.
All three ETFs come with a 0.37% expense ratio.
“Our research shows that a high-quality, yield-focused equity position can potentially act as a return stabilizer for a broader portfolio, mitigate risk in volatile markets and provide higher dividend growth,” Shundrawn Thomas, head of Northern Trust’s Exchange Traded Funds Group, said in a note. “The new equity funds are designed to outperform in a variety of market environments, including upward- and downward-trending markets.”
In a SEC filing, the fund provider also planned three other international dividend ETFs to fill out its suite of dividend-focused products, including FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund (NYSEArca:IQDF) , FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (NYSEArca:IQDY) and FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (NYSEArca:IQDE) .
For more information on new product launches, visit our new ETFs category.
Max Chen contributed to this article.
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.
