Is Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Materials ETF (RSPM) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Materials ETF (RSPM) made its debut on 11/01/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Materials ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $293.32 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Materials ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P 500 EQUAL WEIGHT MATERIALS INDEX .
The S&P 500 Equal Weight Materials Index equally weights stocks in the materials sector of the S&P 500 Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.40%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.24%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Materials sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Taking into account individual holdings, Martin Marietta Materials Inc (MLM) accounts for about 4.39% of the fund's total assets, followed by Vulcan Materials Co (VMC) and Sherwin-Williams Co/the (SHW).
RSPM's top 10 holdings account for about 34.79% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added roughly 1% so far this year and is down about -6.46% in the last one year (as of 08/28/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $28.21 and $35.46.
The fund has a beta of 1.11 and standard deviation of 22.05% for the trailing three-year period. With about 31 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Materials ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Materials ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB) tracks Materials Select Sector Index and the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF (GUNR) tracks Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index. Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF has $5.55 billion in assets, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF has $7.17 billion. XLB has an expense ratio of 0.10% and GUNR charges 0.46%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Materials ETFs.
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Materials ETF (RSPM): ETF Research Reports
The Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Vulcan Materials Company (VMC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (MLM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB): ETF Research Reports
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF (GUNR): ETF Research Reports
