Should You Invest in the iShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF (EUFN)?
Designed to provide broad exposure to the Financials - Broad segment of the equity market, the iShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF (EUFN) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 01/20/2010.
Retail and institutional investors increasingly turn to passively managed ETFs because they offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; these kind of funds are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.
Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Financials - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 14, placing it in bottom 13%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $1.49 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Financials - Broad segment of the equity market. EUFN seeks to match the performance of the MSCI Europe Financials Index before fees and expenses.
The MSCI Europe Financials Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index designed to measure the combined equity market performance of the financials sector of developed market countries in Europe.
Costs
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.49%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 4.14%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Hsbc Holdings Plc (HSBA) accounts for about 9.04% of total assets, followed by Allianz (ALV) and Zurich Insurance Group Ag (ZURN).
The top 10 holdings account for about 26.01% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 14.43% so far this year and is up about 22.15% in the last one year (as of 08/16/2023). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $13.63 and $20.21.
The ETF has a beta of 1.08 and standard deviation of 24.83% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 96 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
IShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, EUFN is a reasonable option for those seeking exposure to the Financials ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
Vanguard Financials ETF (VFH) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Financials 25/50 Index and the Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) tracks Financial Select Sector Index. Vanguard Financials ETF has $8.68 billion in assets, Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF has $34.02 billion. VFH has an expense ratio of 0.10% and XLF charges 0.10%.
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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iShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF (EUFN): ETF Research Reports
Autoliv, Inc. (ALV) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF): ETF Research Reports
Vanguard Financials ETF (VFH): ETF Research Reports
