Odds & Ends: Main Adds International ETF
Friday saw the launch of the fourth exchange-traded fund sponsored by Main Management. The Main International ETF (INTL) primarily invests in other ETFs using an active approach with the intention of outperforming the MSCI All Country World ex-USA Index while taking on less risk than the benchmark.
The fund will seek to provide exposure to the non-U.S. equity space by investing in ETFs targeting undervalued regions and sectors based on evaluation of macroeconomic, microeconomic and fundamental data. Main Management may also implement a covered call or covered put strategy, which helps to manage risk and generate income. INTL can hold from five to 20 ETFs in its portfolio, according to its prospectus.
The new fund comes with an expense ratio of 0.99% and lists on Cboe Global Markets.
ETFs managed by Main Management have roughly $1.2 billion in assets under management.
Wednesday, the Nicholas Fixed Income Alternative ETF (FIAX) made its debut, using a strategy from Nicholas Wealth Management. The actively managed fund combines exposure to short-term Treasury debt with an options premium strategy that features vertical credit and debit spreads built using options on ETFs and individual securities representing multiple asset classes. The options strategy is designed to limit upside gains and losses, according to the prospectus.
FIAX comes with an expense ratio of 0.95% and lists on the NYSE Arca.
Allianz Investment Management built out its defined outcome lineup during the week, with the addition of two more funds Thursday. The AllianzIM U.S. Large Cap Buffer10 Dec ETF (DECT) and the AllianzIM U.S. Large Cap Buffer20 Dec ETF (DECW) generally aim to offer the price return of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) within a buffered range.
The funds reset annually on Dec. 1 and use a flexible exchange options strategy to protect against preexpenses losses of 10% and 20% from that date over the following outcome period of one year. The funds have preexpenses upside caps during the outcome period of 23.61% and 15.59%, respectively, according to the related prospectus and supplement.
Closures
Two ETFs completed their closures during the week, with the iShares iBonds Dec 2022 Term Muni Bond ETF (IBMK) reaching its maturity today. The fund will cease to trade after the market’s close. Meanwhile, the Ecofin Digital Payments Infrastructure Fund (ETPA) shut down on Monday.
Name & Index Changes
A number of ETFs underwent name or index changes during the week.
On Friday, the iShares Evolved U.S. Technology ETF (IETC) changed its name to the iShares U.S. Tech Independence Focused ETF, while the iShares Evolved U.S. Discretionary Spending ETF (IEDI) changed its name to the iShares U.S. Consumer Focused ETF.
Another pair of iShares ETFs are set to swap out their indexes as of Jan. 31 of next year. The iShares 0-5 Year TIPS Bond ETF (STIP) will cease to track the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Years Index in order to track the ICE US Treasury 0-5 Year Inflation Linked Bond Index. Also, the iShares TIPS Bond ETF (TIP) will no longer track the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) Index, instead following the ICE US Treasury Inflation Linked Bond Index.
As of today, five VanEck ETFs have also switched indexes as follows:
The VanEck High Yield Muni ETF (HYD) no longer tracks the ICE High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index and instead tracks the ICE Broad High Yield Crossover Municipal Index.
The VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF (ITM) no longer tracks the ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index and now tracks the ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index.
The Van Eck Long Muni ETF (MLN) no longer tracks the ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index and instead tracks the ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index.
The VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF (SHYD) no longer tracks the ICE 1-12 Year High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index and instead tracks the ICE 1-12 Year High Yield Crossover Municipal Index.
The VanEck Short Muni ETF (SMB) no longer tracks the ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index and instead now tracks the ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index.
Other Changes
There were a few other changes to ETFs during the week.
Thursday, the AXS 2X Innovation ETF (TARK) underwent a 1-for-5 reverse split.
On Nov. 30, the Anfield Universal Fixed Income ETF (AFIF) saw its expense ratio decrease from 1.01% to 1.00%, while the WealthTrust DBS Long Term Growth ETF (WLTG) saw its expense ratio increase from 0.68% to 0.72%.
Contact Heather Bell at heather.bell@etf.com
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