Should Schwab U.S. MidCap ETF (SCHM) Be on Your Investing Radar?
Looking for broad exposure to the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market? You should consider the Schwab U.S. MidCap ETF (SCHM), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 01/13/2011.
The fund is sponsored by Charles Schwab. It has amassed assets over $9.83 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.
Why Mid Cap Blend
With market capitalization between $2 billion and $10 billion, mid cap companies usually contain higher growth prospects than large cap companies, and are considered less risky than their small cap counterparts. Thus they have a nice balance of growth potential and stability.
Blend ETFs are aptly named, since they tend to hold a mix of growth and value stocks, as well as show characteristics of both kinds of equities.
Costs
Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts, other things remaining the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.04%, making it the least expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.56%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector--about 18.50% of the portfolio. Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc (BMRN) accounts for about 0.55% of total assets, followed by Aes Corp (AES) and Westinghouse Air Brake Technologie (WAB).
The top 10 holdings account for about 5.05% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
SCHM seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Mid-Cap Total Stock Market Index before fees and expenses. The Dow Jones U.S. Mid-Cap Total Stock Market Index is a float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index. The Index includes the mid-cap portion of the Dow Jones U.S. Total Stock Market Index actually available to investors in the marketplace and includes the components ranked 501-1000 by full market capitalization.
The ETF return is roughly 6.65% so far this year and is down about -9.49% in the last one year (as of 01/16/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $60.50 and $77.87.
The ETF has a beta of 1.11 and standard deviation of 28.71% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 503 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
Schwab U.S. MidCap 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, SCHM is a reasonable option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
The Vanguard MidCap ETF (VO) and the iShares Core S&P MidCap ETF (IJH) track a similar index. While Vanguard MidCap ETF has $52.29 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P MidCap ETF has $67.60 billion. VO has an expense ratio of 0.04% and IJH charges 0.05%.
Bottom-Line
An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.
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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Schwab U.S. MidCap ETF (SCHM): ETF Research Reports
BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
The AES Corporation (AES) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation (WAB) : Free Stock Analysis Report
iShares Core S&P MidCap ETF (IJH): ETF Research Reports
Vanguard MidCap ETF (VO): ETF Research Reports
