Two Energy ETFs Holding Their Ground - ETF News And Commentary
16 4월 2012 - 7:05PM
Zacks
2012 seemed as though it would be a bull market for energy ETFs
as tensions with Iran and a surging U.S. economy spiked prices.
However, now that tensions with Iran have cooled down and job
growth has slowed in America, oil prices have retreated in recent
weeks.
In fact, prices for the key commodity have retreated from their
level over $113/bbl. in WTI terms down to the $103 level now. This
shift downwards, along with speculation over weak demand in key
markets in developed nations, has pushed many energy ETFs sharply
lower in recent weeks as well (see more in the Zacks ETF
Center).
A great example of this is the most popular energy ETF in the
world today, the SPDR Select Sector Energy ETF
(XLE). This fund, which trades more than 16 million shares
a day and has assets close to $7 billion, has been a good barometer
of the energy sector’s fortunes over the past few years.
XLE began the year on a strong note, adding roughly 8.3% in the
first two months of the year as strong data buoyed the sector.
However, over the past month, the fund has lost several percentage
points and also saw losses exceeding 6% in the month of March.
Thanks to this weakness, the popular energy ETF is now at breakeven
this year, erasing all of the gains that the segment saw to start
2012 (see Inside The Forgotten Energy ETFs).
However, while XLE might be trending near the zero percent gain
mark for the year, other energy ETFs have managed to hold on to
their gains despite the broad weakness in the sector. These energy
ETFs could be more resilient in the face of oil price slumps while
still offering investors excellent exposure to the segment.
Unfortunately, these two all-star energy ETFs that have kept
much of their gains on the year are also very volatile funds and
can thus be inappropriate for investors who are worried about the
general health of the economy going forward. Nevertheless, if oil
continues to bounce of its near term lows, either of the following
oil ETFs could make for excellent choices to ride a bull higher in
2012:
IQ Global Oil Small Cap Equity ETF
(IOIL)
This energy ETF has outperformed XLE by nearly 1,400 basis
points so far in 2012, focusing in on small caps in the space. This
is done by tracking the IQ Global Oil Small Cap Index which targets
companies across the globe engaging in any number of the oil
industry’s main segments (read Three ETFs For The Energy Efficiency
Boom).
Currently, the oil ETF holds just under 60 securities in its
basket, putting a heavy focus on American companies. Beyond this,
there is also a tilt towards exploration (35%) and refining firms
(32%) from an industry perspective. Top individual holdings include
Core Laboratories
(CLB), and
Oceaneering International
(OII) which both account
for more than 8% of the assets.
Unfortunately, the bid ask ratio is quite wide on this product
thanks to extremely low volumes. Additionally, the expense ratio of
75 basis points might be tough to swallow for many. However, even
with these added costs the product has put up a strong performance
and could be a good choice for those with a high risk
tolerance.
EGShares Energy GEMS ETF
(OGEM)
This emerging market energy ETF has been another star performer
so far this year, outperforming XLE by 1,200 basis points since the
start of January. However, unlike IOIL, this fund targets large
caps focusing on the Dow Jones Emerging Markets Oil & Gas
Titans 30 Index as its benchmark (read Play An Oil Bull With These
Three Emerging Market ETFs).
The energy ETF has a heavy focus on the BRIC countries as these
four nations occupy the top four spots in the ETF, including a 35%
allocation to Russia and 20% to China. Integrated firms comprise
the bulk of the assets at about 60% of holdings, while exploration
constitutes the next biggest segment with 23% of the total. In
terms of individual holdings, Russian giant Gazprom takes the top
spot while it is trailed by Brazil’s PetroBras and fellow Russian
behemoth Lukoil.
Unfortunately, much like its IndexIQ counterpart, this fund
suffers from high expenses and low volume. The volume is especially
light here—though AUM is higher—while expenses come in at 85 basis
points a year. However, while the ETF might have high overall
expenses, the 2.1% yield and the strong performance despite oil’s
weakness as of late could be reason enough to give this fund a
closer look.
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IQ Global Oil Small Cap Etf (delisted) (AMEX:IOIL)
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부터 5월(5) 2024 으로 6월(6) 2024
IQ Global Oil Small Cap Etf (delisted) (AMEX:IOIL)
과거 데이터 주식 차트
부터 6월(6) 2023 으로 6월(6) 2024