Scalper1 News
Welcome back to the SA ETF Update. My goal is to keep Seeking Alpha readers up to date on the ETF universe and to gain some visibility, both for the ETF community and for me as its editor (so users know who to approach with issues, article ideas, to become a contributor, etc.). Every weekend, or every other weekend (depending on the reader response and submission volumes), we will highlight fund launches and closures for the week, as well as any news items that could impact ETF investors. This was a relatively slow couple of week for launches, or maybe it was just the first time in a while that closures outnumbered launches. I’m starting to worry that my prediction from October of 2000 trading ETFs by June was maybe a bit of a reach. My March Madness bracket is already shot as well, so it wouldn’t be the first time I made an outlandish call. There is still time, but if we are going to have more than a 100 launches in the next two months, I might need to start stockpiling coffee. Fund launches for the week of March 7th, 2016 SSgA launches a gender diversity fund (3/8): On International Women’s Day, we saw the launch of the SPDR SSgA Gender Diversity Index ETF (NYSEARCA: SHE ), a well-timed launch if ever there was. This fund the largest 1,000 U.S. listed companies that have significant gender diversity in the ranks of their senior leadership. “This fund empowers investors to encourage more gender diverse leadership and support better long-term social and economic outcomes in support of gender diversity,” said Kristi Mitchem, executive vice president and head of the Americas Institutional Client Group for SSGA in a press release . PureFunds introduces 2 niche technology funds (3/9): The PureFunds Drone Economy Strategy ETF (NYSEARCA: IFLY ) tracks the Reality Shares Drone Index, which includes companies that manufacture, supply and/or utilize drone technology. The PureFunds Video Game Tech ETF (NYSEARCA: GAMR ) will focus on tracking companies that provide the software and hardware for the video gaming industry, including firms that are not directly related to the industry, but do play a role in its success. This is not PureFunds’ first step into a sub-sector technology fund, as the PureFunds ISE Cyber Security ETF (NYSEARCA: HACK ) has gained 733.96M in assets under management since its launch in November 2014. Invesco PowerShares rolls out a new fund of funds ETF (3/10): The PowerShares DWA Tactical Multi-Asset Income Portfolio (NASDAQ: DWIN ) is an income-focused fund that will track other ETFs (mainly PowerShares funds) utilizing an index from Dorsey Wright. According to the DWIN homepage, “the Index is designed to select investments from a universe of income strategies with the criteria for inclusion based on a combination of relative strength and current yield.” The current holdings are the PowerShares High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSEARCA: PEY ), the PowerShares Preferred Portfolio (NYSEARCA: PGX ), the PowerShares Build America Bond Portfolio (NYSEARCA: BAB ), the PowerShares Global Short Term High Yield Bond Portfolio and the PowerShares Emerging Markets Sovereign Debt Portfolio (NYSEARCA: PCY ). Fund launches for the week of March 14th, 2016 First Trust launches a follow-up fund for FV (3/18): The First Trust Dorsey Wright Focus 5 ETF (NASDAQ: FV ) has gained over $4.5B in assets under management since launching in March 2014, so it comes as no surprise that First Trust decided to launch a similar fund with a twist. Like the first fund, the First Trust Dorsey Wright Dynamic Focus 5 ETF (NASDAQ: FVC ) is designed to provide targeted exposure to the five First Trust sector and industry-based ETFs that DWA believes offer the greatest potential to outperform the other ETFs in the selection universe. However, the fund also has the option for risk management via cash equivalents represented by 1- to 3-month U.S. At its launch, roughly 50% of the fund was made of equity ETF holdings. Fund closures for the weeks of March 7th and 14th, 2016 Recon Capital FTSE 100 ETF (NASDAQ: UK ) Precidian MAXIS Nikkei 225 Index ETF (NYSEARCA: NKY ) ProShares Managed Futures Strategy ETF (NYSEARCA: FUTS ) PowerShares KBW Capital Markets Portfolio ETF (NYSEARCA: KBWC ) PowerShares KBW Insurance Portfolio ETF (NYSEARCA: KBWI ) PowerShares China A – Share Portfolio ETF (NYSEARCA: CHNA ) PowerShares Fundamental Emerging Markets Local Debt Portfolio ETF (NYSEARCA: PFEM ) Have any other questions on ETFs or ETNs? Please comment below and I will try to clear things up. As an author and editor, I have found that constructive feedback is the best way to grow. What you would like to see discussed in the future? How can I improve this series to meet reader needs? Please share your thoughts on this first edition of the ETF Update series in the comments section below. Have a view on something that’s coming up or a new fund? Submit an article. Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. Scalper1 News
Scalper1 News