As we cross the threshold into the second half of 2023, it is time to reflect on the dynamic performance of the market landscape and anticipate the emerging opportunities that are shaping the investment horizon.
The first half of 2023 was marked by sustained market rebound and a relentless pace of digital transformation. For investors, it's been a rewarding journey, especially for those who placed their bets on the U.S. mega-cap tech stocks.
Driven by powerhouses like Nvidia, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), and Meta Platforms, along with continued artificial intelligence (AI) hype, the U.S. tech sector has continually asserted dominance, registering robust gains, and buoying the broader indices.
Now, it's time to shift our gaze forward, speculating on the exciting exchange-traded fund (ETF) offerings that are set to debut on NYSE ARCA. Today, we're delving into the most interesting ETF filings of June 2023.
These pending ETFs, encapsulating a myriad of themes and sectors, offer a fascinating glimpse into the evolving strategies of fund managers and how they are pivoting to meet investor interest and demand.
State Street (NYSE:STT) Global Advisors
The pending SPDR Portfolio S&P Dividend Growth ETF will track the S&P Sector-Neutral High Yield Dividend Aristocrats Index, which selects stocks from the S&P Composite 1500 Index that have increased or maintained dividends for at least seven consecutive years.
Unlike some other dividend growth ETFs, the new SPDR Portfolio S&P Dividend Growth ETF will include mid and small-cap stocks in addition to large-cap ones. Unique to the index used by this upcoming ETF will be a "sector median dividend yield" screen.
That is, the index will calculate the median dividend yield for each of the 11 Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) sectors represented. Only stocks with dividend yields above their corresponding sector median will be included, and then weighted by market cap.
KraneShares
KraneShares, an ETF provider best known for its emerging market and Chinese equity expertise is planning to expand its thematic lineup with the pending KraneShares Global Luxury Index ETF, which will track the Solactive Global Luxury Index.
The Solactive Global Luxury Index is a market-cap weighted index intended to track developed-market stocks that fall into sectors with exposure to luxury goods and services, such as travel & leisure, premium ware and apparel, luxury goods, and premium consumer goods.
Unique to this index is a "capped" methodology that assigns weights of 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, and 6% respectively to the top five holdings, with all other securities capped at 4.5%. 20% of the ETF may be invested in derivatives and ETFs to help maintain tracking.
This move by KraneShares comes in the wake of the newly launched Tema Luxury ETF (LUX), which also provides thematic exposure to companies operating in the luxury goods and services industry. Is this the start of a new thematic megatrend? Only time will tell.
Harbor ETF Trust
Alternative strategies like market-neutral, trend-following and long-short equity saw interest in 2022 after bonds suffered historically high losses due to rising interest rates. ETFs in this space gained popularity, largely due to their lower fees compared to existing mutual fund counterparts.
A new alternative ETF pending approval is the Harbor Long-Short Equity ETF. This ETF will be actively managed, with net exposure ranging from 40%-60% long but can go up to 150% long. The ETF will have a large and mid-cap U.S. focus but can invest up to 15% in foreign stocks.
The Harbor Long-Short Equity ETF's strategy will be centered around a "disciplined quantitative process", composed of a macroeconomic regime model to determine gross and net exposures and factor weights, an industry group focus to target those with the most alpha, and a long model based on the factors of quality, value, profitability, and momentum.
This content was originally published by our partners at ETF Central.