Are ETFs Gimmicky? | ETF Trends

Jack Bogle, of The Vanguard Group, accused the exchange traded fund (ETF) industry of producing gimmicky funds with narrow sector focus, high intermediation costs and excessive turnover. Mark Armbruster wrote for The Wall Street Journal that the very transgressions Mr.Bogle accuses the ETF industry of are also present in the mutual fund world. He states index funds that short popular benchmarks exemplify a gimmicky strategy that was born in the index mutual fund world.

Jeffery L. Feldman, HealthShares founder, says," Empirically, we can look back at fund investing over the past 30 years and realize it would have been impossible to participate in all areas of the economy through a single portfolio." Likewise, Lee Kranefuss, CEO of iShares, argues ETFs appeal to a number of investors because of their flexibility, diversification and transparency all the while not  subsidizing the costs of active traders in ETFs.

The opinions and forecasts expressed herein are solely those of Tom Lydon, and may not actually come to pass. Information on this site should not be used or construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any product.