A fund family named FlexShares from Northern Trust made its debut just last September with four ETF offerings, but has quickly demonstrated an ability to raise assets in a relatively short amount of time.
Leading the way is FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources (NYSEArca: GUNR) which has gathered approximately $250 million and averages about 51,000 shares daily in trading volume. [ETF Spotlight: Upstream Natural Resources]
The ETF is composed of equities that are domiciled in both developed and emerging markets that are concentrated in energy, agriculture, precious/industrial metals, timber, and water. Currently, top holdings are XOM (5.00%), BHPLF (4.97%), POT (4.63%), MON (4.25%), and RIO (3.26%). [Northern Trust Returns to ETF Business, Launches FlexShares]
As one might expect, the heaviest sector weightings in the fund are to Basic Materials (56.23%) and Energy (29.13%).
The closest peers of GUNR are likely SPDR S&P Global Natural Resources (NYSEArca: GNR) and iShares S&P North American Natural Resources Sector (NYSEArca: IGE), and since inception it has lagged both of these offerings. GUNR has returned 12.55% since its launch last September while IGE is up 22.73% and GNR has rallied 19.12%.
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources
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