Multi-asset portfolios have become more prevalent among ETF offerings, even with several actively managed “Diversified Portfolio” funds now in the marketplace as well as a number of passive offerings.
These funds are typically designed to be truly tactical in nature, having the ability to shift assets into equities, fixed income, and even alternative investments depending on market views, momentum factors, and such.
Most of these funds are reasonably new to the market, and thus are not likely household names among portfolio managers and moreso among retail ETF investors, but they are building track records as we speak and live trading histories.
Funds that come to mind in this space include the largest in terms of AUM, MDIV (First Trust Multi-Asset Diversified Income, Expense Ratio 0.60%), as well as iShares’ suite of “Allocation” funds, (AOR, AOM, AOA, AOK, Expense Ratio 0.31%).
State Street recently entered the arena with INKM (SPDR Income Allocation, Expense Ratio 0.70%) and iShares launched another focused product in the space in early 2012 with IYLD (iShares Morningstar Multi-Asset Income, Expense Ratio 0.60%).