This week’s collection of the most searched exchange traded funds on ETF Trends is decidedly biased toward some of the largest, most well-known ETFs on the market.
Few of this week’s most searched ETFs can accurately be described as obscure, overlooked or small. The few that can be described in that fashion are deserving of their places on the most searched list.
Take the example of the EGShares India Infrastructure Index Fund (NYSEArca: INXX). INXX is not the largest India ETF, but like its brethren, its recent returns in the wake of market-desired election results in the world’s largest democracy have been nothing short of stellar.
We highlighted INXX on May 13 and the ETF is up a tidy 18.3% since then after hitting a new 52-week high Friday. [Election Results Could Lift This India ETF]
Other India ETFs were again well-searched, including the largest India ETF, the WisdomTree India Earnings Fund (NYSEArca: EPI), which jumped 3% on the week.
Dividend ETFs, and to a lesser extent, bond funds, often loom large on our most searched lists and that was the case again this week. Amid ongoing ebullience toward U.S. Treasuries, the iShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETF (NYSEArca: IEF) and the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (NYSEArca: TLT) were easily the most searched bond ETFs this week.
Speaking of heft, IEF and have taken combined $7.67 billion in assets this year. The $6 billion hauled in by IEF is nearly double the inflows to the Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF (NYSEArca: VEA), the second-best ETF in terms of assets gained. [Bond ETFs Attract Cash]
Among dividend ETFs, the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (NYSEArca: VIG) got its fair share of searches, as usual, but the most searched dividend ETFs for the week are the PowerShares International Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSEArca: PID) and the Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF (NYSEArca: SCHD).
PID hit a new 52-week high Thursday and is higher by about 5% this year. That compares with a 3.3% gain for the S&P 500 and just 2% for VIG. An oft-cited advantage of international dividend stocks over their U.S. counterparts is higher yields. PID delivers on that front with a trailing 12-month yield of 3.38% or nearly 150 basis above the dividend yield on VIG. [High Achieving Global Dividend ETF]
Other goliath ETFs that were heavily trafficked this week include the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEArca: GLD), iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (NasdaqGM: IBB) and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSEArca: IWM). GLD is the largest gold ETF while IBB and IWM are largest biotech and small-cap ETFs, respectively.
iShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETF
Tom Lydon’s clients own shares of GLD, IWM, SCHD and TLT.