Momentum equities and sectors have largely rebounded from the ills experienced late in the first quarter and into the early part of the second quarter.
Biotechnology stocks and exchange traded funds are prime examples. After flirting with bear market territory in April, biotech ETFs rebounded in such intense fashion that some members of the group posted new all-time highs in August. The Market Vectors Biotech ETF (NYSEArca: BBH) is one of just six ETFs to enter the all-time high club on Wednesday. [Biotech ETFs can Build on Hot August Showings]
Although the momentum swoon is still fresh on the minds of some investors, that has not stopped some ETFs espousing the virtues of momentum from achieving impressive feats of their own. The First Trust Dorsey Wright Focus 5 ETF (NasdaqGM: FV) is a perfect example. Since coming to market in early March, FV has nearly $530 million in assets under management, easily making it one of the most successful ETFs to launch this year in terms of asset-gathering prowess.
FV’s quick success spurred the creation of the First Trust Dorsey Wright International Focus 5 ETF (NasdaqGM: IFV), which has raked in over $32 million in assets under management in just two months on the market.
Some market observers have deemed FV to be “overlooked,” an easily contested point given the size of the fund and advisors’ use of the Dorsey Wright methodology that backs the ETF. Doresy Wright’s indices that focus on relative strength and other technical factors serve as the benchmarks for scores of sector and specialized ETFs, many of which have delivered impressive out-performance of more plain vanilla competing products. [Index Change Helps This ETF]