The PowerShares Dynamic Retail Portfolio (NYSEArca: PMR) is not the largest retail exchange traded fund, but the fund does offer something different (and respectable returns) compared to its cap-weighted an equal-weight rivals.
Up 6.6% year-to-date, PMR tracks the Dynamic Retail Intellidex Index. Confirming that the almost 10-year old ETF is different than its rivals, the Dynamic Retail Intellidex Index “evaluates companies based on a variety of investment merit criteria, including: price momentum, earnings momentum, quality, management action, and value,” according to PowerShares.
That is a methodology that has well-served the PowerShares Dynamic Pharmaceuticals Portfolio (NYSEArca: PJP) and the PowerShares Dynamic Biotechnology & Genome Portfolio (NYSEArca: PBE), among other PowerShares industry ETFs.
PMR represents a conservative play on retailer as several of its top 10 holdings, including Walgreens Boots Alliance (NYSE: WAG), Costco (NasdaqGS: COST), Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and CVS (NYSE: CVS) are classified as consumer staples names. Overall, staples stocks account for 43% of PMR’s weight. [Checking in on Staples ETFs]
PMR does offer some exposure to apparel and home improvement retailers, two sub-sectors of the retail industry S&P Capital IQ is bullish on. PMR allocates nearly 5% of its weight to Lowe’s (NYSE: LOW).