International stock ETFs may also include a heavier emphasis on health care and consumer names. For instance, the iShares MSCI Switzerland Capped ETF (NYSEArca: EWL) has 32.2% in health care and 18.6% in consumer staples.
With ETFs, investors should be careful with their overall allocations, especially when targeting specific themes. For example, investors who want to emphasize value will likely find themselves overweight banks and the financial sector, which shows some of the cheapest price-to-earnings relative to other sectors.
Alternatively, investors can utilize targeted sector ETFs to bolster underweight areas.
“The easiest step is to buy targeted ETFs to increase allocations to particular sectors,” Kubie added. “For example, if the strategies above are favorites, then you can purchase sector ETFs to cover gaps in the portfolio. Buying a technology or financial sector ETF may offset the extra emphasis to consumer staples and health care.:
For more information on ETFs, visit our ETF 101 category.
Max Chen contributed to this article.