That kind of run is a reason that one out of every eight dollars in the S&P 500 is now in the FAANG five. But the truth is that we could have pulled almost any combination of five or six industries, concocted a funny acronym like “SEPTICS” and the FAANG stocks still probably would have crushed it. It wouldn’t have mattered if SEPTICS returned 60% or 160% or 260%. Even the last figure would have handily outpaced the S&P’s 91% run-up but would have lagged the FAANG stocks.
FAANGs in WisdomTree
Figure 2 shows the FAANG holdings of WisdomTree’s six major U.S. equity ETFs, originally compiled in a prior blog post. Aside from the WisdomTree U.S. Earnings 500 Fund (EPS), which is our earnings-weighted 500-stock answer to the S&P, many of our ETFs shun the FAANG stocks entirely or nearly so.
Figure 2: WisdomTree ETFs’ FAANG Exposure
This is where WisdomTree’s rules-based strategies come into play; if the rules don’t identify Amazon, Amazon is out. And if they aren’t picking up Facebook either, Facebook gets a “zero.” Remember, if it weren’t for the 1990s tech bubble and mass movements before it, there wouldn’t even be a WisdomTree and you wouldn’t be reading this post. That’s because that era’s market distortions catalyzed WisdomTree’s founders to create ETFs that were weighted by fundamental metrics. So if the WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Fund (DGRW) is 8 percentage points under-weight the FAANG stocks, we will let time be DGRW’s judge. The WisdomTree U.S. Multifactor Fund (USMF) and the WisdomTree U.S. High Dividend Fund (DHS) are even bolder, owning none of them, a 12% under-weighting. Time will judge them too.
In or Out
Maybe the FAANG stocks will keep growing until they take over the universe. But if they don’t, there is plenty of precedent for seemingly unstoppable stocks to fall from grace. WisdomTree’s U.S. equity ETFs are by and large avoiding the FAANG stocks. FAANG skeptics, seek “SEPTICS.”
Related: Kevin O’Leary’s OGIG: Best New Tech ETF?
Important Risks Related to this Article
Statements concerning financial market trends are based on current market conditions, which will fluctuate. References to specific securities and their issuers are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to be, and should not be interpreted as, recommendations to purchase or sell such securities.
There are risks associated with investing, including possible loss of principal. Funds focusing their investments on certain sectors may be more vulnerable to any single economic or regulatory development. This may result in greater share price volatility. Due to the investment strategy of some of these Funds, they may make higher capital gain distributions than other ETFs. When a Fund is actively managed, the Fund’s investment process is expected to be heavily dependent on quantitative models, and the models may not perform as intended. Please read each Fund’s prospectus for specific details regarding the Fund’s risk profile.
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