Exchange traded funds have made gaining core equity exposure more accessible and cost-efficient for scores of investors. Investors can choose from an array of low-fee, broad market ETFs tracking a variety of indexes in an effort to gain exposure to hundreds or even thousands of stocks under one umbrella.
Investors can gain broad equity market exposure through total market exchange traded fund options, such as the iShares Core S&P Total US Stock Market ETF (NYSEArca: ITOT). The $13.29 billion ITOT tracks the S&P Total Market Index and holds nearly 3,500 stocks.
ITOT “is an attractive choice for diversified exposure to U.S. stocks of all sizes and spans the value/growth continuum,” said Morningstar. “The exchange-traded fund efficiently tracks a broadly diversified and representative benchmark at a low cost, which gives it a persistent edge over its peers. It earns a Morningstar Analyst Rating of Gold.”
How ITOT Delivers Cost-Effective Exposure
ITOT delivers cost-effective exposure to a broad basket of stocks. The ETF’s annual expense ratio is just 0.03%, or $3 on a $10,000 investment, making it one of the least expensive ETFs are the market today. ITOT is a cap-weighted fund.
“Market-cap weighting pulls the portfolio toward the largest U.S. stocks and accurately reflects the composition of the market. The fund’s average market cap of just under $60 billion is slightly higher than the average fund in the category. The fund is well diversified: It owns nearly 3,500 stocks, and its top 10 holdings represent less than 17% of its portfolio,” according to Morningstar.