“We are excited to license the Dow Jones Industrial Average Equal Weight Index to First Trust Advisors,” Joe Kairen, Senior Director, Strategy Indices at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said in a note. “The equal-weighted design of the index allows for each of the 30 companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, an iconic indicator of investor sentiment for more than 120 years, to have the same effect on its performance.”
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The widely monitored DJIA is a price-weighted index of 30 domestic U.S. blue-chip, mega-cap companies covering all industries, with the exception of transportation and utilities. A stock is typically added into the DJIA if the company has an excellent reputation, demonstrates sustained growth and is of interest to a large number of investors.
“The Dow Jones Industrial Average has been an important barometer for blue-chip US stocks,” Ryan Issakainen, CFA, Senior Vice President, Exchange-Traded Fund Strategist at First Trust, said in a note. “We believe that the equally weighted version of this index is a noteworthy enhancement for ETF investors, in comparison to the traditional price-weighted version of the index.”
For more information on new fund products, visit our new ETFs category.