There were ample expectations for the opposite to be true heading into 2018, but value exchange traded funds continue lagging their growth and momentum counterparts this year. That could be an ominous sign, particularly with the U.S. humming along.
Value stocks usually trade at lower prices relative to fundamental measures of value, like earnings and the book value of assets. On the other hand, growth-oriented stocks tend to run at higher valuations since investors expect the rapid growth in those company measures, but more are growing wary of high valuations.
Data suggest turnover is increasing in value ETFs, including the Vanguard Value ETF (NYSEArca: VTV).
VTV, one of the largest value ETFs in the U.S., follows the CRSP US Large Cap Value Index. The fund charges just 0.05% per year, or $5 on a $10,000 investment, making it cheaper than 95% of competing funds, according to Vanguard data.
VTV “absorbed $424 million in trades Tuesday, almost triple its average daily volume over the past year,” reports Bloomberg.
Increased Activity for Value ETFs
VTV is not the only value ETF seeing increased activity in recent trading sessions. The same is true of the iShares S&P 500 Value ETF (NYSEArca: IVE), another widely followed value ETF.