Overview

Watchlist

Sign In/Sign up to access the Watchlist Dashboard

 

 

 

Sign In/Sign Up

Investing FAQs

Learn the ETF basics.

 

 

Learn More

Holdings

Efficiency

Tradability

Fit

News

Latest News on VICE

Daily ETF Watch
Vice-Heavy ‘BAD’ ETF Debuts
Dan Mika | Dec 22, 2021
Daily ETF Watch
Active Psychedelics ETF Launches
Heather Bell | Sep 16, 2021
Daily ETF Watch
First US Focused Marijuana ETF Launches
Heather Bell | Sep 02, 2020
ETF.com Analysis
ETF Vs ETF: Vice Vs Virtue
Drew Voros | Aug 01, 2019
Features and News
ETF Prime Podcast: Cannabis Fund Race Heats Up
ETF Prime | Jul 30, 2019
ETF Report - Departments
Active At The Core Of AdvisorShares
Drew Voros | Jun 24, 2019
Features and News
New Marijuana ETF Goes Live
Lara Crigger | Apr 18, 2019
Features and News
New Marijuana ETF On The Way
Lara Crigger | Apr 16, 2019

FAQs

An ETF, or "exchange-traded fund," is a pooled investment security like a mutual fund but it trades on an exchange like a stock. Most ETFs passively track a benchmark index, such as the S&P 500, while some are actively managed.

ETFs track a benchmark index by holding all the securities in the index in equal proportion to their weighting in the index. Some ETFs track the price movement of a specific asset or commodity. To track price movement, these ETFs often invest in derivatives or futures contracts, but they may hold a physical asset, such as gold, by storing it in a vault.

How an ETF is taxed depends primarily on the fund’s underlying holdings and the form of distributions paid to shareholders. For example, a dividend ETF will be taxed on the dividends distributed. Investors may also incur capital gains tax on the profit earned from selling an ETF. The ultimate tax paid may also depend on the shareholder’s tax bracket.

Many ETFs pay dividends, and some track a dividend index and hold only dividend-paying stocks. The way it works is the ETF collects the dividends and distributes them to the fund’s shareholders, usually on a periodic basis, such as quarterly. Investors may choose to receive the dividends, or they may reinvest the dividends to buy more shares of the ETF.

Most ETFs are structured as open-end funds, which typically provide investors with exposure to the main investment asset classes, such as stocks and bonds. ETFs may also be structured as unit investment trusts, grantor trusts or limited partnerships.

Expressed as a percentage, an expense ratio tells an investor how much they’ll pay over the course of a year to own a mutual fund or an ETF. These expenses pay for costs associated with fund operation, such as marketing, advertising and management of the fund portfolio.

The data and information contained herein is not intended to be investment or tax advice. A reference to a particular investment or security, a credit rating, or any observation concerning a security or investment provided in the etf.com Service is not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold such investment or security or to make any other investment decisions. You should not use such information for purposes of any actual transaction without consulting an investment or tax professional.

etf.com DOES NOT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR INVESTMENT OR OTHER ACTIONS NOR SHALL etf.com HAVE ANY LIABILITY, CONTINGENT OR OTHERWISE, FOR THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, TIMELINESS, OR CORRECT SEQUENCING OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED BY etf.com OR FOR ANY DECISION MADE OR ACTION TAKEN BY YOU IN RELIANCE UPON SUCH INFORMATION OR etf.com.

[etf.com DOES NOT PROVIDE ANY RESEARCH OPINIONS.] etf.com MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS ABOUT THE SUITABILITY OF THE INFORMATION, PRODUCTS OR SERVICES CONTAINED HEREIN. PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS.

Terms of Use

ESG Research LLC’s ("MSCI ESG") Fund Metrics products (the "Information") provide environmental, social and governance data with respect to underlying securities within more than 24,000 multi-asset class Mutual Funds and ETFs globally. MSCI ESG is a Registered Investment Adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. MSCI ESG materials have not been submitted to, nor received approval from, the US SEC or any other regulatory body. None of the Information constitutes an offer to buy or sell, or a promotion or recommendation of, any security, financial instrument or product or trading strategy, nor should it be taken as an indication or guarantee of any future performance, analysis, forecast or prediction. None of the Information can be used to determine which securities to buy or sell or when to buy or sell them. The Information is provided "as is" and the user of the Information assumes the entire risk of any use it may make or permit to be made of the Information.