How the Best New ETF Finalists Were Determined
This year’s etf.com Awards finalists in the Best New ETF category include a diverse set of innovative exchange-traded funds, ranging from artificial intelligence and technology-focused ETFs to active income strategies to Magnificent 7 funds.
The initial group of nominees were narrowed down to five finalists based on selection criteria that illustrate the funds’ ability to offer innovative investment alternatives in a dynamic market environment.
The Best New ETF winner and winners of the other 16 categories will be announced at the etf.com Awards, which will be held at the Tribeca Rooftop in New York City on April 17, 2024.
Capital Group Core Balanced ETF
The Capital Group Core Balanced ETF (CGBL) is an actively managed fund-of-funds that offers an asset allocation strategy with a moderate balance of equities, debt securities, money market instruments and cash.
The CGBL portfolio may allocate 50% to 75% to stocks, which are primary U.S. equities selected for their potential for growth or income generation and up to 15% coming from outside the U.S. At least 25% of the portfolio is dedicated to debt securities with the remainder in cash and money market instruments.
CGBL’s expense ratio is 0.33% and its AUM is $188.6 million.
Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF
The Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF (TJUL) is an actively managed fund that seeks to track the return of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), up to a cap, while fully hedging downside risk over a two-year outcome period.
To achieve its objective, TJUL uses FLEX options, and investors should note that the outcomes that the fund seeks to provide may only be realized if it is held for the full duration of the two-year outcome period.
TJUL’s expense ratio is 0.79% and its AUM is $229.4 million.
ProShares S&P 500 High Income ETF
The ProShares S&P 500 High Income ETF (ISPY) seeks to track the performance of the S&P 500 Daily Covered Call Index. The fund seeks to generate a high level of income for investors while participating in performance returns of the S&P 500 index over the long term.
ISPY’s strategy attempts to provide higher returns compared to a monthly S&P 500 buy-write strategy through swap agreements. Monthly distributions are expected to reflect the dividend component of the Index plus option premium income.
ISPY’s expense ratio is 0.55% and its AUM is $41.6 million.
Roundhill Generative AI & Technology ETF
The Roundhill Generative AI & Technology ETF (CHAT) is an actively managed fund that invests globally in companies that are positioned to benefit from the growth of generative artificial intelligence and related technologies.
Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence that creates new content, like text, images, or music, by learning from and imitating existing data.
CHAT’s expense ratio is 0.75% and its AUM is $79 million.
Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF
The Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS) is an actively managed fund that offers highly concentrated equal weight exposure to the “Magnificent Seven” stocks—Alphabet Inc., Amazon Inc., Apple Inc., Meta Platforms Inc., Microsoft Corp., NVIDIA Corp. and Tesla Inc.
MAGS, at the time of its 2023 rebranding and launch, was the first U.S.-listed ETF to track the Mag 7.
MAGS’ expense ratio is 0.29% and its AUM is $88.2 million.