Whopping $37B Flows Into ETFs

Mar 15, 2019

Reviewed by: Sumit Roy

Edited by: Sumit Roy

After slumbering for the first 2 1/2 months of the year, ETF investors suddenly awakened. In a mere five days, they plowed a whopping $36.7 billion into U.S.-listed ETFs—mostly U.S. equity funds. Inflows for the whole year now stand at $54.7 billion.

The latest data, which measure the week ending Thursday, March 14 and that come from FactSet, showed inflows of $30.6 billion for U.S. equity ETFs; $5.4 billion for U.S. fixed-income ETFs; and $867 million for international fixed-income ETFs.

Mystery Spike

There was no obvious catalyst for the sharp spike in flows. The S&P 500 reached its highest level in five months this week, but it’s been climbing all year long. The index is now up more than 12.5% year-to-date.

Low-cost, broad-market ETFs from iShares and Vanguard dominated the weekly inflows list. The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV), the iShares Select Dividend ETF (DVY) and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV) took the top three spots.

On the flip side, the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE), the iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ) and the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) topped the outflows list, shedding between $300 million and $680 million each.

For a full list of this week’s top inflows and outflows, see the tables below:

Top 10 Creations (All ETFs)

Ticker	Name	Net Flows ($,mm)	AUM ($, mm)	AUM % Change
IVV	iShares Core S&P 500 ETF	3,873.39	165,851.07	2.34%
DVY	iShares Select Dividend ETF	2,485.79	19,752.41	12.58%
VTV	Vanguard Value ETF	2,316.39	48,850.97	4.74%
VOO	Vanguard S&P 500 ETF	1,952.33	105,615.29	1.85%
VO	Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF	1,929.60	26,663.75	7.24%
VIG	Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF	1,828.73	34,400.54	5.32%
SPY	SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust	1,753.00	262,968.77	0.67%
SCHD	Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF	1,199.13	10,090.98	11.88%
VYM	Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF	1,185.86	23,991.71	4.94%
VUG	Vanguard Growth ETF	1,084.52	38,567.76	2.81%

Top 10 Redemptions (All ETFs)

Ticker	Name	Net Flows ($,mm)	AUM ($, mm)	AUM % Change
XLE	Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund	-679.07	14,063.39	-4.83%
EWJ	iShares MSCI Japan ETF	-616.73	14,446.57	-4.27%
TLT	iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF	-303.16	10,199.96	-2.97%
EMB	iShares JP Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF	-236.57	17,136.18	-1.38%
VGT	Vanguard Information Technology ETF	-233.88	18,967.38	-1.23%
VNQ	Vanguard Real Estate ETF	-232.39	33,566.61	-0.69%
SPSM	SPDR Portfolio Small Cap ETF	-230.01	1,232.87	-18.66%
MTUM	iShares Edge MSCI U.S.A. Momentum Factor ETF	-214.76	8,444.45	-2.54%
ITOT	iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF	-211.97	18,484.19	-1.15%
IWF	iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF	-204.90	42,272.28	-0.48%

ETF Weekly Flows By Asset Class

	Net Flows ($, mm)	AUM ($, mm)	% of AUM
U.S. Equity	30,582.50	2,153,191.54	1.42%
International Equity	866.99	814,904.67	0.11%
U.S. Fixed Income	5,371.52	623,940.58	0.86%
International Fixed Income	-61.32	74,125.58	-0.08%
Commodities	210.60	64,879.06	0.32%
Currency	-10.19	1,473.70	-0.69%
Leveraged	-196.84	37,166.63	-0.53%
Inverse	14.03	11,784.28	0.12%
Asset Allocation	-51.20	9,368.83	-0.55%
Alternatives	-20.08	4,525.13	-0.44%
Total:	36,706.01	3,795,359.98	0.97%

Asset Classes (Year-to-Date)

	Net Flows ($, mm)	AUM ($, mm)	% of AUM
U.S. Equity	17,973.05	2,153,191.54	0.83%
International Equity	7,188.33	814,904.67	0.88%
U.S. Fixed Income	22,381.06	623,940.58	3.59%
International Fixed Income	6,963.41	74,125.58	9.39%
Commodities	-265.58	64,879.06	-0.41%
Currency	-313.01	1,473.70	-21.24%
Leveraged	-1,607.80	37,166.63	-4.33%
Inverse	2,539.05	11,784.28	21.55%
Asset Allocation	-604.64	9,368.83	-6.45%
Alternatives	447.42	4,525.13	9.89%
Total:	54,701.30	3,795,359.98	1.44%

Top 10 Volume Surprises, Funds >$50 mm AUM

Ticker	Name	Average Volume (30 Day)	1 Week Average Volume	% of Average
WBIG	WBI BullBear Yield 1000 ETF	51,829	311,849	601.69%
WBIC	WBI BullBear Yield 2000 ETF	48,627	287,611	591.46%
WBIH	WBI BullBear Global High Income ETF	123,390	658,568	533.73%
WBII	WBI BullBear Global Income ETF	55,768	292,532	524.55%
PYZ	Invesco DWA Basic Materials Momentum ETF	7,340	38,070	518.65%
WBIY	WBI Power Factor High Dividend ETF	42,843	188,615	440.24%
FNK	First Trust Mid Cap Value AlphaDEX Fund	7,808	24,858	318.35%
JAGG	JPMorgan U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF	150,245	346,743	230.78%
BBRE	JPMorgan BetaBuilders MSCI U.S. REIT ETF	5,838	13,333	228.39%
XTL	SPDR S&P Telecom ETF	9,053	16,215	179.11%

Disclaimer: All data as of 6 a.m. Eastern time the date the article is published. Data is believed to be accurate; however, transient market data is often subject to subsequent revision and correction by the exchanges.

Sumit Roy

| Contact: [email protected]

Sumit Roy is the senior ETF analyst for etf.com, where he's worked for 12 years. Before joining the company, Roy was the managing editor and commodities analyst for Hard Assets Investor. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he enjoys climbing the city’s steep hills, playing pickleball and snowboarding.

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