Is ALPS International Sector Dividend Dogs ETF (IDOG) a Strong ETF Right Now?

A smart beta exchange traded fund, the ALPS International Sector Dividend Dogs ETF (IDOG) debuted on 06/28/2013, and offers broad exposure to the Broad Developed World ETFs category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.

Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.

If you’re the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.

By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.

While this space offers a number of choices to investors, including simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies, not all these strategies have been able to deliver superior results.

Fund Sponsor & Index

IDOG is managed by Alps, and this fund has amassed over $204.26 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Broad Developed World ETFs. Before fees and expenses, IDOG seeks to match the performance of the S-Network International Sector Dividend Dogs Index.

The S-Network International Sector Dividend Dogs Index identifies five high yielding securities, based on regular cash dividends, in each of the ten Global Industry Classification Standard sectors and is rebalanced quarterly.

Cost & Other Expenses

Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF’s expense ratio.

Annual operating expenses for IDOG are 0.50%, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.

It’s 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 4.08%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, although it’s still important for investors to research a fund’s holdings.

Looking at individual holdings, Koninklijke Philips Nv (PHIA) accounts for about 2.27% of total assets, followed by Nippon Steel Corp. And Erste Group Bank Ag (EBS).

IDOG’s top 10 holdings account for about 21.57% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF return is roughly 9.15% and is down about -0.04% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 02/02/2023), respectively. IDOG has traded between $21.31 and $29.65 during this last 52-week period.

IDOG has a beta of 0.83 and standard deviation of 23.76% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 51 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

ALPS International Sector Dividend Dogs ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the Broad Developed World ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.

The Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS) tracks the FTSE Global All Cap ex US Index and the Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF (VEA) tracks the FTSE Developed All Cap ex US Index. Vanguard Total International Stock ETF has $54.84 billion in assets, Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF has $110.34 billion. VXUS has an expense ratio of 0.07% and VEA charges 0.05%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Broad Developed World ETFs.

Bottom Line

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on the latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit the Zacks ETF Center.

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ALPS International Sector Dividend Dogs ETF (IDOG): ETF Research Reports

Emergent Biosolutions Inc. (EBS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF (VEA): ETF Research Reports

Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS): ETF Research Reports

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.