Invesco International Dividend Achievers ETF (NASDAQ: PID)

最新ニュース Invesco International Dividend Achievers ETF (NASDAQ:PID)

Invesco International Dividend Achievers ETF

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The fund generally will invest at least 90% of its total assets in the securities that comprise the underlying index. The underlying index is composed of Global Depositary Receipts that are listed on the London Stock Exchange or the London International Exchange, and American Depositary Receipts and non-U.S. common or ordinary stocks, limited partnership interests and shares of limited liability companies that are listed on the NYSE.

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Sony Group Corp&#8217;s (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SONY#NYSE">SONY</a>) PlayStation <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/gaming-industry" rel="noreferrer noopener">dumped two unannounced</a> live service projects at Syphon Filter&nbsp;and&nbsp;Days Gone&nbsp;developer Bend Studio and God of War&nbsp;game developer Bluepoint Games after a strategic review, Bloomberg <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-16/sony-cancels-two-more-playstation-projects?srnd=phx-technology&amp;sref=TBDibEcD" rel="noreferrer noopener">reports</a>.
PlayStation is currently discussing with the studios how to determine their following projects.
PlayStation remains aggressively invested in live-service games, which can be monetized months and years after their launch.
Also Read: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/01/43010198/netflixs-avod-surge-and-wwe-content-fuel-optimism-analyst-sets-1000-price-forecast" rel="noreferrer noopener">WWE, Squid Game Fuel Netflix Ad-Supported Growth: Analyst Sets $1,000 Price Forecast</a>
Sony&#8217;s strategy bore it a hit in 2024&#8217;s&nbsp;Helldivers II&nbsp;and several flops, including&nbsp;Concord, prompting it to cancel several live-service games over the last few years, including one based on Spider-Man.
Sony sold <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/24/11/41841647/sonys-q2-profit-surges-on-gaming-and-sensor-gains-but-ps5-sales-decline-raises-full-year-outlook" rel="noreferrer noopener">3.8 million PlayStation5 units</a> in the fiscal second quarter of 2024, compared to&nbsp;4.9 million a year ago. Sony&#8217;s Game &amp; Network Services revenue rose 12%&nbsp;to 1.07 trillion Japanese yen (on top of consolidated sales&nbsp;of ¥2.91 trillion), and operating income grew 184%&nbsp;to&nbsp;¥138.8 billion.
The video game industry battled challenges in the last two years, including losing <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/24/09/40829756/microsoft-cuts-650-xbox-jobs-amid-restructuring-following-activision-blizzard-deal-report" rel="noreferrer noopener">thousands of jobs</a>. Notable gaming studio closures included Netlix Inc&#8217;s (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NFLX#NASDAQ">NFLX</a>) <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/gaming/24/10/41462659/netflix-ends-aaa-game-development-at-california-studio" rel="noreferrer noopener">Southern California AAA</a> game studio, Team Blue, Take-Two Interactive Software Inc&#8217;s (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TTWO#NASDAQ">TTWO</a>) <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/05/38583285/grand-theft-auto-parent-shuts-two-iconic-game-studios-as-part-of-sweeping-layoffs" rel="noreferrer noopener">London&#8217;s Roll7 </a><a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/05/38583285/grand-theft-auto-parent-shuts-two-iconic-game-studios-as-part-of-sweeping-layoffs" rel="noreferrer noopener">and</a> Seattle&#8217;s Intercept Games, Microsoft Corp&#8217;s (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MSFT#NASDAQ">MSFT</a>) several <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/05/38732093/microsoft-shakes-up-xbox-division-closes-renowned-studios-in-major-cost-cutting-move" rel="noreferrer noopener">video-game studios</a> within its Xbox division, and NetEase Inc&#8217;s (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NTES#NASDAQ">NTES</a>) <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/24/08/40659768/netease-to-close-ouka-studios-developer-of-visions-of-mana-report" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ouka Studios</a>.
Reportedly, Krafton Inc. of&nbsp;PUBG: Battlegrounds earmarked over <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/01/42954938/pubg-developer-krafton-invests-136-million-in-game-studios-expands-ai-team-for-future-gaming-innovations" rel="noreferrer noopener">200 billion won ($136 million)</a> to over&nbsp;twelve game studios in sync with its artificial intelligence investment.
Over the past two years, Krafton incurred $680 million in investment in game studios. It also tapped Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NVDA#NASDAQ">NVDA</a>) to showcase more lifelike non-player characters in its Inzoi life simulation game.
Elon Musk&#8217;s&nbsp;AI startup,&nbsp;xAI, remains focused on its AI-driven game studio. It is challenging the giant game studios, which, according to the Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TSLA#NASDAQ">TSLA</a>) chief, prioritize profit over player engagement and creativity.
Last October,&nbsp;JPMorgan analysts&nbsp;expressed optimism over&nbsp;mobile gaming trends and spending on consoles backed by the gaming pipeline.
Sony Group stock surged over 11% in the last 12 months. Investors can gain exposure to the stock through Avantis International Equity ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AVDE#NYSE">AVDE</a>) and Invesco International Dividend Achievers ETF (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PID#NASDAQ">PID</a>).
Price Action: SONY stock traded higher by 1.13% at $20.55 premarket at last check Friday.
Also Read:
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<li><a href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/gaming/24/11/41694104/microsofts-decision-to-shut-down-arkane-austin-called-stupid-by-studio-founder" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft&#8217;s Decision To Shut Down Arkane Austin Called &#8216;Stupid&#8217; By Studio Founder</a></li>
</ul>
Photo via Shutterstock

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PowerShares ETF Trust International Dividend Achievers Portfolio

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SONY

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TTWO

Sony Cancels Two Live-Service Games, Stays Committed to Long-Term Monetization

Sony Group Corp (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SONY#NYSE">SONY</a>)&nbsp;is preparing to launch a faster and premium version of its popular video game console to boost sales ahead of the holiday season.
The PlayStation 5 Pro <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240910040977/en/Sony-Interactive-Entertainment-Reveals-PlayStation-5-Pro-the-Most-Visually-Compelling-Way-to-Play-Games-on-PlayStation" rel="noreferrer noopener">will be available</a> on November 7 for $700, an increase of $200 from the standard version. Prior speculations quoted the price at $600, backed by a new Advanced Micro Devices, Inc (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AMD#NASDAQ">AMD</a>) chip and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/gaming/24/09/40755736/playstation-leak-confirms-ps5-pro-design-could-a-release-be-near" rel="noreferrer noopener">improved cooling technology</a>.
PlayStation 5 game users can avail themselves of upgraded resolutions and frame rates without toggling between different modes, Bloomberg <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-10/sony-reveals-new-faster-playstation-5-pro-for-700?srnd=phx-technology&amp;sref=TBDibEcD" rel="noreferrer noopener">cites</a> Mark Cerny, lead architect of the console.
Also Read: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/gaming/24/05/39070785/microsoft-confirms-call-of-duty-black-ops-6-on-xbox-game-pass-at-launch" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft Confirms Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 On Xbox Game Pass At Launch</a>
He told Bloomberg that the PlayStation 5 Pro would offer 45% faster rendering than the standard PlayStation 5.
PlayStation 5 has sold more than 59 million units since its release in 2020.
Sony clocked&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/24/08/40215609/sony-q1-topline-and-earnings-beat-music-and-gaming-divisions-lead-growth" rel="noreferrer noopener">fiscal first-quarter 2024</a> topline growth&nbsp;of 2% year-on-year to $19.3 billion, beating the analyst consensus of&nbsp;$17.19 billion.&nbsp;
Game &amp; Network Services (G&amp;NS) revenue increased 12%. Sony sold 2.4 million PlayStation 5 units in the quarter, down from&nbsp;3.3 million a year ago, missing the analyst estimate of 3 million.
The <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/gaming/24/07/40081075/microsoft-reports-sharp-decline-in-xbox-hardware-sales-for-q4-but-theres-a-silver-lining" rel="noreferrer noopener">major console makers</a>, including&nbsp;Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MSFT#NASDAQ">MSFT</a>), Sony,&nbsp;and Nintendo Co (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NTDOF#OTC">NTDOF</a>) (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NTDOY#OTC">NTDOY</a>), faced double-digit percentage declines in May 2024, indicating the natural life cycle of gaming consoles.
Investors can gain exposure to Sony stock through Invesco International Dividend Achievers ETF (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PID#NASDAQ">PID</a>) and SPDR S&amp;P Kensho New Economies Composite ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/KOMP#NYSE">KOMP</a>).
Price Action: SONY stock is up 1.99% at $92.86 at&nbsp;the last check Tuesday.
Also Read:
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<li><a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/08/40375035/nintendos-switch-2-delay-what-we-know-about-the-upcoming-console" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nintendo&#8217;s &#8220;Switch 2&#8221; Delay: What We Know About The Upcoming Console</a></li>
</ul>
Photo via Sony Blog

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KOMP

NTDOF

NTDOY

Sony's PlayStation 5 Pro to Hit Shelves in November, Boasting 45% Faster Performance

LexisNexis launched a research tool Wednesday that uses artificial intelligence to boost <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/artificial-intelligence">corporate research capabilities</a>.
The information research company, a subsidiairy of RELX PLC (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/RELX#NYSE">RELX</a>), has developed Nexis+ AI, a research platform that provides access to more than 20,000 news providers such as The Associated Press, Gannett, McClatchy, Benzinga and FiscalNote &#8211; CQ Roll Call. 
The technology, which is offered through LexisNexis Legal &amp; Professional, is designed to allow end users to research and analyze business, financial and legal information and news, extract relevant information from lengthy documents and summarize and share content.
It can also create first drafts and outlines of intelligence reports and quickly come up with business insights, LexisNexis said.
"Business leaders across nearly every industry tell us they need deeper, more accurate insights to better facilitate timely decisions, but they find the amount of corporate data daunting and the process time consuming. Todd Larsen, president of Nexis Solutions, said in a statement.
Also Read: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/07/39810790/as-nvidia-microsoft-and-google-lead-ai-boom-taiwans-chief-telecom-president-calls-for-entirely-new-d">As Nvidia, Microsoft, And Google Lead AI Boom, Taiwan&#8217;s Chief Telecom President Calls For &#8216;Entirely New&#8217; Data Center Infrastructure</a>
&#8220;Recognizing this, we've created Nexis+ AI to accelerate data-intensive research and strategic decision-making.&#8221;
LexisNexis said AI+ Nexis also features intellectual property and copyright protection through longstanding, and in some cases exclusive, content licensing agreements with publishers that provides direct links to original source material.
Earlier this year, LexisNexis tested Nexis+ AI&#8217;s commercial application on a number of organizations that included large corporations, financial institutions and six major consulting firms to ensure further refinement of the platform.
"The launch of Nexis+ AI represents a significant first milestone in our mission to provide organizations with the tools they need to accelerate company research and make informed business decisions," said Dani McCormick, vice president of product for Nexis Solutions.
Read Now: 
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/24/07/39813495/why-key-apple-nvidia-supplier-tsmcs-shares-are-plunging-in-wednesdays-premarket">Why Key Apple, Nvidia Supplier TSMC&#8217;s Shares Are Plunging In Wednesday&#8217;s Premarket</a></li>
</ul>
Illustration via Pixabay.

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LexisNexis Legal & Professional Launches AI Research Tool Nexis+ AI

National Grid plc&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NGG#NYSE">NGG</a>) shares are trading lower after the company reported an equity raise of&nbsp;£7 billion and a year-over-year decrease in full-year revenue&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://otp.tools.investis.com/clients/uk/national_grid2/rns/regulatory-story.aspx?cid=374&amp;newsid=1823644" rel="noreferrer noopener">results</a>.&nbsp;
In its 2023/24 full-year, adjusted EPS increased 32%&nbsp;year over year&nbsp;to £0.84, and gross revenue declined 8%&nbsp;year over year&nbsp;to £19.850 billion.
Underlying operating profit rose 4% Y/Y to&nbsp;£4.8 billion&nbsp;(+6% Y/Y at constant currency), aided by growth in revenues in&nbsp;UK&nbsp;Electricity Transmission through the RIIO-T2 price control, non-recurrence of Western Link liquidated damages, and higher rates in&nbsp;New York&nbsp;and New England.
Dividend: The company disclosed a final dividend of&nbsp;39.12 pence, bringing the full-year dividend to&nbsp;58.52 pence, up&nbsp;5.55%&nbsp;and in line with policy.
Outlook: For 2024/25, the company expects underlying EPS to be broadly in line with 2023/24 EPS once this has&nbsp;been adjusted&nbsp;by the number of bonus shares&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/calendars/guidance" rel="noreferrer noopener">issued as part of the rights issue</a>.
Investment: The company plans to invest&nbsp;£60 billion (around $75 billion) in the U.S. and U.K. over the next five&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://otp.tools.investis.com/clients/uk/national_grid2/rns/regulatory-story.aspx?cid=374&amp;newsid=1823644" rel="noreferrer noopener">years</a>.
In New York, National Grid is investing around $21 billion between now and 2029, <a href="https://www.benzinga.com//node/38981778">per the company&#8217;s statement.</a>
The investment&nbsp;is expected&nbsp;to deliver annual group asset growth of around 10%,&nbsp;and 6%-8% underlying EPS CAGR from a 2024/25 baseline to 2028/29, assuming an exchange rate of £1:$1.25.&nbsp;&nbsp;
This&nbsp;is projected&nbsp;to be led by a comprehensive financing plan that includes a&nbsp;£7 billion&nbsp;equity raise.
John Pettigrew, Chief Executive, said, &#8220;Alongside our new five-year financial framework, we are also today further evolving our strategy to focus on networks and will therefore be streamlining our business as we announce our intention to sell Grain LNG, our&nbsp;UK&nbsp;LNG asset, and National Grid Renewables, our US onshore renewables business.&#8221;
Investors can gain exposure to the stock via&nbsp;Invesco International&nbsp;Dividend Achievers ETF&nbsp;(NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PID#NASDAQ">PID</a>) and&nbsp;Trust For&nbsp;Professional Managers ActivePassive International Equity ETF&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/APIE#NYSE">APIE</a>).
Price Action: NGG shares are down 14.11% at $61.83 at the last check Thursday.
Photo via Midjourney

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Why UK's National Grid Shares Are Diving Today

Income investors looking for allocations to international markets have options and perhaps even more than they initially realize.

	Some global markets are not known for dividend excellence. Japan and South Korea come to mind. Others <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/13/06/3705567/russia-etfs-putin-pressing-for-dividends">such as volatile Russia</a> are trying to climb the dividend ladder.

	Those looking for a more conservative approach can opt for a developed market basket ETF such as the PowerShares International Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>), which features a distribution yield of almost four percent.

	However, none of those options offer exposure to arguably one of the unheralded dividend regions in the world: The Middle East. Specifically, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

	Those two countries have been spent plenty of time in the limelight this year not just because their equity markets have been soaring, but also because both <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/13/06/3678167/how-to-play-middle-easts-new-em-status-with-etfs">were recently promoted to emerging markets status</a> from frontier territory.

	That is a feather in the caps of those markets to be sure, but some investors may not realize the potential income stream offered by Qatar and the UAE. The WisdomTree Middle East Dividend Fund (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/gulf#NASDAQ">GULF</a>) has a 30-day SEC yield of just over five percent.

	With the promotion to emerging markets status, it is expected that Qatar and the UAE will be on the receiving end of increased <a href="http://www.wisdomtree.com/blog/index.php/qatar-uae-the-ballgame-is-still-in-the-early-innings/">foreign direct investment</a>, which could serve as a catalyst for increased dividends. Before the countries received that promotion, HSBC estimated the two countries could see a combined $800 million in near-term inflows, while BNY Mellon puts the number as high as $3 billion.

	At the end of May, the respective dividend streams for Qatari and UAE firms in the WisdomTree Middle East Dividend Index, GULF's underlying index, were almost $5.3 billion and over $2.6 billion, respectively, according to WisdomTree data. Those two countries combine for 56.5 percent of GULF's weight. Kuwait, 17.3 percent of GULF's weight, also offers a dividend stream north of $2 billion.

	UAE and Kuwait "have a respectable Dividend Stream of over $2 billion and are fairly represented in the Index with 15 and 17 companies, respectively. It is interesting that these two countries together have a smaller Dividend Stream than Qatar even though, collectively, they have a larger market cap," <a href="http://www.wisdomtree.com/blog/index.php/with-emerging-market-status-upgrade-middle-east-countries-are-in-focus/#sthash.Rp3CFVme.dpuf">WisdomTree Research Director Jeremy Schwartz</a> in a note.

	Although there is dividend opportunity with these markets, investors looking to exploit that opportunity would be best served sticking with an ETF such as GULF. The reason is that when Qatar and the UAE are added to the MSCI Emerging Markets Index next, <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/13/06/3667304/the-bell-tolls-for-middle-east-etfs">the countries will only represent a sliver of that popular index</a>.

	Additionally, Schwartz said, "It is important to note that WisdomTree has no plans to add these countries..." to the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Equity Income Index, the underlying index for the $4.66 billion WisdomTree Emerging Markets Equity Income Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dem#NYSE">DEM</a>).

	"It is impossible to know what the new country weights are going to be in the future, but we do know that market participants will need to add exposure to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates," Schwartz added.

	For more on ETFs, click <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/etfs">here</a>.

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GULF

An Unheralded International Dividend ETF Destination

There is no shortage of dividend ETFs currently on the market, but the statistics indicate there may room for more. Investors poured <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/13/04/3482782/s-p-bullish-on-top-asset-gathering-etfs">$6.1 billion in new assets</a> into U.S. dividend-themed ETFs during the first quarter.

	At the end of the quarter, $68.5 billion in assets resided in dividend ETFs, according to S&amp;P Capital IQ.

	Numbers like those indicate investors love dividend ETFs and, in some cases, will quickly warm to new dividend funds. Income investors now have a few more dividend ETFs with global focuses to pick from, including the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund (NYSE: IQDF), which debuted Tuesday.

	The FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund is part of a suite of three new dividend funds introduced by Northern Trust's (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/ntrs#NASDAQ">NTRS</a>) on Tuesday. FlexShares has previously had success with <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/13/04/3479857/two-more-new-etfs-to-consider">other dividend offerings</a> including the FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/qdf#NYSE">QDF</a>).

	QDF, a U.S. focused equivalent of the new IQDF, debuted in mid-December and now has more than $53.4 million in assets under management.

	With a net expense ratio of 0.47 percent per year, IQDF tracks the Northern Trust International Large Cap Index. The new ETF's aims to match the index's beta will improving upon its dividend yield, <a href="http://www.flexshares.com/exchange-traded-funds/international-quality-dividend-index-fund">according to FlexShares</a>.

	Home to 216 holdings, IQDF allocates nearly 28 percent of its weight to the financial services sector. Energy, industrials and consumer staples also receive double-digit allocation. Familiar dividend sectors such as health care, telecommunications and utilities are not excessively weighted in the new ETF as that trio combines for about 20.5 percent of the fund's weight.

	IQDF is predominantly a large-cap fund though it does a decent job of spreading its weight across various market capitalizations. Large-caps account for almost 54.2 percent while mid-caps check in at 33.2 percent. Small and micro-caps combine for the remainder of IQDF's weight.

	At the country level, IQDF is dominated by the U.K. (16.5 percent) and Japan (11.7 percent). Australia, France and Canada round out the ETF's top-five country weights. There is some emerging markets exposure with China and Brazil combing for about 7.5 percent of the new ETF's weight. Nearly 27.7 percent of IQDF's country weight is defined as "others" though data is not yet available on what those other countries.

	Top holdings include Commonwealth Bank of Australia, which is also the top holding in the iShares Dow Jones International Select Dividend Index Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/idv#NYSE">IDV</a>), a potential rival for IQDF. Another possible rival for IQDF is the PowerShares International Dividend Achiever Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>).

	Other familiar names in the new ETF's lineup include Total (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/tot#NYSE">TOT</a>), GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/gsk#NYSE">GSK</a>) and Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS-A).

	Important to investors is the fact that IQDF employs a screening process that focuses on "three main factors including management efficiency and dividend policy; profitability; and cash flow to sustain dividend payments," said the issuer. That means the ETF does not use length of dividend increase as its primary screening methodology, a strategy currently employed by some of the largest dividend ETFs on the market.

	FlexShares is no stranger to unique screening methodologies for its dividend ETFs. The FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/qdef#NYSE">QDEF</a>), which debuted in December, <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/12/12/3187941/under-the-hood-more-defense-more-dividends">uses its own proprietary scoring model and an optimization process</a>. That ETF has returned more than 11 percent since its introduction.

	After just one day, it is too early to pass judgment on IQDF, particularly because yield information is not yet available. However, it would be wise not to underestimate IQDF's potential for success. The ETF has come to market in favorable environment for dividend investors and it cannot be ignored that FlexShares only needed 10 ETFs, none of which are yet two years old to amass nearly $4.7 billion in assets under management.

	For more on ETFs, click <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/etfs">here</a>.

Specialty ETFs

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iShares Dow Jones International Select Dividend Income Fund

NTRS

QDEF

A New International Dividend ETF Comes to Town

Some long-time income investors know that larger payouts and higher yields can often be with the foreign equivalent of a U.S. stock. For example, BP's (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/bp#NYSE">BP</a>) current yield is more than double that of Exxon Mobil's (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/xom#NYSE">XOM</a>). French pharmaceuticals giant Sanofi (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sny#NYSE">SNY</a>) yields 30 basis points more than Johnson &amp; Johnson (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/jnj#NYSE">JNJ</a>).

Those are just two examples, but throughout sectors such as consumer staples, energy, health care and telecommunications, investors can usually find a couple of developed market large-caps that offer superior yields relative to their U.S. counterparts. 

Still, U.S. equity dividend ETFs <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/13/02/3368815/the-forgotten-dividend-etfs">have nearly $50 billion in combined assets under management</a>, an amount that dwarfs that of international dividend funds. That does not mean that there are not some developed market dividend ETFs worthy of investors' attention. Consider some of the following ETFs:

PowerShares International Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>)
Like many domestically-focused dividend ETFs, PID employs length of dividend increase streaks as part of its screening methodology. However, PID is not as stringent as some U.S. ETFs as the qualification for inclusion here is five years of rising dividends, not the ten or more often seen with U.S. equivalents.

Important to note about PID is that it also weights by dividend yield, not market capitalization, meaning that if/when global high yield stocks fall out of favor, then PID's volatility and downside potential increase. Also adding to the volatility with PID is a more than 20 percent weight to energy stocks, by far the ETF's largest sector weight. Some of those names include Teekay Offshore Partners (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/too#NYSE">TOO</a>), Teekay LNG Partners (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/tgp#NYSE">TGP</a>) and Norway's Statoil (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sto#NYSE">STO</a>).

Investors can take some comfort in knowing U.S. stocks account for 25.1 percent of PID's weight, although the 30-day SEC yield of 2.62 percent is not particularly jaw-dropping. The U.K. and Canada are PID's next largest country weights, combining for 43 percent of the ETF's weight.

Overall, it is hard to argue with PID's long-term returns. Over the past three years, the ETF is up nearly 30 percent while <a href="http://www.etfreplay.com/charts.aspx">offering less volatility than and outperforming some developed and developing market dividend ETFs</a>. PID has also outpaced and been less volatile over that time than the iShares MSCI EAFE Index Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/efa#NYSE">EFA</a>). PID has an expense ratio of 0.56 percent and $779 million in assets under management.

WisdomTree Europe SmallCap Dividend Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dfe#NYSE">DFE</a>)
It is not a stretch to say many investors have heard at least one of the popular emerging markets small-cap ETFs on the market, say the Market Vectors Brazil ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/brf#NYSE">BRF</a>) or the WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Income Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dgs#NYSE">DGS</a>). Given the popularity of those funds, it is almost hard to believe there is just one small-cap ETF devoted to Europe and it is DFE.

Despite the recent Eurozone calamity, including Italy's election results and one index provider demoting Greece to emerging markets status, DFE has actually been an impressive gatherer of assets on a percentage basis. On February 11, <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/13/02/3323397/europe-the-small-cap-etf-way">DFE had $52 million in AUM</a>. Today that number is over $62.1 million. 

The 30-day SEC yield of 3.72 percent is fairly attractive, but with DFE being a small-cap fund, investors need to know what they are getting at the sector level. The ETF is light on traditionally conservative dividend sectors such as staples, telecommunications and utilities and heavy on industrials and discretionary names.

Italy, Spain and Portugal combine for about a quarter of DFE's weight and that might imply an uncomfortable level of volatility for some investors. In reality, DFE's underlying index since inception has had a lower beta and been less volatile than the MSCI Europe Small-Cap Index, <a href="http://www.wisdomtree.com/resource-library/pdf/fundfacts/WisdomTree-FactSheet-DFE-121.pdf">according to WisdomTree data</a>. DFE's annual expense ratio is 0.58 percent.

First Trust Dow Jones Global Select Dividend Index Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/fgd#NYSE">FGD</a>)
As is the case with PID, the First Trust Dow Jones Global Select Dividend Index Fund offers some level of comfort with an almost 17 percent allocation to the U.S. Additionally, just four Eurozone nations are found among FGD's lineup and Spain is the only PIIGS member represented in this ETF.

With $294.3 million in AUM, FGD has an even more seductive number associated with it: A 30-day SEC yield of 6.12 percent. Looking the ETF's sector breakdown, it is easy to understand why the yield is so robust. Telecommunications and utilities names combine for over 38 percent of the fund's weight. 

Another point in FGD's favor is an 18 percent weight to Australia, a high-yield currency nation that has dodged outright recession for over two decades. Sweden and New Zealand, another pair of solid, strong currency nations, combine for another eight percent of FGD's weight. FGD, which has annual expense ratio of 0.63 percent, has a lower beta and standard deviation than MSCI World Index, <a href="http://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/Etf/EtfSummary.aspx?Ticker=FGD">according to First Trust data</a>.

For more on ETFs, <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/etfs">here</a>.

Small Cap Analysis

Intraday Update

WisdomTree Trust WisdomTree Europe SmallCap Dividend

Wisdomtree Emerging Markets Smallcap Dividend Fund

First Trust Dow Jones Global Select Dividend Index Fund

3 International Dividend ETFs Your Broker Forgot to Mention

As the old saying goes, it is difficult teaching an old dog new tricks. Some psychologists might argue it is even harder to get humans to change their ways. When it comes to investors' application of ETFs, trying to change old habits can prove to be a laborious task. 

That much is borne out in a <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203347104578103021699459866.html">Wall Street Journal piece</a> published earlier this month about new dividend ETFs. In the essence of fairness, that article is by no means a "hit piece." However, it is standard fare regarding new ETFs.

Even some professionals do not like the unfamiliar and unknown, that much is highlighted by the sources quoted in the aforementioned piece. This goes back to the argument of letting new ETFs age as of they barrels of single-malt scotch. The difference is there standard time frames at which scotch becomes perfectly aged. 

No one has come up with such uniformity for ETFs. As such, "new" is often equated with excessive levels risk. At least that is the implication made by those that stick with older dividend ETFs. The other side of the coin is that there is a cost for comfort in the form of missed returns. These new-ish ETFs prove that fact.

Global X SuperDividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sdiv#NYSE">SDIV</a>)
The Global X SuperDividend ETF does allocate about 29 percent of its country weight to the U.S., but this is ETF is more appropriately classified as an international fund. SDIV, which made its debut in June 2011, may not qualify as new per se, but it is part of the next generation of dividend ETF concepts. 

The fund is a also a shining example of how long some investors, even the pros, take to embrace solid new ETF ideas. It took SDIV 14 months of trading to reach $100 million in assets under management. Since reaching that lofty perch in August, SDIV's AUM total has grown by <a href="http://www.globalxfunds.com/SDIV">60 percent</a>. 

SDIV has a 30-day SEC yield of 7.72 percent and pays a monthly dividend, but it is likely that as a "new" ETF, some pros have passed it over in favor of the more seasoned SPDR S&amp;P International Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pwx#NYSE">PWX</a>) and the PowerShares International Dividend Achievers ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>). 

With volatility of 14.3 percent, SDIV is up 9.7 percent this year. PID has roughly the same volatility but is up just five percent year-to-date. DWX is 50 percent more volatile than PID and SDIV, but that fund is higher by just a tenth of a percent. In other words, despite its age, SDIV is one of the best bets among international ETFs. 

PowerShares S&amp;P 500 High Dividend Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sphd#NYSE">SPHD</a>)
The PowerShares S&amp;P 500 High Dividend Portfolio is barely more than a month old and that alone is reason enough for some investors to ignore this ETF. SPHD has also fallen victim to bad timing as fiscal cliff clears have punished the utilities and telecom sectors, which combine for 31 percent of SPHD's weight.

Still, SPHD has almost $23 million in AUM, which is not bad for a month of work. The 30-day SEC yield is 4.74 percent. What makes SPHD interesting, particularly after its rocky start performance-wise, is that the ETF combines two of investors' favorite themes: Low volatility and high dividends. Some folks will stay on the sidelines with this ETF, but do not be surprised if SPHD becomes another member of the $100 million in AUM club over the next 12 months.

Market Vectors Preferred Securities ex Financials ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pfxf#NYSE">PFXF</a>)
What if an asset manager told one of his or her clients not to jump into a new dividend ETF until it has developed more of a track record and what if that conversation was about preferred stock funds? Well, the asset manager had better hope the client does not find out about the Market Vectors Preferred Securities ex Financials ETF.

For those that think dividend ETFs can only be sliced and diced so many ways, as one source quoted in the Journal piece does, think again. PFXF turned the world of preferred stock ETFs on its ear by altogether shunning bank stocks that account for 80 percent to 90 percent of rival funds. PFXF is not only cheap than its major rivals (0.40 percent expense ratio), it has outperformed those rivals since its July debut.

First Trust NASDAQ Technology Dividend Index Fund (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/tdiv#NASDAQ">TDIV</a>)
Like SPHD, the First Trust NASDAQ Technology Dividend Index Fund has suffered through a case of bad timing. The fund debuted in August and has not delivered the goods in terms of performance because the Nasdaq has faltered.

TDIV has a bright future, though, and here is why. Not only is technology the largest sector weight in the S&amp;P 500, it is also now the biggest dividend-paying sector in the U.S. Additionally, this sector is where true dividend growth is going to come from over the next few years (probably longer) because of all the cash the likes of Apple (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/aapl#NASDAQ">AAPL</a>), Cisco (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/csco#NASDAQ">CSCO</a>) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/msft#NASDAQ">MSFT</a>) have sitting on their balance sheets.

The problem with old generation dividend ETFs is that many screen their constituents based on length of consecutive dividend increase streaks. That leads to a lot of funds holding the usual suspects such as Coca-Cola (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/ko#NYSE">KO</a>) and Procter &amp; Gamble (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pg#NYSE">PG</a>), but many of those ETFs skimp on technology stocks. For example, the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF, the largest U.S. dividend ETF, allocates just 6.4 percent of its weight to tech. 

As more investors appreciate the tech sector as a dividend haven, TDIV should flourish. As it is, the fund has $41.2 million in AUM and that is not too shabby in just four months of work.

For more on dividend ETFs, click <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/12/10/3015616/the-indomitable-rise-of-dividend-etfs">here</a>.

Sector ETFs

Broad U.S. Equity ETFs

Wall Street Journal

Pre-Market Outlook

AAPL

CSCO

PFXF

SDIV

SPHD

TDIV

Be Thankful For New Dividend ETFs

Invesco's (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/ivz#NYSE">IVZ</a>) PowerShares unit, the fourth-largest U.S. ETF sponsor, has filed plans with Securities and Exchange Commission to possibly introduce two new ETFs.

In an effort to capitalize on the <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/dividends/12/07/2712580/5-dividend-etfs-for-the-second-half">growing popularity of dividend ETFs</a> while expanding its own lineup of funds for income investors, PowerShares has filed plans to introduce the PowerShares S&amp;P 500 High Dividend Portfolio. That ETF will track the S&amp;P 500 High Dividend Index. 

That index is designed to track the 75 S&amp;P 500 constituents with the highest dividend yields. The ETF will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "SPHD," according to <a href="http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1378872/000110465912051747/a12-16979_1485apos.htm"> an SEC filing</a>. An expense ratio was not included in the filing.

Other dividend ETFs sponsored by PowerShares included the PowerShares International Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>), the PowerShares Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pfm#NYSE">PFM</a>) and the PowerShares High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pey#NYSE">PEY</a>).

PowerShares also filed plans for the PowerShares Fundamental Emerging Markets Local Debt Portfolio. This ETF will track the Citi RAFI Sovereign Emerging Markets Bond Index. 

As of June 30, 2012, that index included bonds issued by the national governments of Brazil, Colombia, Chile, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, South Africa, Thailand and Turkey, <a href="http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1378872/000110465912051743/a12-16978_1485apos.htm">according to the ETF's filing</a> with the SEC.

A ticker and expense ratio were not included in the filing.

The PowerShares Fundamental Emerging Markets Local Debt Portfolio looks to be a potential rival to several established <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/markets/bonds/12/05/2565731/the-definitive-guide-to-non-usd-em-bond-etfs">non-dollar emerging markets debt funds</a>. 

The WisdomTree Emerging Markets Local Debt Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/eld#NYSE">ELD</a>) is one of the premier funds tracking the debt of developing nations denominated in local currencies. That ETF has over $1.2 billion in AUM. The Market Vectors Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/emlc#NYSE">EMLC</a>) has almost $755 million in AUM while the iShares Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/lemb#NYSE">LEMB</a>) has nearly $50.4 million in AUM.

PowerShares had $56.8 billion in combined ETF and ETN AUM at the end of July, according to data from the ETF Industry Association. 

For more on ETFs, click <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/etfs">here</a>.

Bonds

Currency ETFs

Market Vectors Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF

EMLC

LEMB

PowerShares Exchange Traded Fund Trust Dividend Achievers Portfolio

PowerShares Files Plans for Dividend, EM Debt ETFs

<div class="widget-wrapper"><a class="Covestor_hook" href="http://covestor.com/sizemore-capital/tactical-etf">Charles Sizemore, Sizemore Investment Letter</a>
<script class="Covestor_injector" type="text/javascript" src="http://widgets.covestor.com/chart/sizemore-capital/tactical-etf"></script></div>
<a href="http://blog.covestor.com/content/2012/03/sizemorenew.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-17088" title="sizemorenew" src="http://blog.covestor.com/content/2012/03/sizemorenew-290x300.jpg" alt="" width="150" /></a>Author: <a href="http://covestor.com/sizemore-capital">Charles Sizemore</a> 
Covestor models: <a href="http://covestor.com/sizemore-capital/sizemore-investment-letter">Sizemore Investment Letter</a>, <a href="http://covestor.com/sizemore-capital/tactical-etf">Tactical ETF</a> and <a href="http://covestor.com/sizemore-capital/strategic-growth-allocation">Strategic Growth Allocation</a>
With world equity markets down for <a href="http://finance.yahoo.com/news/five-straight-down-days-203407745.html">five consecutive days</a> on high volume, investors are left to wonder: Is this an opportunity to buy all of those great stocks that “got away from you” in the first quarter run-up at attractive prices, or is it portent of nasty things to come?
It would appear to be a little of both.
Even before the five-day selling spree, stocks were reasonably <a href="http://online.wsj.com/mdc/public/page/2_3021-peyield.html">priced</a> compared to historical measures, and they were downright cheap when compared to <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/">bonds</a> and other common asset classes.  When you combine this with the generally gloomy sentiment towards stocks that has persisted for much of the past year, your risk of significant loss in a high-quality stock portfolio is almost nil.
Can stocks go from cheap to cheaper?  Absolutely.  It happens all the time. But the conditions for a real bear market are simply not in place.  Fed policy remains loose, inflation remains largely tame, and stocks are cheap and <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304724404577293860249754888.html">under-owned</a> by individual investors and professionals alike.  These would be the conditions I would look for in a new bull market, not a bear market.
Still, after rising 28 percent from the 2011 Euro-crisis lows, stocks were due for a breather.  After returning 12 percent in the <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2012/03/30/thats-a-wrap-stocks-register-record-first-quarter/">first quarter</a>, the S&amp;P 500 had already exceeded the returns that most analysts expected for the entire year.
This is where that “nasty portent of things to come” comes into play.  To borrow a quote from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Byron">Lord Byron</a>, it appears that the equity markets have “squandered their whole summer while 'twas May,” or more accurately April in this case. As a result, I expect the major indices to move sideways in a choppy, range-bound market for most of the second quarter or until the latest scare coming out of Europe subsides.
Given this, how are investors to position their portfolios?
In a range-bound market, you can make money in one of two ways.   You either actively trade, attempting to buy at short-term lows and sell at short-term highs.  Or, you can orient your portfolio towards dividend-paying sectors and simply collect your checks while waiting for prices to firm up.   For the bulk of your nest egg, it is this second course of action I would recommend.   This is the approach I have taken in my <a href="http://covestor.com/sizemore-capital/tactical-etf">Tactical ETF Portfolio</a> in holding the Wisdom Tree Large Cap Growth ETF <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/investing/fund/dln">(<a class="ticker" href="/stock/dln#">DLN</a>)</a> and the PowerShares International Dividend Achievers ETF <a href="http://www.google.com/finance?cid=704829">(<a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#">PID</a>)</a>.
For more active trading, investors might consider a contrarian bet on Spain.  I wrote favorably about Spain at the beginning of the quarter (see “<a href="http://www.investorplace.com/2012/04/q2s-eurozone-member-to-watch-spain/">Eurozone Member to Watch: Spain</a>”), and I would reiterate this view today.  Spain has some of the cheapest <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/IBEX:IND">stock prices</a> and highest dividend yields in the world today, and Spanish firms outside of the construction sector tend to get a significant percentage of their revenues from outside the crisis-wracked country.
Keep the faith, dear reader.  There is money to be made in this market.
Covestor Ltd. is a registered investment advisor. Covestor licenses investment strategies from its Model Managers to establish investment models. The commentary here is provided as general and impersonal information and should not be construed as recommendations or advice. Information from Model Managers and third-party sources deemed to be reliable but not guaranteed. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Transaction histories for Covestor models available upon request. Additional important disclosures available at <a href="http://site.covestor.com/help/disclosures" title="http://site.covestor.com/help/disclosures">http://site.covestor.com/help/disclosures</a>. For information about Covestor and its services, go to <a href="http://covestor.com" title="http://covestor.com">http://covestor.com</a> or contact Covestor Client Services at (866) 825-3005, x703.

Time to go bargain hunting?

The year 2011 has been a lot of things to investors and a lot of those things have been bad. One silver lining has been a steady stream of increased dividends throughout the year. So strong has the dividend news been this year that dividend increases in dollar terms by S&amp;P 500 constituents beat the 2010 number...by the end of April.

For the first four months of the year, the net indicated dividend increases for the S&amp;P 500 is up 148% from the 4 Month April 2010 period, with the actual payments up 13.6%, according to Standard &amp; Poor's.

But that was April. In the first quarter, 462 companies raised their dividends and that was followed by another 444 dividend boosts in the second quarter. Overall, 2011 has been very kind to dividend investors and that's a good thing in an environment fraught with depressed Treasury yields and piddly interest rates on CDs and money markets.

The Federal Reserve has said it plans to keep interest rates low until at least 2013, so it's all but mandatory that investors be involved with dividend stocks and ETFs. With that, here's a look at 12 must-know dividend ETFs for 2012. In no particular order...

SPDR S&amp;P Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sdy#NYSE">SDY</a>):
With over $7.8 billion in assets under management (AUM), the SPDR S&amp;P Dividend ETF is one of the bigger boys on the dividend ETF block and it's 0.35% expense ratio and current 3.23% yield are fair among dividend ETFs.

SDY tracks the High Yield Dividend Aristocrats Index, so you won't find a lot of Dow components in here. However, the ETF does offer double-digit weights to six sectors – staples, financials, utilities, consumer discretionary, industrials and materials. Overall, SDY is home to enough reliable dividend payers and high yielders to make it worth a look.

iShares Dow Jones International Select Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/idv#NYSE">IDV</a>):
It has been noted time and again that international dividend stocks often trump their domestic counterparts in the same sector. So if you find yourself craving global dividend plays, but just can't make up your mind, IDV is one option to consider. Home to 103 stocks and an expense ratio of 0.5%, it's easy to see one red flag with this ETF: An almost 22% allocation to financials and that's a problem when Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Spain and Greece are among an ETF's top-10 country weights.

Energy, utilities, consumer services and telecom names also get double-digit representation in IDV. Current yield 5.16%.

iShares Dow Jones Select Dividend Index Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dvy#NYSE">DVY</a>):
Home to almost $8.9 billion in AUM, 103 stocks and fees of 0.4%, DVY is another dominant dividend ETF. DVY is diverse at the stock level as the top-10 holdings account for just 22.7% of the ETF's total weight. However, three sectors account for 70% of DVY's sector weight. Nine Dow stocks are found among DVY's holdings. Current yield: 3.54%.

WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dgs#NYSE">DGS</a>):
There was a time when the combination of dividends, emerging markets and small-caps was quite alluring. Then along came 2011. The good news is DGS has been knocked down to very reasonable levels and this is one of the few ETFs offering double-digit exposure to Thailand outside of the Thailand-specific ETF itself. Taiwan and South Africa are the other double-digit country weights.

Above $44, DGS is a buy. Above $48, it's in rally mode. The ETF's current distribution yield is a stellar 6.41%. 

WisdomTree International Dividend ex-Financials Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/doo#NYSE">DOO</a>):
Perhaps you're interested in IDV but that 22% weight to financials is off-putting. Who could blame you for feeling that way? Then check out DOO. It's fees (0.58%) are higher than IDV's, but financials are off the table with this ETF. That has helped DOO slightly outperform IDV year-to-date. Be advised that almost 43% of DOO's country weight is devoted to Euro Zone members. Current distribution yield: 2.73%.

WisdomTree Emerging Markets Equity Income Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dem#NYSE">DEM</a>):
Consider the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Equity Income Fund to be the large-cap cousin to DGS. DEM's biggest issue isn't that it's an emerging markets play. It's that it's got 26% exposure to financials. Taiwan and Brazil account for over 41% of the ETF's country weight. That's probably not a selling point either, but DEM's chart has started to improve. Buy above $52 and add in above $56. Current distribution yield: 7.2%.

Global X SuperDividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sdiv#NYSE">SDIV</a>):
Following its June debut, the Global X SuperDividend ETF has proven to be one of the more impressive new ETFs of 2011, hauling in almost $29 million in AUM. The premise here is simple: 100 stocks each with weights of 1% across a variety sectors and assets classes known for their robust yields. On that note, SDIV's most recent distribution yield of 5.27% is quite impressive.

Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/vig#NYSE">VIG</a>):
The Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF isn't going to win any yield contests with a yield barely above 2%. That's comparable to long-dated Treasuries. However, VIG's utility comes from two directions. First, it's 0.18% expense ratio is great for long-term investors. Second, VIG is a play in dividend increase news. Look at the ETF's holdings and you'll find stocks that just keep raising their dividends every year like clockwork.

Guggenheim ABC High Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/abcs#NYSE">ABCS</a>):
It's probably fair to say the Guggenheim ABC High Dividend ETF isn't fully appreciated. The fund has some high points though when you get past the high expense ratio of 0.65%. It offers developed meets emerging markets exposure through a devotion to only Brazil, Australia and Canada. The ETF focuses only on large-cap names and six sectors get double-digit allocations. Current yield: 7.56%, according to Finviz.

Guggenheim Multi-Asset Income ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/cvy#NYSE">CVY</a>):
The Guggenheim Multi-Asset Income ETF gets a bit more respect than ABCS and it has a lower expense ratio at 0.6%. Home to almost 150 stocks, CVY is a great mix of common stocks, American depositary receipts and master limited partnerships. No single stock gets of a weight of even 2% and don't be put off by the large weight to financials because with CVY, that doesn't mean money center or investment banks. It's more mortgage REITs and some preferred issues. Current yield: 5.27%.

PowerShares International Dividend Achievers ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>):
The PowerShares International Dividend Achievers ETF doesn't get a lot of press, but it's a worthwhile global dividend play to consider, though you won't need to own it simultaneously with the comparable ETFs we've highlighted here. Financials only account for 10.3% of PID's weight and only one Euro Zone member (Spain) is featured in this ETF. PID could be a buy above $15.50. Current yield: 3.8%.

First Trust DJ Global Select Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/fgd#NYSE">FGD</a>):
We'll let the First Trust DJ Global Select Dividend ETF's 0.6% expense ratio slide because we like the fact that the ETF holds 101 stocks across 10 sectors. We also like 60% of the country weight going to the U.S., Australia, the U.K. and Canada. If FGD rebalances to trim its Euro Zone exposure (15%) and weight to financials (19%), the ETF could be a pleasant surprise next year. Current yield: 4.75%.

Technicals

ABCS

WisdomTree Trust International Dividend Top 100

iShares Dow Jones Select Dividend Index Fund

Twelve For '12: Dividend ETFs to Watch In The New Year

Dividends are all the rage these days. As they should be. The evidence is clear that dividends account for a substantial percentage of a portfolio's returns over time meaning dividend stocks simply cannot be ignored in the quest to build a proper portfolio. And hey, there's nothing like free money.

While many investors are wise to the benefits of dividends, many may not recognize the advantages of international dividend-paying stocks. However, those advantages are clear. Many global companies pay higher dividends and offer higher yields than their U.S.-based rivals in the same sectors.

For those that aren't in the mood to go on a dividend hunting vacation, there are plenty of viable options in the ETF universe to get you the global dividend exposure you crave. Here are five international dividend ETFs your broker probably forgot to tell you about.

Guggenheim S&amp;P Global Dividend Opportunities Index ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/lvl#NYSE">LVL</a>):
With $41.6 million in assets under management, the Guggenheim S&amp;P Global Dividend Opportunities Index ETF isn't truly international in its approach as the U.S. receives a country weight of more than 23%. However, LVL does a good job of spreading out the weights of its 100 holdings as none receive an allocation of more than 3.43%. Utilities, telecoms and financials represent 73% of the sector weight. Current yield: 6%.

iShares Dow Jones International Dividend Select Index Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/idv#NYSE">IDV</a>):
Like LVL, IDV has been around since June 2007 and the iShares offering has become one of the dominant global dividend ETFs in that time, amassing almost $598 million in AUM. Australia an the U.K. account for 43% of IDV's country weight. The ETF holds 103 stocks with financials, oil, utilities, telecom and consumer services all getting double digit allocations. Current yield: 5.08%.

PowerShares International Dividend Achievers Portfolio (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>):
PID just celebrated its sixth birthday and since its September 2005 debut, this ETF has flown under the radar of the mainstream financial press, but not smart investors. That much is highlighted by PID's $520.4 million in AUM. PID does feature a 6.8% weight to the U.S., but Canada and the U.K. account for over 45% of the ETF's weight. While the bulk of PID's 64 holdings are concentrated in the large-cap universe, the ETF does mix some decent exposure mid-cap value and growth stocks. Current yield: 3.88%.

WisdomTree Global ex-US Growth Fund (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dnl#NYSE">DNL</a>):
WisdomTree is perhaps the top purveyor of international dividend ETFs and the WisdomTree Global ex-US Growth Fund is proof positive of that notion. DNL has fallen dramatically in recent months, the byproduct of 49% exposure to materials and energy stocks. On the other hand, that means this ETF is primed to soar if risk on comes back into style. Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS-A), Europe's largest oil company, accounts for 12% of the ETF's weight. Current yield: 3.32%.

WisdomTree Middle East Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/gulf#NYSE">GULF</a>):
Thinly traded with three sectors (financials, telecom and utilities) accounting for 94% of its weight, the WisdomTree Middle East Dividend ETF is perhaps a victim of the geography it tracks. With emerging markets still struggling, investors remain skeptical of riskier frontier markets, which is what GULF offers exposure. The ETF could be a buy above $15. Current yield: 5.78%.

Guggenheim S&P Global Dividend Opportunities Index ETF

Five International Dividend ETFs Your Broker Forgot to Mention

The ABC acronym stands for Australia, Brazil, and Canada.  The Guggenheim ABC High Dividend ETF (ABCS), launched earlier this week (6/8/11), packages the ten highest yielding stocks from each country into a convenient ETF format.
The 30 securities consist of U.S. listed ADRs from all three countries and stocks from Australia and Canada listed in their home countries.  The underlying BNY Mellon ABC Index selects the top 10 stocks or ADRs with the highest yield for each country.  The free-float market capitalization for each of the <a href="http://www.guggenheimfunds.com/etf/fund/abcs/holdings" target="_blank">30 holdings</a> determines the individual weightings.  The process currently produces country allocations of Brazil 46.8%, Australia 28.9%, and Canada 24.3%.
Top holdings include Cia de Bebidas Das Americas ADR (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/abv#">ABV</a>) 9.2%, Telstra Corp (TLS) 8.4%, Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo ADR (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/tsp#">TSP</a>) 7.4%, Cia Energetica de Minas Gerais ADR (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/cig#">CIG</a>) 5.5%, and Cia Siderurgica Nacional SA ADR (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/sid#">SID</a>) 5.3%.
Sector breakdown is Utilities 20.0%, Telecommunications 17.2%, Industrials 13.0%, Consumer Discretionary 12.4%, Consumer Staples 11.2%, Energy 9.5%, Materials 9.1%, and Financials 7.8%.
ABCS will have an expense ratio of 0.65%.  However, one of the most significant data points about this ETF is missing – the expected yield.  Any fund that calls itself “high dividend” needs to at least give investors a hint.  The yield information on the <a href="http://www.guggenheimfunds.com/etf/fund/abcs" target="_blank">summary page</a> is blank, and the <a href="http://www.guggenheimfunds.com/libraries/literature_en/guggenheim_abc_high_dividend_etf_fact_card.pdf" target="_blank">fact card</a> (pdf) does not provide any yield data for the index.
Although ABCS is the first ETF to address the A-B-C trio, there are many products focusing on foreign dividend paying stocks.  Some examples include <a href="http://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/etfsummary.aspx?Ticker=FGD" target="_blank">First Trust Dow Jones Global Select Dividend</a> (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/fgd#">FGD</a>) with a current yield of 4.1% (and just an 18.1% allocation to U.S. stocks), <a href="http://www.invescopowershares.com/products/overview.aspx?ticker=PID" target="_blank">PowerShares International Dividend Achievers</a> (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#">PID</a>) with a yield of 2.8%, and <a href="http://www.wisdomtree.com/etfs/fund-details.asp?etfid=50" target="_blank">WisdomTree Emerging Markets Equity Income</a> (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/dem#">DEM</a>) with a yield of 3.3%.
Disclosure covering writer, editor, and publisher:  No positions in any of the securities mentioned.  No positions in any of the companies or ETF sponsors mentioned.  No income, revenue, or other compensation (either directly or indirectly) received from, or on behalf of, any of the companies or ETF sponsors mentioned.
<img src="http://investwithanedge.com/?ak_action=api_record_view&amp;id=13595&amp;type=feed" alt="" />

Guggenheim ABCS Gives Us A-B-C But No Y

WisdomTree Trust WisdomTree SmallCap Dividend

DODGX

streetTRACKS Dow Jones U.S. Large Cap Value Index Fund

FCNTX

iShares S&P SmallCap 600 Growth Index Fund

iShares Trust Russell Midcap Growth Index Fund

iShares Trust Russell MidCap Value Index Fund

iShare Morningstar Large Growth Index Fund

iShares Morningstar Large Value Index Fund

iShares Morningstar Small Growth Index Fund

PowerShares Dynamic Developed International Opportunities Portfolio

PowerShares Exchange Traded Fund Dynamic Mid Cap Portfolio

PowerShares Exchange Traded Fund Dynamic Small Cap Portfolio

PowerShares Exchange Traded Fund Trust Dynamic Mid Cap Value Portfolio

PowerShares Exchange Traded Fund Trust Dynamic Small Cap Growth Portfolio

PowerShares Exchange Traded Fund Trust Dynamic Large Cap Value Portfolio

QQQQ

Rydex ETF Trust S&P Midcap 400 Pure Growth ETF

Rydex ETF Trust S&P Midcap 400 Pure Value ETF

Rydex ETF Trust Rydex S&P Equal Weight ETF

Rydex ETF Trust S&P Smallcap 600 Pure Growth ETF

SCHA

SCHV

SCHX

National Semiconductor Provides Good Funds in Their Retirement Plan

<div>
Coming out of the great recession, governments around the world have adopted  loose monetary policies to prop up the economies. These include U.S. central bank's QE2 (Quantitative Easing act 2) and Euro Zone's bailout of troubling peripheral countries like Greece. The current natural disasters in Japan and other countries can only add more demand for the stimulus. These policies resulted in commodity hoarding, especially in material hungry emerging economies such as China. 
It is critical to have anti-inflation anti-currency devaluation component. In this article, we explore the feasibility of adding commodity exposure to an income producing portfolio. Commodity ETFs are effective tools to cope with the current situations. In a portfolio that is designed to preserve capital for retirement needs. However, because of volatile and somewhat dangerous nature of commodites, one needs to actively manage such a portfolio by adopting tactical asset allocation strategies. 
</div>
<div>Income producing ETFs such as high yield stock ETFs and bond ETFs can be used to build a lower risk portfolio for retirement income producing purpose. We study the two plans: one is without commodity exposure and the other one with the exposure. </div>
<a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/f401k_view.action?ID=5,635">Retirement Income ETFs with Commodities</a> plan is an extension to <a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/f401k_view.action?ID=4,904">Retirement Income ETFs</a>: adding extra commodity asset class with PowerShares DB Commodity Index (DBC) and GreenHaven Continuous Commodity (GCC). This plan consists of 37 funds. These funds enable investors to gain exposure to 6 major assets: US Equity, Commodity, Foreign Equity, Emerging Market Equity, REITs, Fixed Income. Compared with <a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/f401k_view.action?ID=4,904">Retirement Income ETFs</a>, this plan has two additional ETFs that represent the extra commodity asset class.  
The following is the list of the candidate ETFs in the <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/f401k_view.action?ID=5,635">Retirement Income ETFs with Commodities</a>: 
 
<table style="width: 100%;" border="0" cellspacing="20px">
<thead>
<tr>
<th width="45%" align="left">The list of minor asset classes covered by Retirement Income ETFs with Commodities</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="45%" valign="top">Commodities Broad Basket: DBC, GCC Diversified Emerging Mkts: EEM, VWO, DEM Emerging Markets Bond: EMB, PCY Foreign Large Value: PID, IDV Global Real Estate: RWX High Yield Bond: HYG Inflation-protected Bond: TIP Intermediate Government: IEI Intermediate-term Bond: CIU, CORP, MBB Large Blend: VIG Large Value: DVY, SDY, VYM, FVD Long Government: IEF, TLT Long-term Bond: LQD, VCLT Mid-cap Value: PEY Miscellaneous Sector: PFF Muni National Long: MUB Muni Short: SHM Real Estate: IYR, ICF, VNQ Short Government: SHY Short-term Bond: CSJ, VCSH World Bond: BWX, WIP </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
 
As of Mar 24, 2011, Retirement Income ETFs with Commodities investment choice is rated as and Retirement Income ETFs investment choice is rated as average based on MyPlanIQ <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/f401k_showplanscorelist.action">Plan Rating methodology </a> that was designed to measure how effective a plan's available investment funds are.  It has the following detailed ratings:
 
The chart and table below show the historical performance of moderate model portfolios employing strategic and tactical asset allocation strategies (<a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/strategy/View.action?ID=771">SAA </a>and <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/strategy/View.action?ID=1003">TAA </a>, both provided by MyPlanIQ). 
Performance chart (as of Mar 24, 2011)
<a rel="lightbox" href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/article_viewchart.action?portfolioID=32390,32391,22062,22065&amp;compareID=4,904"> <img src="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/article_viewchart.action?portfolioID=32390,32391,22062,22065&amp;compareID=4,904" /> </a>
Performance table (as of Mar 24, 2011)
<div id="show_Port_div" style="display: block;">
<table id="comparetablePort" class="tablesorter" style="width: 100%;" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="0">
<thead>
<tr>
<th class="header" width="40%">Portfolio Name</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">1Yr AR</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">1Yr Sharpe</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">3Yr AR</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">3Yr Sharpe</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">5Yr AR</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">5Yr Sharpe</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=32,390"> Retirement Income ETFs with Commodities Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate</a></td>
<td>10%</td>
<td>79%</td>
<td>8%</td>
<td>68%</td>
<td>11%</td>
<td>83%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=32,391"> Retirement Income ETFs with Commodities Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate</a></td>
<td>11%</td>
<td>97%</td>
<td>1%</td>
<td>4%</td>
<td>4%</td>
<td>20%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=22,062"> Retirement Income ETFs Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate</a></td>
<td>7%</td>
<td>40%</td>
<td>8%</td>
<td>65%</td>
<td>10%</td>
<td>62%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=22,065"> Retirement Income ETFs Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate</a></td>
<td>11%</td>
<td>69%</td>
<td>3%</td>
<td>14%</td>
<td>5%</td>
<td>17%</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
Discussions:
1. Commodity ETFs are volatile. In fact, PowerShare DB Commodity Index ETF (DBC) lost 32% in 2008 while iShares S&amp;P GSCI Commodity Index (GSG) lost a whopping 46% in the same year. 
2. Simply adding commodity ETFs to a strategic asset allocation portfolio (buy and hold with regular rebalancing) did not improve the returns in the past five years. This is again due to the big loss incurred in commodtiy ETFs. 
3. Adding commodity ETFs as fund candidates in a tactical asset allocation portfolio, however, can improve returns. In the past five years, <a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=32,390">Retirement Income ETFs with Commodities Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate</a> had extra 1% annualized return over <a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=22,062">Retirement Income ETFs Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate</a>. 
In conclusions. commodity ETFs are effective tools to cope with the current situations. In a portfolio that is designed to preserve capital for retirement needs. However, because of volatile and somewhat dangerous nature of commodites, one needs to actively manage such a portfolio by adopting tactical asset allocation strategies. 
 Disclosure: 
MyPlanIQ does not have any business relationship with the company or companies mentioned in this article. It does not set up their retirement plans. The performance data of portfolios mentioned above are obtained through historical simulation and are hypothetical.
Symbols:<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=DBC&amp;count=0094'>DBC</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=GCC&amp;count=002'>GCC</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=GSG&amp;count=0076'>GSG</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=EEM&amp;count=00107'>EEM</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VWO&amp;count=00107'>VWO</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=DEM&amp;count=0013'>DEM</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=EMB&amp;count=0033'>EMB</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=PCY&amp;count=0031'>PCY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=PID&amp;count=0023'>PID</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=IDV&amp;count=0011'>IDV</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=RWX&amp;count=0030'>RWX</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=HYG&amp;count=0096'>HYG</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=TIP&amp;count=0028'>TIP</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=WIP&amp;count=0020'>WIP</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=IEI&amp;count=0016'>IEI</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=CIU&amp;count=00104'>CIU</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=CORP&amp;count=002'>CORP</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=MBB&amp;count=0074'>MBB</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VIG&amp;count=0014'>VIG</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol= DVY&amp;count=001'> DVY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=SDY&amp;count=0012'>SDY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VYM&amp;count=0012'>VYM</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=FVD&amp;count=0010'>FVD</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=IEF&amp;count=0083'>IEF</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=TLT&amp;count=0083'>TLT</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=LQD&amp;count=0064'>LQD</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VCLT&amp;count=005'>VCLT</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=PEY&amp;count=0010'>PEY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=PFF&amp;count=0011'>PFF</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=MUB&amp;count=0079'>MUB</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=SHM&amp;count=005'>SHM</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=IYR&amp;count=00103'>IYR</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=ICF&amp;count=0084'>ICF</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VNQ&amp;count=00100'>VNQ</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=SHY&amp;count=0080'>SHY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=CSJ&amp;count=0068'>CSJ</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VCSH&amp;count=008'>VCSH</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=BWX&amp;count=0043'>BWX</a>,
Exchange Tickers: (DBC),(GCC),(GSG),(EEM),(VWO),(DEM),(EMB),(PCY),(PID),(IDV),(RWX),(HYG),(TIP),(WIP),(IEI),(CIU),(CORP),(MBB),(VIG),(DVY),(SDY),(VYM),(FVD),(IEF),(TLT),(LQD),(VCLT),(PEY),(PFF),(MUB),(SHM),(IYR),( ICF),(VNQ),(SHY),(CSJ),(VCSH),(BWX)
 
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PowerShares DBmmodity Index Optimum Yield Diversified Fund

iShares JPMorgan USD Emerging Markets Bond Fund

First Trust Value Line Dividend Index Fund ETF

iShares Trust Barclays 7-10 Year Treasury Bond Fund

iShares Trust Dow Jones US Real Estate Fund Index

iShares S&P National AMT-Free Municipal Bond Fund

PowerShares Emerging Markets Sovereign  Portfolio

iShares S&P US Preferred Stock Index Fund

iShares Trust Barclays 1-3 Year Treasury Bond Fund

iShares Trust Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond Fund

VCLT

SPDR DB International Government Inflation-Protected Bond ETF

Tactically Manage An Income Producing Portfolio With Commodity Exposure

Dividend Stock ETFs Somewhat Defensive But Not Enough to Withstand Market Stress

Investors got a wake up call this week after the President's day: for the past two days, S&amp;P has dropped 2.6%. We reviewed dividend stock ETFs performance in the following three equity classes:
<ul>
<li>U.S. Equity: U.S. dividend stock ETFs appeared resilient among the market correction. For the past one week, for example, Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index (VYM) had the least loss: -0.68%, compared with SPY's 2.11% loss. In general, all U.S. dividend stock ETFs (SDY, FVD, DVY, VIG) outperformed the S&amp;P 500 benchmark (SPY), showing that in general, dividend ETFs are more defensive during market stress. </li>
<li>International Equity: similarly, Powershwares International Dividend Achievers (PID) lost only 0.69%, compared with MSCI's broadbase index EFA's 2.07% loss in the last 5 days. </li>
<li>Emerging Market Equity: WisdomTree's Emerging Market Income (DEM) lost 1.57%, compared with broadbase index EEM's 2.18% loss. </li>
</ul>
Preferred stocks showed the least loss (-0.48%) among all the dividend ETFs we monitored. For more detailed performance, please refer to <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/advanced__markets.action" target="_blank">here. </a>
 
The following table shows the trend scores for dividend ETFs. U.S. REITs (IYR), U.S. stocks (SPY) and U.S. dividend stocks (VYM, VIG) are retaining the top spots. Emerging market equity (EEM) and preferred stocks (PFF) are still at the bottom.
 
<table border="0" cellspacing="10">
<tbody>
<tr>
<th align="left">Assets Class</th>
<th>Symbols</th>
<th>02/23 Trend Score</th>
<th>02/16 Trend Score</th>
<th>Direction</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>iShares Dow Jones US Real Estate</td>
<td>IYR</td>
<td>11.56%</td>
<td>14.05%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>SPDR S&amp;P 500</td>
<td>SPY</td>
<td>10.71%</td>
<td>13.17%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Vanguard High Dividend Yield Indx</td>
<td>VYM</td>
<td>10.08%</td>
<td>10.94%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Vanguard Dividend Appreciation</td>
<td>VIG</td>
<td>9.73%</td>
<td>10.79%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>iShares Dow Jones Intl Select Div Idx</td>
<td>IDV</td>
<td>9.51%</td>
<td>10.3%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>SPDR DJ Wilshire Intl Real Estate</td>
<td>RWX</td>
<td>9.42%</td>
<td>9.83%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>PowerShares Intl Dividend Achievers</td>
<td>PID</td>
<td>8.54%</td>
<td>8.66%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>iShares MSCI EAFE Index</td>
<td>EFA</td>
<td>8.21%</td>
<td>9.65%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>First Trust Value Line Dividend Index</td>
<td>FVD</td>
<td>7.75%</td>
<td>8.83%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>iShares Dow Jones Select Dividend Index</td>
<td>DVY</td>
<td>7.37%</td>
<td>8.72%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>SPDR S&amp;P Dividend</td>
<td>SDY</td>
<td>7.22%</td>
<td>8.9%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>WisdomTree Emerging Market Equity Income</td>
<td>DEM</td>
<td>6.27%</td>
<td>7.05%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>PowerShares HighYield Dividend Achievers</td>
<td>PEY</td>
<td>6.16%</td>
<td>8.1%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index</td>
<td>EEM</td>
<td>3.79%</td>
<td>4.99%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>iShares S&amp;P U.S. Preferred Stock Index</td>
<td>PFF</td>
<td>3.29%</td>
<td>4.06%</td>
<td>v</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
The trend score is defined as the average of 1,4,13,26 and 52 week total returns (including dividend reinvested). 
 We would like to point out that more U.S. companies are expected increase their dividend payout in 2011. In a recent <a href="http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Companies-to-Pump-Up-Dividend-cnbc-1624943041.html?x=0&amp;.v=1">report </a>by CNBC, Senior analyst Howard Silverblatt in S&amp;P indices stated "We estimate that over half the S&amp;P 500 issues will pay out more in regular cash payments in 2011 than they paid in 2010," Given the current anemic economic recovery, positioning the U.S. equity portion of one's portfolio in dividend stock ETFs is a good strategy with certain defensive nature. 
 In fact, in the last one year, investing in dividend ETFs has slightly outperformed a strategy that invests in broadbase indices. The following table shows the performance comparison between an income focused portfolio and a general market index focused portfolio, both using a<a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/strategy/View.action?ID=1003"> tactical asset allocation strategy</a>. 
<div id="show_Port_div" style="display: block;">
<h3>Portfolio Performance Comparison</h3>
<table id="comparetablePort" class="tablesorter" style="width: 100%;" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="0">
<colgroup><col style="width: 359px;" /><col style="width: 82px;" /><col style="width: 82px;" /><col style="width: 82px;" /><col style="width: 82px;" /><col style="width: 82px;" /><col style="width: 82px;" /></colgroup>
<thead>
<tr>
<th class="header" width="40%">Portfolio Name</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">1Yr AR</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">1Yr Sharpe</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">3Yr AR</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">3Yr Sharpe</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">5Yr AR</th>
<th class="header" width="10%">5Yr Sharpe</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr class="even">
<td><a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=17883">Five Core Asset Index ETF Funds Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate</a></td>
<td>12%</td>
<td>100%</td>
<td>10%</td>
<td>85%</td>
<td>12%</td>
<td>87%</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td><a href="http://www.myplaniq.com/LTISystem/jsp/portfolio/ViewPortfolio.action?ID=22062">Retirement Income ETFs Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate</a></td>
<td>13%</td>
<td>102%</td>
<td>9%</td>
<td>76%</td>
<td>10%</td>
<td>69%</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
 Barring from a severe debt induced financial event in global markets, we view investors should pay more attention to dividend ETFs in the coming years for defensive and growth purposes. 
Symbols:<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=RWX&amp;count=0024'>RWX</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=SPY&amp;count=00109'>SPY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=IYR&amp;count=0086'>IYR</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VIG&amp;count=009'>VIG</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=IDV&amp;count=006'>IDV</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=VYM&amp;count=007'>VYM</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=EEM&amp;count=0094'>EEM</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=PID&amp;count=0017'>PID</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=EFA&amp;count=00119'>EFA</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=FVD&amp;count=006'>FVD</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=DVY&amp;count=0017'>DVY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=PEY&amp;count=006'>PEY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=SDY&amp;count=008'>SDY</a>,<a href ='../../../../LTISystem/f401k_symbols.action?symbol=PFF&amp;count=007'>PFF</a>,
Disclosure:
MyPlanIQ does not have any business relationship with the company or companies mentioned in this article. It does not set up their retirement plans. The performance data of portfolios mentioned above are obtained through historical simulation and are hypothetical.
 
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Dividend Stock ETFs All Dropped, But Showing Defensive

The following is an excerpt from Sizemore Capital Management LLC's 2010 Year End Investment Outlook and Commentary, reproduced with permission. 
I am proud to announce that Sizemore Capital Management has logged another successful year. Our actively-managed Tactical Portfolio returned 15.7% for the year 2010, essentially matching the 15.1% for the S&amp;P 500 Total Return Index but with less volatility.
We made no major changes to the Tactical Portfolio during the fourth quarter of 2010, maintaining our strong focus on income and our contrarian value positions in the health care, utilities, and global telecom sectors—all of which we see doing exceptionally well in 2011. In the first week of January 2011, we reinvested the 5% of the portfolio that was formerly in cash in the PowerShares International Dividend Achievers ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#NYSE">PID</a>), raising our allocation to 15%. This brings our total allocation to dividend-focused investments to 35% of the portfolio. Our sector positions in health care, utilities, and telecom make up a combined 30%. The remainder of the portfolio lies in our core position in the S&amp;P 500 (25%) and our tactical position in high-yield bonds (10%).
This is an optimal allocation for the economic environment I see materializing in 2011. Though I do not anticipate a return to the crisis conditions of recent years, I do see risk aversion making a comeback and would expect investors to rotate out of cyclical sectors—which are beginning to look extended—and into value sectors. I view the energy and materials sectors as being particularly at risk. These sectors were among the best performing in 2010 (see Figure 1), while our contrarian investments in health care, utilities, and telecom were laggards. I see this trend reversing in 2011, as investors take profits in the cyclical sectors and look for bargains among the currently out-of-favor sectors. Valuations in our contrarian sector positions—as measured by price/earnings ratio and dividend yield—are highly favorable relative to the broader S&amp;P 500.
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Furthermore, I believe that the recent spike in interest rates is already nearing its end. Interest rates may never again fall to the lows seen earlier in the year, but the absence of inflation should guarantee that they stay low by historical standards. This should benefit our dividend-focused investments. (For a more detailed explanation of SCM's views on interest rates, please see: “<a href="http://sizemoreletter.com/is-there-a-bubble-in-bonds/">Is There a Bubble in Bonds?</a>” and “<a href="http://sizemoreletter.com/there-is-not-a-bond-bubble-%E2%80%94-at-least-not-yet/">There is NOT a Bond Bubble—at Least Not Yet.</a>”)
A rising interest rate environment is generally bad for all sectors of the stock market, but sectors that receive a high percentage of their total return in the form of dividends are particularly at risk. After all, investors have no need to accept the volatility of equities if they can get comparable yields in the bond market. Expectations of a continued rise in rates caused the Tactical Portfolio's positions to underperform in the 4th quarter of 2010, losing some of the relative outperformance from the 3rd quarter.
In a more normal environment, rising rates would also punish cyclical industries such as industrials, basic materials, and energy. Of course, we are not at all living in normal times; we are living through an extended liquidity-driven “reflation” of the capital markets after the worst credit crisis in a hundred years. As the angst that gripped investors during the second and third quarters began to lift, money poured into the most volatile and economically-sensitive sectors and into emerging markets. Commodities and energy have been in a bull market for roughly a decade now, and these sectors are becoming increasingly trendy. It is my belief that the prices of many physical commodities are now firmly in bubble territory and driven almost entirely by speculators in the plethora of new commodity-themed ETFs and mutual funds. While we cannot know with certainty when this bubble will burst, I feel that it is prudent to avoid commodities and to underweight materials and energy equities. It is unrealistic to believe that commodities and energy will continue to rise in an extreme low-inflation environment. Furthermore, a major bust in China—which I consider a question of “when” rather than “if”—would put extreme pressure on commodities and energy prices. (See “<a href="http://sizemoreletter.com/more-evidence-of-a-chinese-investment-bubble/">More Evidence of a Chinese Investment Bubble</a>” for an expanded analysis of the China bubble).
Betting Against the Herd
In November, I published an article that discussed the extreme negative sentiment toward the utilities sector based on a survey published on November 1 by Barron's (see “<a href="http://sizemoreletter.com/avoid-the-herd-buy-utilities/">Avoid the Herd: Buy Utilities</a>”)
On December 22, Barron's published the results of a similar survey. Despite the passing of nearly two months and the selection of a new panel of professionals, the results were nearly identical (See Figure 2).
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The utilities and health care sectors are absolutely despised by the “Big Money” interviewed by Barron's. Fully half of the investors surveyed were bearish on the two. Utilities got not a single bullish vote, and health care got only one. The figures for telecom were little better.
Meanwhile, fully half of those surveyed were bullish on energy (and none bearish), and a whopping two thirds were bullish on technology.
As a contrarian value investor, this is exactly what I like to see. The sectors that have performed the most poorly over the past several years in Figure 1 are the very same sectors that investors are shunning in Figure 2. What this tells us is that these sectors are under-owned and that the selling has largely already been done. While not an exact science, I consider this to be an excellent rule of thumb for evaluating sectors.
At the very least, what this tells us is that the downside should be limited in these sectors relative to the others. If I am right about the coming sector rotation and about inflation being benign, then we should earn market-beating returns in the quarters ahead. But if I am wrong, the cheap valuations and high yields mean that our downside should be limited.
Looking Ahead
2010 was a great year at Sizemore Capital Management. Here's to making 2011 even better.
Respectfully,
Charles Lewis Sizemore, CFA
For the complete letter, see: <a href="http://sizemoreletter.com/clientletters/2010-Fourth-Quarter-Letter-to-Investors.pdf">Sizemore Capital Management 2010 4th Quarter Letter to Investors</a>
This blog is a free service of Sizemore Financial Publishing LLC, publisher of the Sizemore Investment Letter.
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Sizemore Capital Management 2010 4th Quarter Letter to Investors

The following is Sizemore Capital Management LLC's Third Quarter 2010 Letter to Investors, reproduced with permission. 
To Our Investors,
The third quarter of 2010 ended on a high note with the S&amp;P 500 posting its strongest September in 71 years.  Against this backdrop, our actively-managed Tactical Portfolio returned 9.0% for the year through the third quarter, compared to 3.9% for the S&amp;P 500 Total Return.
Our returns for 2010 year-to-date on our Strategic Portfolio Allocation models were the following:
<ul>
<li>Preservation of Capital……..3.61%</li>
<li>Conservative Income………. 7.44%</li>
<li>Growth and Income………….7.81%</li>
<li>Growth…………………………8.06%</li>
<li>Aggressive…………………….7.86%</li>
</ul>
Portfolio Review
SCM Strategic Portfolios
Given that the Strategic Portfolios are long term in nature, it is rare for Sizemore Capital to make allocation changes. We rebalance annually, of course, but the core positions do not often change. The only change made prior to the third quarter of 2010 was the replacement of the defunct Bear Stearns MLP ETN (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/bsr#">BSR</a>) with a substantially identical security, the JP Morgan Alerian MLP Index ETN (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/amj#">AMJ</a>).
In the third quarter, we decided that another change was appropriate. We replaced our emerging markets position, the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/eem#">EEM</a>) with the EG Shares Emerging Markets Consumer ETF (ECON).
This is a change we would have loved to have made sooner had it been possible. We were never satisfied with EEM as an emerging markets position, but we kept it for lack of better alternative. EEM was never truly an “emerging market” play but instead a “global macro” play, as the fund was comprised almost entirely of banks, oil companies, and export-oriented companies with very little exposure to emerging market consumers themselves.
ECON is the first ETF to specifically target the emerging market consumer sector. This ETF was a long time coming, and kudos to Emerging Global Shares for being the first to bring it to market.
For an expanded explanation of our investment rationale with respect to ECON, see the two articles we penned for Seeking Alpha in September:
<a href="http://seekingalpha.com/article/225003-econ-investing-in-the-emerging-market-the-right-way">ECON: Investing in the Emerging Market the Right Way</a> 
<a href="http://seekingalpha.com/article/225478-just-one-etf-the-new-fund-aimed-at-local-goods-for-emerging-consumers">Just One ETF: The New Fund Aimed at Local Goods for Emerging Consumers</a>
SCM Tactical Portfolio
We made several significant changes to the Tactical Portfolio during the quarter, selling four long-time holdings in infrastructure, municipal bonds, and luxury goods and replacing them with two new positions that focus of dividend income.
In a July 16, 2010 internal trade memo, we wrote:
<blockquote>Given the recent correction in the equity markets and our belief that high-dividend stocks offer better value than bonds at current prices, we felt the time was right to liquidate our position in municipal bonds (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/vkq#">VKQ</a>) and to reallocate the funds to high-dividend stocks via an ETF, the WisdomTree LargeCap Dividend Fund (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/dln#">DLN</a>).
DLN is the ideal position for our current strategy. Many of the companies we have recommended in The Sizemore Investment Letter are among the fund's top holding, including AT&amp;T (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/t#">T</a>), Johnson &amp; Johnson (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/jnj#">JNJ</a>), Microsoft (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/msft#">MSFT</a>), Philip Morris International (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/pm#">PM</a>) and Procter &amp; Gamble (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/pg#">PG</a>). In DLN we get a cash yield comparable to a ladder of Treasury securities, but unlike bond interest—which does not increase over the life of the bond—the dividends of DLN's equity holdings should rise in the quarters ahead.
The market's currently elevated level of volatility shows no sign of abating, and a general market selloff, were it to occur, could send DLN's price lower in the short term. But given the attractive pricing of DLN, we would consider any such volatility to be little more than short-term noise. We consider this a low-risk and potentially high-return allocation for the Sizemore Capital Management Tactical Portfolio.
</blockquote>
On July 26, 2010, we increased the Tactical Portfolio allocation to DLN from 10% to 20%. Reaffirming our investment rationale, we wrote:
<blockquote>Given our view that non-financial, blue-chip equities are currently the most attractive asset subclass, we have increased our allocation to the WisdomTree Large Cap Dividend ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dln#NYSE">DLN</a>) to 20% of the SCM Tactical Portfolio. This is not a short-term trade; we consider this a major change in investment strategy with a time horizon of 1-5 years.
Our belief in the attractiveness of non-financial blue-chip equities is multifaceted. Firstly, we want to emphasize how cheaply many of America's premier companies are currently priced relative to their historical averages. As we outlined in the July issue of The Sizemore Investment Letter, Johnson &amp; Johnson, Procter &amp; Gamble, and Microsoft (among many others) are trading at P/E ratios not seen in multiple decades. According to financial theory, large and stable companies should trade at a premium to the broader market. By buying at higher prices, investors are generally willing to accept lower returns on blue chips in exchange for the perceived safety. But today, the opposite is true. Many blue chips actually trade at a discount to the S&amp;P 500. The 2009 rally was primarily a rally in lower-quality “junk.” And while we do not necessarily forecast that the broader stock indices like the S&amp;P 500 will see poor returns going forward, we do expect higher-quality stocks to outperform given current pricing. So on a valuation basis, a large overweighting in DLN makes sense.
Secondly, the competing investment alternatives are sparse. Bonds represent a remarkably poor investment given current yields. The 10-year Treasury note yields less than 3 percent—and less than the dividend yield of many of the blue-chip stocks in DLN.
There is a fair amount of overlap in our current allocation. For example, Johnson &amp; Johnson is a major component of both DLN and IYH, and AT&amp;T is a major component of both DLN and IXP. Under more normal pricing, we might view this as a risk. But in this situation, we consider the overlap a source of strength.
In order to free up capital for the new allocation, we are having to part with two long-time portfolio holding, FMO and MFD. While we remain bullish on both, neither had a long-term place in the Tactical Portfolio. When we initially purchases FMO, it was one of the few options available for investing in the MLP sector. But today, options are plentiful. Were we to re-enter the MLP asset class in the Tactical Portfolio, we would do so using a different investment vehicle. The same is true of MFD. While we consider infrastructure and utilities to be attractive—and continue to have exposure to the sector via XLU—we no longer see MFD as a potential long-term holding.
We were delighted to see that GMO's legendary Jeremy Grantham—an investor we respect very much—appears to agree with our assessment of non-financial, blue-chip equities. In his July 2010 letter to investors, Grantham laid out his seven-year forecast for various asset classes. At the top of his list were what Grantham calls “US High Quality Stocks,” defined as those companies with high and stable profitability and low debt.
While Mr. Grantham's comments would certainly not be sufficient to persuade us to invest in the sector, we do find it encouraging that our favorite asset class is shared by an investor of his stature. We would certainly prefer to bet with Mr. Grantham than against him.
</blockquote>
Finally, we regrettably had to close our position in the global luxury goods sector, or rather it was closed for us. In a September 29 internal trade memo we wrote:
<blockquote>This is a trade that we would have unfortunately preferred not to make. We were very satisfied with the investment performance of the Claymore / Robb Report Global Luxury ETF (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/rob#">ROB</a>). It was the only pure play in existence for one of favorite investment themes for the next decade: the rise of the new rich in the developing world. In addition to the long-term growth story, the individual stocks that comprise the ETF remain undervalued in our view. This is an investment we would have liked to have let run for at least another several months, if not longer.
Unfortunately, the fund sponsor had other plans. Given the sheer volume of ETFs on the market, there was simply not enough investor demand for a niche ETF like ROB. The fund was never able to gather enough assets or generate sufficient trading volume to stay viable. So, in late September the fund was liquidated and the cash proceeds were returned to investors. Not wanting to sell into an illiquid market, we opted to hold the shares until the liquidation date.
While we were not ready to let this position go, we do believe we have found a suitable replacement. ROB was a unique way to play a niche sector, and it was one of our favorite ways to get access to emerging market growth without having to take positions in volatile emerging market stocks. Given that no other funds exist that fill that role, we have opted to pursue a different investment theme altogether.
The Powershares International Dividend Achievers ETF (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#">PID</a>) is an ideal position for the Tactical Portfolio. In the current environment of economic uncertainty, we are focusing heavily on quality, as we explained in our investment rationale for the Wisdom Tree Large Cap Dividend Fund (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/dln#">DLN</a>) in July. At current market prices, there is no premium for quality. Some of the world's finest companies are also among the cheapest. This is a condition that should normally never exist, yet it does today. When the market gives us gifts like these, we gladly take them.
The International Dividend Achievers index is as close to a pure play on non-US quality as we have seen. To become eligible for inclusion, a company must be incorporated outside of the United States. The companies must be have an American Depository Receipt or common stock trading on NYSE or NASDAQ. Most importantly, companies must have paid increasing regular annual dividends for five or more consecutive years.
A company that could raise its dividend over the past five years—years that included the worst credit crisis in 100 years and the worst recession since the Great Depression—is a company that is clearly worth owning at the right price. And in PID, we get an entire portfolio of them trading at a trailing P/E ratio of only 12. As an aside, several companies that have been highlighted in The Sizemore Investment Letter are currently in the index, including AmBev (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/abv#">ABV</a>), Turkcell (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/tkc#">TKC</a>) and Telefonica (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/tef#">TEF</a>).
We consider PID to be an excellent position at current prices.
</blockquote>
Looking Ahead
With the third quarter finishing as strongly as it did, we expect a more muted finish to 2010. We do not necessarily expect a crash or significant correction, but at the same time we do not expect the strong momentum to continue throughout the fourth quarter.
Given our ambivalent view towards the potential for capital gains, we believe that our current emphasis on high income will be a major plus over the next 3-9 months. 40% of the Tactical Portfolio is allocated to dividend-centric stocks and high-yield bonds, while another 30% is allocated to sectors that have payouts higher than the market averages. We also have zero exposure to the sectors we feel are most at risk of collapse—gold and commodities—and zero exposure to low-yielding US Treasuries.
Here's looking forward to a strong finish to 2010,
Charles Lewis Sizemore, CFA
This blog is a free service of Sizemore Financial Publishing LLC, publisher of the Sizemore Investment Letter.
If you're not reading the Sizemore Investment Letter, then you are missing out on rock-solid investment recommendations designed to profit from the major macro trends shaping the world today.
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Claymore/Robb Report Global Luxury Index Etf

Sizemore Capital Management 3rd Quarter 2010 Letter to Investors

According to <a href="http://www.etfchannel.com">ETFChannel.com</a>, the International Dividend Achievers Portfolio ETF (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/pid#">PID</a>) is seeing unusually high volume in afternoon trading Wednesday, with over 780,000 shares traded versus three month average volume of about 191,000. Shares of PID were up about 0.5% on the day.
Components of that <a href="http://www.etfchannel.com/etfs/?symbol=pid">ETF</a> with the highest volume on Wednesday were Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petroleum (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/pbr#">PBR</a>), trading up about 2.1% with over 9.2 million shares changing hands so far this session, and Vodafone Group Plc (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/vod#">VOD</a>), up about 2.7% on volume of over 8.4 million shares. Intercontinental Hotels Group (<a class="ticker" href="/stock/ihg#">IHG</a>) is the component faring the best Wednesday, higher by about 4.2% on the day, while Continental Nickel Limited (CNI.CA) is lagging other components of the <a href="http://www.etfchannel.com/etfs/?symbol=pid">International Dividend Achievers Portfolio ETF</a>, trading relatively unchanged.

Dividend ETF on the Move (PID, VOD, IHG, PBR)

2024 Midyear Investment Directions

Chart Of The Week: Dollar Index Moving Lower

Highest And Lowest Country ETF Dividend Yields

Over the past decade, the US, proxied by the S&P 500 ETF (SPY), has returned 228% compared to a 48% total return for the rest of the world as measured by the MSCI All World Ex. US ETF (ACWX).

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