Looking for broad exposure to the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market? You should consider the Fidelity MSCI Materials Index ETF (FMAT), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 10/21/2013.
An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.
Investor-friendly, sector ETFs provide many options to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Materials - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 7, placing it in top 44%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Fidelity. It has amassed assets over $203.56 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market. FMAT seeks to match the performance of the MSCI USA IMI Materials Index before fees and expenses.
MSCI USA IMI Materials Index represents the performance of the materials sector in the U.S. equity market.
Costs
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.08%, making it the least expensive product in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.87%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Materials sector--about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Linde Plc (LIN) accounts for about 13.51% of total assets, followed by Air Products + Chemicals Inc (APD) and Sherwin Williams Co/the (SHW).
The top 10 holdings account for about 54.93% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, FMAT has added roughly 9.33%, and is up about 13.05% in the last one year (as of 11/08/2020). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $20.81 and $37.01.
The ETF has a beta of 1.16 and standard deviation of 26.53% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 118 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
Fidelity MSCI Materials Index ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, FMAT is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Materials ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF (GUNR) tracks Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index and the Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB) tracks Materials Select Sector Index. FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF has $3.08 billion in assets, Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF has $4.41 billion. GUNR has an expense ratio of 0.46% and XLB charges 0.13%.
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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Fidelity MSCI Materials Index ETF (FMAT): ETF Research Reports
The SherwinWilliams Company (SHW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (APD) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB): ETF Research Reports
Linde plc (LIN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF (GUNR): ETF Research Reports
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