5 ETFs Soaring To All-Time Highs This Summer

The U.S. stock market is finally soaking in the summer sun as the major hurdle to the stock market rally has been cleared up. This is especially true as Greek lawmakers have passed a bailout agreement easing the fears of a debt crisis and the China stocks are showing an impressive rebound from the recent sell-off.

This has pushed the major U.S. indices to near their all-time highs. In fact, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones are 0.4% and 1.4% short of their record highs while the Nasdaq Composite Index hit another all-time high, logging in the best weekly gains in nearly nine months.

A string of earnings beat and the Fed’s positive testimony triggered off the risk-on sentiments in recent sessions. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen’s recent comment also point to an optimistic outlook on the world’s biggest economy. As the economy is reviving after a first-quarter slump, the Fed will raise interest rates sometime this year, though the rates would remain at lower levels "for quite some time after the first increase."

Further, the initial phase of increase would actually be good for the stocks as it would reflect an improving economy and a lower risk of deflation. Not to forget, merger mania, rising consumer confidence, fat wallets, and rising income are the biggest tailwinds for the stocks, suggesting that 2015 is the year of growth. All these factors led to smooth trading in the ETF world with several products hitting all-time highs in the past couple of trading sessions (read: Great ETF Picks for 2nd Half of 2015).

While there are winners in every corner of the space, we have highlighted five high flying ETFs that are not concentrated on a specific sector but focus on the broad market instead. Any of these could be compelling choices for investors seeking to ride out the summer rally in the weeks ahead.

iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF ((IWF - ETF report))

This ETF provides exposure to the large cap growth segment of the broad U.S. equity market by tracking the Russell 1000 Growth Index. Holding a broad basket of 646 securities, the fund is highly concentrated on the top firm – Apple (AAPL -Analyst Report) – at 6.7% share while other firms hold no more than 1.93% of assets. From a sector look, more than one-fourth of the portfolio is dominated by information technology while consumer discretionary, health care, industrials and consumer staples round off the top five with double-digit allocation each.

The product has $30.2 billion in AUM and sees solid trading volume of over 1.7 million shares. It charges 20 bps in annual fees from investors. The ETF hit a record high of $102.88 per share on Friday, representing a gain of about 16% in the past one-year time frame. It has a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 or ‘Buy’ rating with a Medium risk outlook.

iShares S&P 100 ETF ((OEF - ETF report))

The fund offers exposure to 101 mega-cap U.S. stocks by tracking the S&P 100 index. It is tilted toward the top firm – AAPL – at 6.3% while other firms hold no more than 3.20% of assets. About one-fourth of the portfolio is dominated by information technology while health care and financials round off the next two spots, with over 15% allocation for each (see: all the Large Cap ETFs here).

OEF is by far the most popular and liquid choice in the mega cap space with AUM of $4.3 billion and average daily volume of 724,000 shares per day. It charges 20 bps in fees and expenses. The fund hit its fresh high of $94.50 per share, and has moved higher by about 10.5% in the past one year. The fund has a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 or ‘Hold’ rating with a Medium risk outlook.

Fidelity Nasdaq Composite Index Tracking Stock ((ONEQ - ETF report))

This ETF tracks the Nasdaq Composite Index, holding a broad basket of 1,951 stocks. It is concentrated on Apple with a near double-digit exposure followed by Microsoft (MSFT) at 4.7%. Other firms hold less than 2.9% share. From a sector look, information technology makes up for 44.7% of total assets while health care and consumer discretionary also receive double-digit allocation each.

ONEQ has been underappreciated by investors as depicted by its AUM of $628.5 million and average daily volume of less than 22,000 shares. The expense ratio came in at 0.21%. The product has surged to an all-time high of $204.89, having gained 21.2% over the past one year (read: 3 Tech-Inspired ETFs to Ride the Nasdaq Bull).

AlphaClone Alternative Alpha ETF ((ALFA - ETF report))  

This fund tracks the AlphaClone Hedge Fund Long/Short Index. The benchmark uses a proprietary ranking system, ‘Clone Score’, which ranks hedge funds and institutional investors based on the efficacy of replicating their publicity disclosed positions. It also has a hedge mechanism built in, which is triggered on or off when the S&P 500 index crosses its 200-day moving average at any month end. If the market goes down, the index goes from long-only to market hedged (50% short exposure to S&P 500).

Holding 86 securities in its basket, the fund is heavily concentrated on Apple and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (VRX - Analyst Report) at 7.505 and 6.4%, respectively, while other firms account for no more than 2.53% of assets. Here, health care and technology are the top two spots in terms of sector with 23% share each. The ETF has garnered $190.3 million in its asset base while trades in lower volumes of 35,000 shares per day. Expense ratio came in at 0.95%.

ALFA has returned about 22.6% over the past one-year period and touched its all-time high of $46.87 per share in Thursday’s trading session.

iShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF ((MTUM - ETF report))

This ETF follows the MSCI USA Momentum Index, holding 124 U.S. stocks exhibiting a relatively higher price momentum. It is pretty well spread out across components with Amazon (AMZN - Analyst Report) and Walt Disney (DIS - Analyst Report) taking the largest share in the basket at over 5% each. The ETF has a certain tilt toward consumer discretionary and health care stocks that collectively account for more than three-fifths of the portfolio.

It has accumulated $725.5 million in its asset base while trades in volume of about 42,000 shares a day. It charges 15 bps in fees per year and has touched a new record high of $74.07 in Thursday trading session. The fund is up about 20% over the past-one year period (read: Time for Momentum ETFs?).

Bottom Line

Investors should note that the above-mentioned products have one thing in common. All of them provide substantial exposure to the technology and health care sectors, which are leading the market this year. With increased confidence in the U.S. economy as well as a slow Fed rate hike path, the stock market should continue to surge for the rest of the year giving further boost to these high fliers in the coming months.

Disclosure: None.

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