Investors have an increasing number of ETF options for
generating income and finding decent yields.
The proliferation of
dividend ETFs and scores of new bond funds
has certainly helped matters.
No longer are investors forced to view the 2.07 trailing
12-month yield on the SPDR S&P 500 (NYSE:
SPY
) as "good." Likewise, enduring
a negative 30-day SEC yield
with the iShares Barclays TIPS Bond Fund (NYSE:
TIP
) is not necessary, either.
Along those lines, the hunt for yield can, and arguably
should, extend beyond bond funds or those
ETFs
with "dividend" or "income" in their titles. In fact, investors
can find some decent yields in a number of surprising ETF
destinations, such as the following.
Guggenheim Frontier Markets ETF (NYSE:
FRN
) The Guggenheim Frontier Markets ETF is by no means an unknown
or small ETF. FRN has almost $164 million in assets under
management and the broadening appeal of the frontier markets
investment theme has turned some attention to FRN and comparable
funds.
However, one thing that FRN is known is not being all that
heavy on frontier markets. Chile and Colombia, both classified as
emerging markets by most major index providers, combine for 68
percent of the fund's weight. Egypt and Peru, another pair of
emerging markets, combine for 19 percent. Argentina at 7.92
percent is FRN's largest true frontier market weight.
Those that can passed the name deception with FRN will be
rewarded with a trailing 12-month yield of three percent and a
beta
of just 0.75 against the S&P 500
.
SPDR FTSE/Macquarie Global Infrastructure 100 ETF (NYSE:
GII
) Investing in the international infrastructure spending boom
with select infrastructure ETFs has proven to be a vexing
proposition for some investors.
In some cases, a
country-specific fund
with industrial and materials exposure has proven to be the
better bet.
GII has not been an exception, having lost almost six percent
in the past two years. In defense of this fund, it has recently
shown signs of life, rising 4.1 percent in the past 90 days.
The yield of
almost 3.2 percent
provided some compensation to the patient investor while the
heavy emphasis on utilities allows for a beta of just 0.43 and
annualized volatility of 11.79.
iShares MSCI Pacific ex-Japan Index Fund (NYSE:
EPP
) As measured by the iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund (NYSE:
EWJ
), yields on Japanese stocks lag those found in other developed
markets.
For example, EWJ's trailing 12-month yield of 1.89 percent
puts it behind SPY and the comparable Canada and Germany
ETFs.
Comparing Japanese dividend yields to developed markets in the
Asia-Pacific region leads to an even more glaring chasm.
Bolstered
in large part by strong currencies
, Australian and New Zealand dividend yields are impressive.
Those two countries combine for nearly 65 percent of the iShares
MSCI Pacific ex-Japan Index Fund's weight.
Singapore, another 12.6 percent of EPP's is a fair yield
destination as well, proven by the almost four percent trailing
12-month yield on the iShares MSCI Singapore Index Fund (NYSE:
EWS
). Combine those factors and EPP, which has $4.3 billion in
assets under management, features a trailing 12-month yield of
almost 4.1 percent.
For more on international ETFs, click
here
.
(c) 2013 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment
advice. All rights reserved.
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