A smart beta exchange traded fund, the SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF (QUS) debuted on 04/15/2015, and offers broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.
On the other hand, some investors who believe that it is possible to beat the market by superior stock selection opt to invest in another class of funds that track non-cap weighted strategies--popularly known as smart beta.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by State Street Investment Management, QUS has amassed assets over $1.57 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the MSCI USA Factor Mix A-Series Index before fees and expenses.
The MSCI USA Factor Mix A-Series Capped Index seeks to measure the equity market performance of large and mid-cap companies across the U.S. equity market.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
With one of the cheaper products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.15%.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.39%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
QUS's heaviest allocation is in the Information Technology sector, which is about 24.8% of the portfolio. Its Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Microsoft Corp (MSFT) accounts for about 3.52% of total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL) and Nvidia Corp (NVDA).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 22.56% of QUS's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 9.53% so far this year and is up roughly 10.82% in the last one year (as of 09/15/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $140.84 and $169.40
QUS has a beta of 0.88 and standard deviation of 13.84% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 548 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) tracks S&P 500 Index and the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) tracks S&P 500 Index. SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $671.13 billion in assets, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has $749.08 billion. SPY has an expense ratio of 0.09% and VOO changes 0.03%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Large Cap Blend
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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SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF (QUS): ETF Research ReportsThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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