Making its debut on 02/22/2008, smart beta exchange traded fund WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (EPI) provides investors broad exposure to the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.
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.
If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
EPI is managed by Wisdomtree, and this fund has amassed over $2.63 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the WisdomTree India Earnings Index.
The WisdomTree India Earnings Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of companies incorporated and traded in India that are profitable and that are eligible to be purchased by foreign investors as of the index measurement date. Weighted Index based on their earnings in their fiscal year prior to the Index measurement date adjusted for foreign investors.
Cost & Other Expenses
Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.84% for this ETF, which makes it one of the most expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.00%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) accounts for about 7.72% of total assets, followed by Hdfc Bank Limited (HDFCB) and Icici Bank Ltd (ICICIBC).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 36.5% of EPI's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -3.76% so far this year and is up about 3.65% in the last one year (as of 01/28/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $40.08 and $47.63
The fund has a beta of 0.42 and standard deviation of 14.43% for the trailing three-year period, which makes EPI a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 561 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
WisdomTree India Earnings ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Franklin FTSE India ETF (FLIN) tracks FTSE INDIA CAPPED INDEX and the iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA) tracks MSCI India Total Return Index. Franklin FTSE India ETF has $2.78 billion in assets, iShares MSCI India ETF has $9.11 billion. FLIN has an expense ratio of 0.19% and INDA changes 0.62%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Asia-Pacific (Emerging) ETFs
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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WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (EPI): ETF Research ReportsThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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