Launched on 08/08/2017, the First Trust Dow 30 Equal Weight ETF (EDOW) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend 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.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of 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
Because the fund has amassed over $225.54 million, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Blend. EDOW is managed by First Trust Advisors. EDOW, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average Equal Weight Index.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Equal Weight Index is an equally weighted index designed to be a price neutral version of the price-weighted DJIA.
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.
With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.50%.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.57%.
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.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector - about 20.90% of the portfolio. Financials and Industrials round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, The Boeing Company (BA) accounts for about 3.90% of the fund's total assets, followed by Walmart Inc. (WMT) and Microsoft Corporation (MSFT).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 36.34% of EDOW's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 4.01% and is up roughly 13.33% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 06/11/2025), respectively. EDOW has traded between $32.19 and $38.24 during this last 52-week period.
EDOW has a beta of 0.89 and standard deviation of 14.74% for the trailing three-year period. With about 31 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
First Trust Dow 30 Equal Weight ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
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 $612.91 billion in assets, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has $670.26 billion. SPY has an expense ratio of 0.09% and VOO charges 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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First Trust Dow 30 Equal Weight ETF (EDOW): ETF Research Reports The Boeing Company (BA): Free Stock Analysis Report Microsoft Corporation (MSFT): Free Stock Analysis Report Walmart Inc. (WMT): Free Stock Analysis Report SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY): ETF Research Reports Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO): ETF Research ReportsThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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