Tuned For Performance: Why SNPE is Winning the S&P Race
In motorsports, fine-tuning and micro-tweaking of an engine can help extract the added performance necessary to win a race. In the case of the Xtrackers S&P 500 Scored & Screened ETF (SNPE), it's addition by subtraction.
SNPE: ESG Screening Has Implications For Style Factor Exposures, Performance Potential, A Hold
Xtrackers S&P 500 Scored & Screened ETF is a passively managed vehicle tracking the S&P 500 Scored & Screened Index. Since its inception in 2019, SNPE has outperformed IVV, mainly owing to the indirect consequences of the ESG screening—its larger exposure to IT and the growth factor. However, in the current conditions, these issues expose SNPE to additional risks, potentially translating into a deeper drawdown than IVV's amid the U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict and soaring oil prices.
Reasons to Celebrate an ESG ETF
There's a perception that ESG ETFs are less relevant or able to add value than in the past. The reality is that some ESG ETF are not only gathering assets, but are performing well too.
SNPE: A Growth-Tilted S&P 500 Index Fund Hiding Behind An ESG Theme
SNPE tracks the performance of the S&P 500 ESG Index. Its expense ratio is low at 0.10% and the ETF has $1.66 billion in assets under management. However, its ESG screens are pretty loose, and SNPE overweights Energy giants like Exxon Mobil and Chevron. Ironically, this composition helped it outperform the S&P 500 Index since its inception. I view SNPE as S&P 500 Index fund with a slight growth tilt. Once you stop treating it as an ESG fund, you'll see it's fundamentally strong.
