The ALPS Medical Breakthroughs ETF (SBIO) was launched on 12/31/2014, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market.

An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.

Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Healthcare - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 15, placing it in bottom 6%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by Alps. It has amassed assets over $215.75 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market. SBIO seeks to match the performance of the Poliwogg Medical Breakthroughs Index before fees and expenses.

The Poliwogg Medical Breakthroughs Index captures research & development opportunities in the pharmaceutical industry. It consists of small-cap and mid-cap pharmaceutical and biotechnology stocks listed on US stock exchanges that have one or more drugs in either Phase II or Phase III US FDA clinical trials.

Costs

Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.50%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Healthcare sector--about 100% of the portfolio.

Looking at individual holdings, Fate Therapeutics Inc. (FATE) accounts for about 4.35% of total assets, followed by Vir Biotechnology Inc. (VIR) and Emergent Biosolutions Inc. (EBS).

The top 10 holdings account for about 30.23% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

So far this year, SBIO has lost about -14.42%, and it's up approximately 10.27% in the last one year (as of 05/14/2021). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $38.39 and $63.63.

The ETF has a beta of 1.20 and standard deviation of 35.51% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 102 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

ALPS Medical Breakthroughs ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, SBIO is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) tracks Health Care Select Sector Index. Vanguard Health Care ETF has $14.28 billion in assets, Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF has $27.26 billion. VHT has an expense ratio of 0.10% and XLV charges 0.12%.

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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ALPS-MED BRKTH (SBIO): ETF Research Reports
 
Emergent Biosolutions Inc. (EBS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Fate Therapeutics, Inc. (FATE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
SPDR-HLTH CR (XLV): ETF Research Reports
 
VIPERS-HLTH CR (VHT): ETF Research Reports
 
Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (VIR) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
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