RIA Channel’s newly published Top 50 ETF Power Users list ranks US registered investment advisor (RIA) firms by the size of their assets under management (AUM) invested in exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
While Creative Planning doesn’t have the largest AUM among US RIAs, the firm boasts the largest ETF portfolio at $68.7 billion.
Information compiled on each RIA firm includes the top five investment styles, ETF issuers, and tickers held in client portfolios. It should be no surprise that Blackrock’s iShares and Vanguard’s ETFs are owned by 94% of the top 50 ETF power users, as the two firms are the world’s largest asset managers with nearly $18 trillion in combined AUM.
Top Ten Issuers Owned by RIA Top 50 ETF Power Users
- iShares
- Vanguard
- Schwab
- State Street SPDR
- Dimensional
- Roundhill
- Invesco
- WisdomTree
- American Century
- JPMorgan
The top 50 ETF power users named 35 unique ETF issuers in their top 5 holdings. Most of the issuers on the list were to be expected, as eight of the top ten issuers were in the top 14 when ranked by AUM within the list. Smaller issuers in the power users’ top 10 include Wisdom Tree ($79 billion US-listed AUM) and Roundhill ($716 million AUM), a specialist in thematic funds.
While 35 unique investment styles were listed in power users’ top five styles by AUM, nearly all power users employed ETFs to access US large cap growth stocks. RIAs frequently used ETFs to access the international equity and domestic bond markets.
Percentage Of Power Users Naming Top Five Investment Style
When it comes to commonly held tickers, holdings are more diverse, as over 100 different ETFs were represented in the Top 5 holdings of these 50 firms. The largest funds dominated the top of the ticker list, with 10 of the top 11 widely held funds holding over $100 billion in AUM. The exception was SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF (SPYG) with less than $30 billion in AUM.
Notice that large cap growth equities and large cap value equities were held in the top 10 styles as well as the top 10 tickers. RIAs holding both growth and value funds in client portfolios have the opportunity to hold growth and value at different weights than represented in the S&P 500 index or to rebalance between growth and value after times of differentiated investment performance.
Percentage Of Power Users Naming ETF As One Of Their Top 5 HoldingsHover over chart to view the ticker names
Source: RIA Channel Top 50 ETF Power Users