Weekly Channel Summary
The EQ: Specialty channel currently represents $15.6 billion in total assets across approximately 80 ETFs managed by 55 unique issuers. Over the past five days, the channel experienced a positive net flow of $58 million. This builds upon a strong long-term trend, with year-to-date (YTD) inflows reaching $1.15 billion and 1-year inflows totaling an impressive $3.3 billion.
This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards
The Equity: Specialty – Hedged category was the top performer this week, posting a return of 2.32%, which brought its YTD performance into positive territory at 0.02%. The Equity: Specialty – Long | Short category followed closely with a 1.76% weekly return, maintaining a stronger overall YTD gain of 3.35%.
Category Performance Snapshot
| Category | WTD | 1 Month | 3 Month | 6 Month | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equity: Specialty – Hedged | 2.32% | -0.16% | -1.68% | 3.02% | 0.02% | 19.13% |
| Equity: Specialty – Long | Short | 1.76% | 0.87% | 1.38% | 6.14% | 3.35% | 19.24% |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance
Highlighting individual fund performance, the MEMA (Man Active Emerging Markets Alternative ETF) was the best performer of the week, surging 8.22%. Conversely, the BTAL (AGF U.S. Market Neutral Anti-Beta Fund) and the NLSI (NEOS Long/Short Equity Income ETF) lagged the group, declining -5.20% and -3.31%, respectively.
| Ticker | Fund Name | WTD Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Top Performers | ||
| MEMA | Man Active Emerging Markets Alternative ETF | 8.22% |
| TOS | Twin Oak Strategic Solutions ETF | 8.14% |
| CTEF | Castellan Targeted Equity ETF | 7.40% |
| HBTA | Horizon Expedition Plus ETF | 5.51% |
| AAVM | Alpha Architect Global Factor Equity ETF | 4.84% |
| Bottom Performers | ||
| BTAL | AGF U.S. Market Neutral Anti-Beta Fund | -5.20% |
| NLSI | NEOS Long/Short Equity Income ETF | -3.31% |
| SHRT | Gotham Short Strategies ETF | -3.11% |
| AINT | FINQ DOLLAR NEUTRAL U.S. Large Cap AI-Managed Equity ETF | -1.92% |
| HELS | Hedgeye 130/30 Equity ETF | -1.87% |
Analyzing the Weekly Flows
The specialty channel garnered $58 million in net new assets over the past week. The Equity: Specialty – Long | Short category led the way with $39 million in weekly inflows, bolstering its $4.8 billion total AUM. The Equity: Specialty – Hedged category also saw positive momentum, taking in $18 million for the week, despite facing a slight outflow trend on a 30-day basis.
Category Flows Summary
| Category | Fund Count | AUM | 5 Day | 30 Day | 90 Day | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equity: Specialty – Long | Short | 27 | $4.8B | $39M | $71M | $613M | $708M | $992M |
| Equity: Specialty – Hedged | 52 | $10.9B | $18M | -$55M | $345M | $443M | $2,303M |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow
At the fund level, the CLSE (Convergence Long/Short Equity ETF) was the top asset gatherer, raking in $22 million. On the other end of the spectrum, the QBER (TrueShares Quarterly Bear Hedge ETF) and the MRSK (Toews Agility Shares Managed Risk ETF) experienced the largest outflows, losing -$15 million and -$10 million, respectively.
| Ticker | Fund Name | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|---|
| Inflows | ||
| CLSE | Convergence Long/Short Equity ETF | $22M |
| IALT | iShares Systematic Alternatives Active ETF | $15M |
| PRAE | PlanRock Alternative Growth ETF | $13M |
| FHEQ | Fidelity Hedged Equity ETF | $13M |
| HELO | JPMorgan Hedged Equity Laddered Overlay ETF | $10M |
| Outflows | ||
| QBER | TrueShares Quarterly Bear Hedge ETF | -$15M |
| MRSK | Toews Agility Shares Managed Risk ETF | -$10M |
| HEQQ | JPMorgan Nasdaq Hedged Equity Laddered Overlay ETF | -$7M |
| BTAL | AGF U.S. Market Neutral Anti-Beta Fund | -$3M |
| THEQ | T. Rowe Price Hedged Equity ETF | -$3M |
Issuer League Table Update
JPMorgan maintains a dominant position in the specialty market, commanding a 26.60% market share, followed by First Trust at 14.25%. Looking at recent issuer activity, John Hancock successfully gathered the most weekly inflows across the channel, while TrueShares saw the largest outflows among top issuers.
Top 5 Issuers by AUM
| Brand | Fund Count | AUM | AUM Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| JPMorgan | 3 | $4.17B | 26.60% |
| First Trust | 1 | $2.23B | 14.25% |
| Fidelity | 2 | $0.80B | 5.09% |
| Alpha Architect | 2 | $0.70B | 4.45% |
| Swan | 1 | $0.63B | 4.00% |
Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow
| Brand | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|
| Inflows | |
| John Hancock | $60M |
| Convergence | $22M |
| iShares | $15M |
| Outflows | |
| TrueShares | -$14M |
| Toews | -$10M |
| AGF | -$3M |
For a deeper dive into these trends, access our FREE, in-depth ETF reports in the right side panel of this page.
Disclosures
This material is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. All investments, including ETFs, involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Investors should consider their investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing.
This analysis was developed by the team at ETF Action. We leverage advanced AI tools to assist in the drafting and refinement of our content, based on our expert prompts, direction, and final review.
