Diversify Your Portfolio And Hedge Your Bets With April’s Top ETFs

April has started off much like the first three months of 2021 have- with optimism and green shoots. For now, bond yields have been stable, and inflation indicators have been tamer than expected. We also saw a blowout jobs report and an increasingly accelerating vaccine rollout. The problem, though, is that while April has historically been good for stocks, we’ve seen a downturn every month thus far by the middle of the month. Time will tell if we see that same trend in April, but it’s certainly nice to see lots of gains with the nicer weather. Having said that, it’s important to hedge your bets right now and prepare for any scenario possible. In the grand scheme of things, stocks have been on quite a run since they bottomed over a year ago. However, there is some near-term and long-term uncertainty. ETFs are a great option to diversify your portfolio and hedge against risks while still keeping some upside potential. Q.ai’s deep learning algorithms are here to help and have identified several Top Dividend ETFs, Top Tech ETFs, Top Growth ETFs, Top Value ETFs, and Top Consumer ETFs based on 90-day, 30-day, and 1-week fund flows. 

Sign up for the free Forbes AI Investor newsletter here to join an exclusive AI investing community and get premium investing ideas before markets open.

Top Dividend ETFs

iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV) 

The iShares Core High Dividend ETF

HDV
is our first Top Dividend ETF. The ETF focuses on tracking an index of relatively high dividend paying U.S. stocks, and offers investors exposure to 75 high quality and established U.S. companies. The iShares Core High Dividend ETF has $6,517,458,662.00 AUM and is on the smaller side. The ETF has seen positive fund flows, with a fund flow of $171,863,120.00 over the last 90-days, $165,732,275.00 over the last 30-days, and $19,036,755.00 over the last week. The ETF also has a decent net expense ratio of 0.08%.

iShares Select Dividend ETF (DVY)

The iShares Select Dividend ETF

DVY
 is our next Top Dividend ETF. The ETF also focuses on tracking an index of relatively high dividend paying U.S. stocks,  and offers exposure to broad-cap U.S. companies with a consistent history of dividends. The ETF holds 100 U.S. stocks with at least a 5-year record of paying dividends. The ETF has $17,974,588,171.00 AUM and is larger than the iShares Core High Dividend ETF, but still on the smaller side. The ETF has seen positive fund flows, with a fund flow of $384,523,425.00 over the last 90-days, $470,654,380.00 over the last 30-days, and $28,558,295.00 over the last week. The ETF also has a pricier net expense ratio of 0.39%.

SPDR S&P Dividend ETF (SDY) 

The last Top Dividend ETF on our list is the SPDR S&P Dividend ETF

SDY
. The SPDR S&P Dividend ETF focuses on the highest dividend yielding S&P stocks that have consistently increased dividends for at least 20 years in a row, while excluding REITS. The SPDR S&P Dividend ETF holds $18,813,279,922.41 AUM, and is small to medium sized. The ETF has seen mixed fund flows, with a fund flow of $-454,469,097.25 over the last 90-days, $233,655,345.65 over the last 30-days, and $23,666,824.65 over the last week. The SPDR S&P Dividend ETF also has a net expense ratio of 0.35% which is on the pricier side. 

Top Tech ETFs

VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF (SMH)

The first Top Tech ETF this month according to our AI systems is the VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF. This ETF aims to follow and track the overall performance of companies involved in semiconductor production and equipment. This ETF is unique compared to other semiconductor focused ETFs, because their holdings are not limited to exclusively US companies. However, with a global shortage in semiconductors, pay very close attention to this ETF. Based on AUM, the ETF is on the smaller side with $5,496,367,220.26 AUM. It has seen mixed fund flows of $1,011,881,542.00 over the last 90-days, $187,423,685.00 over the last 30-days, and $-39,546,732.00 over the last week. Its net expense ratio of 0.35% is also on the pricier side. 

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK)

The next Top Tech ETF is the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund. This ETF seeks to track the performance of the technology and telecom sector of the S&P 500- sectors that have largely lagged in 2021. It has $39,606,293,936.12 AUM, which is relatively middle-of-the-pack. It has seen mixed but primarily negative fund flows, with a fund flow of $-760,892,167.95 over the last 90-days, a fund flow of $379,990,342.40 over the last 30-days, and a fund flow of $-16,085,354.45 over the last week. Its net expense ratio of 0.12% is also considerably cheaper than other tech ETFs.

Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ)

The Invesco QQQ Trust

QQQ
 is our last Top Tech ETF. This ETF is considered to be the staple ETF for tracking the Nasdaq

NDAQ
as closely as possible, with holdings weighted by market cap. The ETF is also rebalanced quarterly. It is by far the largest Tech ETF on our list with $162,883,190,325.00 AUM. It has maintained consistently positive fund flows despite the Nasdaq’s volatility. It’s seen a 90-day fund flow of $6,591,397,770.00, 30-day fund flow of $7,696,120,556.00, and 1-week fund flow of $2,780,699,354.50. Its net expense ratio of 0.2% is also decent.

Top Growth ETFs

iShares Russell Top 200 Growth ETF (IWY)

The iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF is our first Top Growth ETF. This ETF tracks an index made up of the top large-cap growth stocks in the US such as Apple

AAPL
, Microsoft

MSFT
, Amazon

AMZN
, Facebook, and Alphabet. The fund is on the smaller side with $3,642,462,336.00 AUM. It has also seen mixed fund flows, with a 90-day fund flow of $62,356,680.00, a 30-day fund flow of $6,946,120.00, and 1-week fund flow of -$6,688,405.00. Its net expense ratio of 0.2% is decent. 

Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG)

The next Top Growth ETF is the Vanguard Growth ETF

VUG
. This ETF also holds similar stocks as the iShares Russell Top 200 Growth ETF, and aims to give investors exposure to a basket of large-cap growth stocks. The ETF has $71,832,214,097.35 AUM and is medium-sized. It has seen mixed fund flows, with a 90-day fund flow of $33,480,871.36, 30-day fund flow of $551,587,665.91, and 1-week fund flow of $147,390,436.47. With a net expense ratio of 0.04%, this ETF is also extremely cheap and attractive to own.

Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK)

The Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF

MGK
 is our final Top Growth ETF. This ETF also focuses on large-cap growth stocks, and aims to provide a convenient way for investors to get diversified exposure to the largest growth stocks in the U.S. market. The ETF has $10,213,592,387.04 AUM and is on the smaller side. It has seen consistently negative fund flows, with a 90-day fund flow of -$273,443,500.00, 30-day fund flow of -$121,252,500.00, and 1-week fund flow of -$10,390,750.00. With a net expense ratio of 0.07%, this ETF is quite cheap to own.

Top Value ETFs

iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Value ETF (IJJ)

The first Top Value ETF on our list is the iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Value ETF

IJJ
. This ETF tracks an index of mid-cap value stocks, with top holdings consisting of familiar names such as Lear Corp

LEA
, Alleghany Corp

Y
, Owens Corning

OC
, East West Bancorp

EWBC
, and Reliance Steel. The ETF is smaller-sized and has $8,356,135,065.30 AUM. Reflecting the overall rotation into value names, it has also seen consistently positive fund flows. The ETF has a 90-day fund flow of $1,514,350,370.00, 30-day fund flow of $275,036,940.00, and 1-week fund flow of $112,644,780.00. Its net expense ratio of 0.18% is decent as well. 

iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF (IWN)

The next Top Value ETF is the iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF. The Russell 2000 has surged since November, and value stocks on the index could continue the run with more government spending and aggressive stimulus. This ETF tracks a basket of undervalued small-cap stocks that trade on the Russell 2000 and could especially benefit. In terms of AUM, the ETF is on the smaller side with $16,540,542,158.70 AUM. The ETF has also surprisingly seen mixed fund flows, with a fund flow of $1,953,974,720.00 over the last 90-days, a fund flow of $437,379,615.00 over the last 30-days, and a 1-week fund flow of -$78,730,770.00. Its net expense ratio of 0.24% is decent but pricier than comparable ETFs.

Vanguard Value ETF (VTV)

The last Top Value ETF on our list is the Vanguard Value ETF

VTV
. This ETF aims to track an index of the largest cap value stocks in the U.S., such as Johnson & Johnson

JNJ
, Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

BRK.B
, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPM
, Procter & Gamble Co.

PG
, and UnitedHealth Group In

UNH
c. The ETF is mid-sized with $73,979,218,045.68 AUM, and has seen consistently positive fund flows. The ETF has a 90-day fund flow of $4,951,785,602.56, 30-day fund flow of $2,184,125,535.27, and 1-week fund flow of $553,461,016.65. The ETF is very attractive to own with a cheap net expense ratio of 0.04%. 

Top Consumer ETFs 

Vanguard Consumer Discretionary ETF (VCR)

The Vanguard Consumer Discretionary ETF

VCR
is our first Top Consumer ETF. This ETF tracks an index of consumer discretionary stocks such as stocks of companies that manufacture products and provide services that consumers purchase on a discretionary basis. The ETF is smaller-sized and has only $5,167,842,264.11 AUM. It has seen consistently mixed fund flows, with a 90-day fund flow of $550,417,412.65, 30-day fund flow of $121,101,977.49, and 1-week fund flow of -$5,565,230.80. The ETF has a cheap and attractive net expense ratio of only 0.1%.   

SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT)

The SPDR S&P Retail ETF

XRT
 is our next Top Consumer ETF. This ETF aims to give investors exposure to the retail segment of the S&P 500, with stocks such as GameStop

GME
, Magnite Inc., Signet Jewelers Limited

SIG
, Groupon Inc., and Designer Brands Inc

DBI
. The ETF is one of the smallest on this month’s list with only $615,399,355.85 AUM. It has seen mixed fund flows, with a 90-day fund flow of -$262,453,853.85, 30-day fund flow of $104,769,282.95, and 1-week fund flow of -$174,295,690.50. The ETF has a relatively pricey net expense ratio of 0.35%. 

SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB)

Our final Top Consumer ETF for this month is the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF

XHB
. This ETF targets the red-hot homebuilding sector, and gives investors exposure to companies that engage in not only homebuilding, but also building products, home furnishings, home improvement retail, home furnishing retail, and household appliances. The ETF is smaller-sized with only $1,282,865,269.40 AUM. It has seen consistently negative fund flows, with a 90-day fund flow of -$334,081,538.30, 30-day fund flow of -$145,806,868.90, and 1-week fund flow of -$134,361,976.50. The ETF’s net expense ratio of 0.35% is also not the greatest.  

Liked what you read? Sign up for our free Forbes AI Investor Newsletter here to get AI driven investing ideas weekly. For a limited time, subscribers can join an exclusive slack group to get these ideas before markets open.