WisdomTree Launches Emerging Markets ETF

Exchange traded fund (ETF) sponsor and asset management firm WisdomTree announced the availability of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Consumer Growth Fund (ticker symbol, EMCG) on the NASDAQ.

The ETF will seek to exploit demographic-based growth potential in the world’s emerging economies, where populations younger than those found in developed countries are expected to continue increasing consumer spending through time.

WisdomTree will utilize a broadly diversified approach for managing the fund to reflect the wide-ranging growth of consumption in the developing world. Fund managers also designed a new framework to address valuation sensitivity challenges presented by emerging market ETFs.

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Specific features of the ETF include a diversified basket of earnings weighted securities, generating at least 60% of revenue from the emerging markets and no more than 25% of revenue from the U.S., Europe or Japan.

Fund managers will seek to incorporate both consumer- and nonconsumer-sector stocks with the best combined rank of growth, quality and valuation factors. The fund will undergo annual index rebalancing, with a single stock cap of 5%, a country cap of 25%, a 60% allocation to specific consumer sectors and a 40% allocation to other sectors.

Jeremy Schwartz, director of research for WisdomTree, said the fund will be differentiated by its concentration on diversification and valuation accuracy. 

“We have designed EMCG to provide exposure to broad cross sections of the markets, beyond one or two sectors, in companies we believe are positioned to benefit from the growth of emerging market consumption,” Schwartz said. “We marry this stock selection with a rigorous, rules based framework to incorporate a sensitivity to valuations in our exposures.”

Copies of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Consumer Growth Fund prospectus can be obtained at www.wisdomtree.com, or by calling 866-909-9473. 

NaviPlan Gets a New Set of Features

Zywave expanded its NaviPlan financial planning tool with more cash management and client reporting features, among others.

 

The number of advisers who specialize in retirement planning continues growing, and Zywave said in a statement that the enhancements are intended to differentiate and streamline its service offerings.

NaviPlan, part of the NaviPro financial planning suite of tools, now includes next-generation reporting, cash flow engine enhancements, a new life insurance quick assessment tool, and the NaviPlan Learning Center. The planning process has been streamlined by upgrading current workflows, which increase an adviser’s efficiency and allow for greater client interaction.

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Advisers can use the updated software to create personalized reports for clients’ financial goals. The tool generates side-by-side plan comparisons and includes a life insurance needs calculator, and an upgraded cash flow engine offering greater transparency and enhanced precision.

In tandem with the updates, Zywave created the NaviPlan Learning Center, which provides training videos, Web-based seminars and other learning opportunities.

“The new features are game-changing for advisers,” said Brian Walsh, a partner relations team lead at Zywave. “They now get the best of both worlds: the same detailed analysis to produce rock-solid plans and the redesigned, user-friendly reports to increase the effectiveness of client presentations.”

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