Australian ETF manager BetaShares has launched its 50th ASX-traded fund, the Global Quality Leaders ETF (QLTY).
QLTY provides access to a diversified portfolio of quality global companies selected based on high return on equity, high profitability, low leverage and earnings stability.
The ETF aims to track the iSTOXX MUTB Global ex-Australia Quality Leaders Index, which is comprised of 150 global (ex Australia) companies that rank highest by quality score.
As at October 2018, some of the top holdings of QLTY’s index included names like The Walt Disney Company, Intel, Johnson & Johnson and Unilever, among others.
Alex Vynokur, CEO, BetaShares, says: “Since we launched our first ETF in December 2010, we’ve made it our mission to expand the range of investment solutions available to Australian investors and to utilise the convenience and accessibility of exchange traded funds. With 50 exchange traded products launched to date, we believe we’re certainly on our way to delivering on that promise.”
“QLTY gives investors access to a cost-effective investment that they can use as a core portfolio allocation for international equities. The quality score methodology used by the Fund aims to produce superior long-term performance compared to benchmark global equities indices. In addition, quality companies have historically exhibited reduced declines during market falls”, he concluded.
As at the end of October 2018, the index tracked by QLTY delivered an impressive return of 13.3 per cent pa compounded over the past 10 years, compared with 8.8 per cent pa for the MSCI World Index. In this same period, QLTY’s Index has also benefitted from significantly lower drawdowns, with a maximum drawdown approximately half of that experienced by the MSCI World Index.
