ETF Specialist

A look at how markets performed, how investors responded, and what opportunities emerged.

Here are a few ways to cope with the risks in emerging markets.

There are three key factors at play.

This Bronze-rated ETF cuts out some of its available opportunity set, but it is one of the cheapest funds in its category.

Recent market volatility has led to extraordinary dislocations in ETF prices.

Broad diversification and low fees make indexing a good bet in this competitive arena.

Suffering through losses is far more taxing than any picture or thousands of words can capture.

A small fee and diversified exposure to large-cap U.S. stocks elevate this Vanguard fund to Gold status.

A closer look at the sources of ETFs' tax efficiency.

This fund has a good chance to beat the broad U.S. small-cap market over the long term.

Thematic funds have captured investors' imagination and their assets, but buyers should beware.

Use caution when chasing yield.

Outstanding diversification and an ultralow fee earn this fund a Gold rating.

Yes, sort of, just not the sort of momentum strategy many may think.

The best TIPS fund is one that is cheap and that effectively tracks a benchmark that is widely representative of the TIPS market. This fund checks all the boxes.

While nominal Treasury bonds price inflation risk into their yield, they do not protect against unexpected inflation.

This factor has a good long-term track record.

Diversification is a powerful tool to control risk.

Morningstar Analyst Ratings have done a decent job guiding investors toward better-performing index funds.

The new ratings framework should improve ratings efficacy by bringing more structure and consistency to the ratings process and elevating the impact of fees.

A smoother ride is possible.

Low-volatility strategies have different intended outcomes compared with value and profitability.

It is always a good time to brush up on what constitutes good hygiene when transacting ETFs.

It is important investors be aware of this risk, but it isn't worth losing sleep over.

Improvements in technology and manager skill have made passively managed municipal index funds more desirable.

While it is conservative relative to peers in the core-plus Morningstar Category, this fund provides great aggregate bond market exposure.

Don’t ignore the middle.

Low interest rates depress expected returns for both stock and bond investors.

Investors may be missing out on half the global real estate market.

We take a look at the most promising, and pitiful, new exchange-traded products that were added to the menu in the past year.

This compelling choice gets an upgrade.

These three options are pretty good.

ETFs' tax-efficient structure and generally lower turnover have helped the funds avoid the relatively large capital gains distributions experienced by open-end funds this year.

This year put an exclamation point at the end of a decade marked by the ascendance of indexing and ETFs.

This study finds evidence that bond managers' risk-adjusted gross-of-fee performance tends to persist.

This fund adheres to the collective wisdom of the market in providing aggregate bond market exposure.

As the bond market’s barometer has become increasingly conservative, new indexed options have emerged.

An up-close look at common characteristics of the market’s smallest names.

Don’t ignore the middle

A closer look at the merits of common arguments against index investing.

This strategy effectively targets firms that should have the capacity to raise their dividends in the future.

Foreign stock index funds are more diversified than ever.

But broad-market index funds are still great investments.

How we separate the wheat from the chaff in this field.

As fears of rising rates abate, investors have been edging further out on the yield curve.

Owning quality companies that regularly return cash to shareholders is a solid strategy for all rate environments.

This ETF takes a novel approach to diversification.

These ETFs seek to provide safer exposure to the high-yield bond market.

Yield is just part of the equation.

This dividend strategy mitigates risk and offers above-market yields.