Checking In: A Burgeoning Dividend Play

Acquiring nearly $280 million in assets under management is a feat some ETFs only dream of. Accomplishing that feat in six months is downright impressive That's just one notch in the belt of the iShares High Dividend Equity Fund

. The iShares High Dividend Equity Fund made its debut in March and while the timing could have been from a performance standpoint, the timing of the dividend concept is almost always in vogue. Even regarding performance, this new ETF, which features an expense ratio of 0.4%, has something to crow about. The iShares High Dividend Equity Fund is down “just” 2.2% since its debut compared to a loss of more than 10% for the S&P 500. Home to 76 stocks, the iShares High Dividend Equity Fund isn't vastly different than many of its rival ETFs. Seven of the ETF's top 10 holdings are Dow stocks, including AT&T

, Pfizer

and Procter & Gamble

. Oddly enough, ConocoPhillips

, the third-larges U.S. oil company, is the only oil stock to make an appearance in HDV's lineup. Rather, the iShares High Dividend Equity Fund focuses on standard dividend fare as health care names account for 28% of the ETF's weight and consumer goods chime in at nearly 24%. Telecom (18%) and utilities (17%) are the other sectors receiving double-digit weights. Perhaps better than the sectors that HDV devotes large weights to are the sectors the ETF isn't heavy on. Of course, we're talking financials. That downtrodden group gets a weight of just 1.76 in HDV. Overall, there's a lot for conservative investors to like with HDV and in this market environment, it'snot only wise to play some defense, it's practically mandatory. While arguing with HDV's relative performance and AUM isn't worth it (the numbers speak for themselves), one quibble is that there are no shortage of ETFs like HDV on the market and Vanguard probably has one with a lower expense ratio. Just something to consider.