The SPDR S&P/ASX Australian Bond Fund ETF (ASX: BOND) and iShares MSCI Japan ETF (ASX: IJP) are Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) operating in the Fixed interest – Australia and International shares sectors, respectively.
How would an investor add BOND to a portfolio?
The name’s… the SPDR BOND ETF. BOND invests in Australian bonds which are investment grade and denominated in Australian dollars with maturities more than one year.
According to our most recent data, the BOND ETF had $49.25 million of money invested. Given its funds under management (also known as FUM or ‘market cap’) is less than $100 million, you should consider if this ETF is still too small and if it is sustainable for the ETF issuer. At Best ETFs we say an ETF with more than $100 million invested is typically more sustainable than one with less than $100 million (at least). However, there are exceptions to this general rule, especially if the ETF issuer/provider is reputable and committed to growing the ETF’s FUM through effective marketing strategies and distribution to financial advisers.
Fees to consider
According to our numbers, the annual management fee on the BOND ETF is 0.24%. The issuer, SPDR, collects this fee automatically.
Meaning, if you invested $2,000 in the BOND ETF for a full year you could expect to pay management fees of around $4.80. This fee is different from the fee you pay to your brokerage provider (e.g. CommSec, NabTrade, SelfWealth, etc.), which is the fee to buy or sell the ETF. In addition to a management fee charged by the issuer, be mindful to check the ‘spread‘ for the ETF.
A fee comparison
Fees aren’t the only key consideration for ETF investors, but it’s an easy thing to do. To understand if the ETF you’re looking at is too costly, compare it with other ETFs from the same sector, and against the industry average. For example, the average management fee (MER) across all of the ETFs covered by the Best ETFs Australia team was 0.5%, which is $10.00 per $2,000 invested. Keep in mind that small changes in the fees paid can make a big difference after 10 or 20 years. You should read the BOND Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), available on the ETF issuer’s website, because it will detail the fees, tax implications and the latest information.
The BOND ETF could be one to add to your watchlist. If you want to access our full ETF review, click here to get our full report – it’s totally free.
Getting to know the IJP ETF
The iShares IJP ETF provides investors with exposure to around 85% of the Japanese stock market. This is a low-cost way to access a specific market through a single fund.
With our numbers for Oct 2020, IJP’s FUM stood at $280.25 million. Since the IJP’s FUM is over $100 million, our investing team would say the ETF has met our minimum criteria for the total amount invested, otherwise known as FUM. A very sustainable ETF in the Index sector should be able to scale well and become profitable for the ETF issuer.
Are the fees for the IJP ETF bad?
iShares, the ETF issuer, charges a yearly management fee of 0.47% for the IJP ETF. Meaning, if you invested $2,000 for a full 12-month period you could expect to pay a base management fee of around $9.40.
This management fee is below the average for all ETFs on our Best ETFs Australia list of ETFs. However, you might still be able to find a cheaper ETF for less.
Picking over ETFs seems too easy to be true: ‘just pick one and put it in your bottom-drawer’. However, it’s important to get it right the first time so that you won’t end up having to chop-and-change positions (and potentially pay extra tax). To make your life a little easier, if you’re looking at the IJP ETF, make sure you click here to access our analyst’s investment report. It’s free.
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