Is 2021 going to be the year to invest in ASX ETFs like the Magellan Infrastructure Fund (Currency Hedged) (Managed Fund) ETF (ASX: MICH) and Vanguard Diversified Conservative Index ETF (ASX: VDCO)?
How an Aussie (or Kiwi!) investor can use the MICH ETF
The Magellan MICH Fund is an actively-managed portfolio that invests in a select array of international infrastructure companies. The fund typically selects between 20-40 global equities from the infrastructure sector and hedges its exposure against the Australian dollar to manage currency risks.
According to our most recent data, the MICH ETF had $724.35 million of money invested. With MICH’s total funds under management (FUM) figure over $100 million, the ETF meets our team’s minimum investment criteria for FUM levels. As a general rule, our team draws the line at $100 million for ETFs in the International shares sector because we believe that, relative to smaller ETFs, achieving this amount of FUM lowers the chance that the ETF issuer will close the ETF.
Fees to consider
According to our numbers, the annual management fee on the MICH ETF is 1.05%. The issuer, Magellan, collects this fee automatically.
Meaning, if you invested $2,000 in the MICH ETF for a full year you could expect to pay management fees of around $21.00. 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 MICH Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), available on the ETF issuer’s website, because it will detail the fees, tax implications and the latest information.
You can get a copy of our free investment review when click here to see the MICH ETF report.
Key facts about the VDCO ETF
The Vanguard VDCO ETF provides investors with exposure to a portfolio of other Vanguard funds/ETFs. Meaning, it’s an ETF which invests only in other funds/ETFs — in this case, it only invests in funds managed by its own provider, Vanguard. This ETF gives investors exposure to multiple asset classes with a single purchase, and is designed to be a diversified portfolio in itself.
With our numbers for December 2020, VDCO’s FUM stood at $149.29 million. Since the VDCO’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 VDCO ETF bad?
Vanguard, the ETF issuer, charges a yearly management fee of 0.27% for the VDCO ETF. Meaning, if you invested $2,000 for a full 12-month period you could expect to pay a base management fee of around $5.40.
The management fee is above the average for all ETFs on our list of ASX ETFs, but keep in mind the ETF may be able to justify the higher price tag with superior performance over time.
Get the full VDCO review available on our website by clicking this link to access our report.
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