Getting exposure to the Australian shares sector has never been easier thanks to ASX ETFs like the SPDR S&P/ASX 200 Financials ex A-REITs Fund ETF (ASX: OZF). That said, no matter how easy it seems to be, we think it’s still important to do your own ETF review.
How the OZF ETF could be used in portfolios
The SPDR OZF ETF is a more unique ETF that invests in financial companies from within the ASX 200, while excluding A-REITs and other real-estate and development related companies.
The SPDR OZF ETF could be used by investors looking to invest in the Australian financial industry, while avoiding direct exposure to real-estate and property related sectors. These Australian companies are likely to grow their profits over time and have a track record of paying regular tax-effective dividends for their shareholders.
OZF exceeds our minimum market cap (FUM) criteria
The SPDR OZF ETF had $132.21 million of money invested when we last pulled the monthly numbers. Given OZF’s total funds under management (FUM) figure is over $100 million, the ETF has met our minimum criteria for the total amount of money invested, otherwise known as FUM. We draw the line at $100 million for ETFs in the Australian shares sector because we believe that relative to smaller ETFs, achieving this amount of FUM de-risks the ETF.
OZF’s fees & costs explained
SPDR charges investors a yearly management fee of 0.40% for the OZF ETF. This means that if you invested $2,000 in OZF for a full year, you could expect to pay management fees of around $8.00.
For context, the average management fee (MER) of all ETFs covered by Best ETFs Australia on our complete list of ASX ETFs is 0.51% or around $10.20 per $2,000 invested. Keep in mind, small changes in fees can make a big difference after 10 or 20 years.
Bottom line
This is just a quick overview of the OZF ETF. Before ‘testing the depth of the water with both feet’ so to speak, be sure to read the OZF ETF’s Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), available on the SPDR website, or speak to your financial adviser. For another handy resource, take a look at our SPDR OZF report. You can also use our complete list of ASX ETFs to search for a few different ETFs in the sector and conduct a side-by-side comparison using everything you’ve learned here.
