Wisdom Tree Investments Inc. (WSDT.PK)

All Comments on WSDT.PK

  • commenter
    Panskeptic
    Feb 22 10:37 AM
    Is WisdomTree Moving From ETF Evolution to ETF Pollution? [view article]
    It is interesting to note how many boosters of free-market capitalism have turned faint at the prospect of ETFs closing for lack of interest. Exactly what is wrong with throwing investment concepts out at the public and letting the weak ones die? Isn't this the "magic of the market" at work?

    I think some advisors prefer passive index ETFs so they can take all the credit for alpha. If you have to say part of that tasty wholesome goodness belongs to Powershares, Wisdomtree, Claymore or First Trust, there's less to pat yourself on the back for.     Reply
  • commenter
    David
    Jackson
    Jan 03 05:27 PM
    My Website
    iShares Lowers Fees On Most of Its International ETFs [view article]
    I wonder whether iShares was pressured by WisdomTree. Look at what Luciano SIracusano said here (etf.seekingalpha.com/a...):

    <blockquote>&quo... question of expense ratios and ETFs is really very interesting, as I think it captures how the ETF industry has been evolving. When BGI, State Street and Vanguard launched their domestic ETFs tracking traditional cap-weighted indexes, their expense ratios for domestic ETFs were really quite low – reinforcing one of the great strengths of ETFs. These were liquid, transparent, low-cost ways to own large segments of the market in a single fund that trades on a stock exchange like a stock. Over the past few years, new ETFs have emerged – ones that tracked indexes based on less transparent indexes, what some have called “black box” selection and weighting strategies. These ETFs have generally carried higher expense ratios and track more narrowly focused areas of the market. Some contain special bells and whistles. WisdomTree bucked this trend by creating ETFs that cover broad segments of both domestic and international markets, that are based on transparent, fundamentally-weighted indexes, and that we believe are priced competitively: 28 to 38 basis points domestically, and 48 to 58 basis points internationally."...

    I'm surprised that WSDT is down only 1.3% today given this news...     Reply
  • commenter
    Tom B
    Jan 03 04:58 PM
    iShares Lowers Fees On Most of Its International ETFs [view article]
    I'm liking ETF's; diversification is looking better to me right now than most particular stocks. Reply
  • commenter
    David
    Jackson
    Jan 03 04:07 PM
    My Website
    iShares Lowers Fees On Most of Its International ETFs [view article]
    Very interesting; shows that the explosion in ETFs is leading to downward price pressure. Reply
  • commenter
    Slappy White
    Dec 22 11:38 AM
    WisdomTree: Riding the ETF Wave [view article]
    What was that about trees growing to the sky? Reply
  • commenter
    Yehuda
    Fruchter
    Dec 22 10:04 AM
    My Website
    WisdomTree: Riding the ETF Wave [view article]
    BTW, company just sold equity to institutional investors at $3 per share. Wonder how on earth anyone is buying this at $8. Defies any logic. Reply
  • commenter
    Luciano
    Siracusano
    Dec 15 05:48 PM
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Niki -- I started working on an answer for you but the clock ran out on me.

    To the Seeking Alpha Community:

    I made a few additional posts below, that I actually posted earlier in the day. Thanks to all of your for questions. Sorry I could not get to answer all of them. They were great. I hope to interact with you again in the future.

    Best,
    Luciano     Reply
  • commenter
    Luciano
    Siracusano
    Dec 15 05:02 PM
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Richard, this link takes you to a summary of the selection requirements for WisdomTree’s dividend indexes. I believe you can find the answer to your questions here, as some of these thresholds vary depending on whether it is a domestic index or one covering non-U.S. securities in other developed equity markets.

    www.wisdomtreeindexes....     Reply
  • commenter
    Luciano
    Siracusano
    Dec 15 04:59 PM
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Richard,
    The WisdomTree Indexes were created by WisdomTree Investments after years of extensive research. As Director of Research, I work with a team of professionals to oversee the operation of the indexes. WisdomTree Asset Management, a registered investment adviser, oversees the operations of each ETF, including the portfolio management and the operation of the other service providers to the Funds. BNY Investment Advisors serves as the sub-advisor with respect to the day-to-day portfolio management and operations of each WisdomTree ETF. As sub-adviser, BNYIA is responsible for executing portfolio transactions. The WisdomTree indexes are calculated, maintained and disseminated by an independent index calculation agent. WisdomTree has been fortunate to attract seasoned management from within the ETF industry to help manage its ETF business. More information on WisdomTree’s role as investment adviser and BNY Investment Advisors role as sub-adviser can be found in the WisdomTree ETFs’ Statement of Additional Information or “SAI”. The SAI can be found on wisdomtree.com in the “Library” section.     Reply
  • commenter
    Luciano
    Siracusano
    Dec 15 04:13 PM
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Richard,

    Since we have so many different indexes, measuring different regions and market capitalizations, I really am not able to generalize on how the returns of the WisdomTree indexes compare to specific indexes. So the best thing I can do is point you to information about the performance of our indexes available at wisdomtreeindexes.com. The FTSE/RAFI indexes you mentioned select, rank and weight stocks by a variety of fundamental metrics. Philosophically, we support that approach. However, we believe our approach is more transparent (our complete methodology is fully disclosed at wisdomtreeindexes.com) and easier to understand (since we focus on a single factor: dividends). We believe you are absolutely right in focusing on relatively low fees as one of the reasons for the success of traditional ETFs. This is an important area often overlooked by some investors. Expense ratios for WisdomTree ETFs are disclosed at wisdomtree.com. We invite you to draw your own conclusions as to whether the WisdomTree ETFs offer a meaningful advantage in terms of fees. If you wish to calculate “spreads,” you will need to do the math, depending on which cap-weighted ETF you choose to compare to.     Reply
  • commenter
    Luciano
    Siracusano
    Dec 15 04:03 PM
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Neil, thanks for the question and the support. I can’t comment on WisdomTree’s stock or the operations of our company. However, I am, like you, bullish on the future of the ETF industry. Do you know anyone who is bearish on the future of the ETF industry? Reply
  • commenter
    Luciano
    Siracusano
    Dec 15 03:13 PM
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Thanks for the question. I understand that there are active traders who use ETFs to implement a variety of trading strategies, just as there are many financial professionals who use ETFs to help implement long-term investing plans. That is a credit to the ETF structure that it can serve so many, sometimes contradictory, needs. Many people view ETFs as tools or building blocks that can help add flexibility and diversity to a well-balanced portfolio in order to help achieve short-term and long-term strategies. I think there is merit to this approach. However, as someone who understands how well passive index investing has served investors over long holdings periods, I will refrain from saying anything that encourages active trading. Reply
  • commenter
    Luciano
    Siracusano
    Dec 15 02:50 PM
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Hello, Vincenzo:

    WisdomTree Investments is committed to innovation and we will continue to evaluate the merits of various passive, rules-based, investment strategies that can serve investors. We believe our first family of fundamentally-weighted... dividend ETFs are gaining market acceptance because they track transparent, unique and easily understood indexes that measure broad segments of the developed world. To the extent we can create products that are additive to or complement what we have done already we will, but I can’t comment on any specific applications at this time because of SEC regulations.

    Secondly, assets under management for fundamentally weighted indexes are growing rapidly, but one must realize that we are talking about growth from small absolute levels. There are trillions of dollars linked to capitalization-weighte... indexes and many trillions more in active mutual funds. I think we are many years away before the level of assets under management tied to fundamentally-weighted indexes can make a meaningful impact on the overall prices of stocks in the market. So I think we are a very long way away from any kind of equilibrium that would, in theory, arbitrage away price inefficiencies in stocks that may exist.     Reply
  • commenter
    David
    Jackson
    Dec 15 04:14 AM
    My Website
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Thanks Luciano! This would be an interesting thing for, say Roger Nusbaum or J.D Steinhilber, to look at: the performance of ETFs and ETF portfolios versus the hedge fund indexes. Guys???? :-) Reply
  • commenter
    steinie
    Dec 14 06:41 PM
    My Website
    Interview: Luciano Siracusano, Director of Research for ETF Firm WisdomTree Asset Management [view article]
    Luciano,

    I have two questions:

    Given your firm's focus on dividends, I would think you would be interested in income oriented equity securities such as REITs, energy MLPs, and RIC BDCs such as Allied Capital and the like. Is there a reason why you would not consider launching products in these areas. Do you have any thoughts on why the ETF marketplace has not created any products using energy MLPs, which along with REITs, have been one of the top performing asset classes over the past ten years?

    How does your dividend oriented philosophy account for the fact that corporations have increasingly used stock buybacks rather than dividend payments as a means of returning capital to shareholders. Doesn't the huge volume of share repurchase activity tend to distort the dividend yield measure of valuation?

    Thanks,

    J.D. Steinhilber
    AgileInvesting.com     Reply
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