After calming down for a few weeks, the technology sector regained its momentum over the past week. In fact, the sector rally pushed the S&P 500 to a new record high for the first time since the pandemic outbreak. It also sent the Nasdaq Composite Index to fresh all-time highs.
The gains were primarily driven by mega-cap companies, especially the FAANG stocks. Apple (AAPL) crossed the $2 trillion market cap for the first time ever. This has made the technology giant the first U.S. company to reach this level after more than doubling in five months. Tesla spiked to $2,000 per share for the first time in its history. Shares of Facebook (FB), Amazon (AMZN), Netflix (NFLX), Alphabet (GOOGL) and Microsoft (MSFT) also rose. Notably, the information technology stocks make up more than 27% of the S&P 500 Index.
Better-than-expected earnings have added to the strength in the tech stocks. The second-quarter earnings from 91% of the sector’s total market cap in the S&P 500 Index are down 3% on 3.5% higher revenues, with 91.7% beating on earnings and 78.3% beating revenue estimates. These are bigger beat percentages than that of the same group in the preceding quarter.
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The solid trend is likely to continue given the global digital shift that has accelerated e-commerce for everything ranging from remote working to entertainment and shopping. The rapid adoption of cloud computing, big data, Internet of Things, wearables, VR headsets, drones, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, machine learning, digital communication and 5G technology will continue to drive the sector higher.
Given this, we have highlighted those ETFs that were at the forefront of the tech rebound over the past week. Investors seeking to benefit from the resurging tech sector could find them encouraging picks:
Reality Shares Nasdaq NexGen Economy ETF (BLCN) – Up 6.2%
This ETF tracks the Reality Shares NASDAQ Blockchain Economy Index, which measures the returns of companies that are committing material resources to developing, researching, supporting, innovating or utilizing blockchain technology for their use or for use by others. It holds 67 stocks in its basket with AUM of $108.3 million and trades in average daily volume of 40,000 shares. The product charges 68 bps in annual fees.
MicroSectors FANG+ ETN (FNGS) – Up 6%
This ETN is linked to the performance of the NYSE FANG+ Index, which is an equal-dollar weighted index, designed to provide exposure to a group of highly traded growth stocks of next-generation technology and tech-enabled companies. It holds 10 stocks in equal weights of 10% each in its basket and charges 58 bps in annual fees. The product has accumulated $53.6 million in its asset base and trades in average daily volume of 14,000 shares.
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ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) – Up 5.7%
This is an actively managed fund focusing on companies that are expected to benefit from the shift in technology infrastructure to cloud, enabling mobile, new and local services. The fund holds 48 stocks in its basket with AUM of $2.1 billion. It trades in an average daily volume of 679,000 shares and charges 76 bps in annual fees from investors.
WisdomTree Cloud Computing Fund (WCLD) – Up 5.5%
This ETF offers exposure to emerging and fast-growing U.S.-listed companies (including ADRs) are primarily focused on cloud software and services, and follows the BVP Nasdaq Emerging Cloud Index. It holds 52 stocks in its basket and charges investors 45 bps in fees per year. The product has amassed $622.4 million in its asset base and trades in average daily volume of 775,000 shares. It has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 (Buy).
SPDR S&P Internet ETF (XWEB) – Up 5%
This product provides exposure to the Internet segment of the broad technology sector. It follows the S&P Internet Select Industry Index, holding 43 stocks in its basket. The ETF charges 35 bps in annual fees and trades in volume of 9,000 shares. With AUM of $35.4 million, the fund carries a Zacks ETF Rank #2.
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