If you're interested in broad exposure to the Utilities - Infrastructure segment of the equity market, look no further than the First Trust NASDAQ Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure ETF (GRID), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on November 16, 2009.
Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are excellent vehicles for long term investors.
Additionally, sector ETFs offer convenient ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Utilities - Infrastructure is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 11, placing it in bottom 31%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $11.55 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Utilities - Infrastructure segment of the equity market. GRID seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ OMX Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure Index before fees and expenses.
The Nasdaq Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure Index tracks the performance of common stocks in the grid and electric energy infrastructure sector.
Costs
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.56%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.76%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.Looking at individual holdings, Eaton Corporation Plc (ETN) accounts for about 8.44% of total assets, followed by National Grid Plc (NG/.LN) and Johnson Controls International Plc (JCI).
The top 10 holdings account for about 56.82% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 29.12% and is up roughly 52.65% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 06/03/2026), respectively. GRID has traded between $131.38 and $199.8 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.26 and standard deviation of 19.24% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 130 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, GRID is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Utilities/Infrastructure ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
iShares Global Infrastructure ETF (IGF) tracks S&P Global Infrastructure Index and the Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF (PAVE) tracks INDXX U.S. Infrastructure Development Index. iShares Global Infrastructure ETF has $10.61 billion in assets, Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF has $13.66 billion. IGF has an expense ratio of 0.39%, and PAVE charges 0.47%.
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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First Trust NASDAQ Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure ETF (GRID): ETF Research Reports
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).