Global X Launches 'Guru' Hedge Fund ETF

Global X, the New York-based exchange-traded fund firm known for its niche strategies, today rolled out an ETF that mimics what top money managers are doing in their portfolios in what amounts to a quick follow-on to an AlphaClone fund rolled out last week that has a similar strategy.

The Global X Top Guru Holdings Index ETF (GURU - News) invests in top U.S.-listed equity positions reported in 13F regulatory filings made by a select group of hedge funds, as identified by the fund’s Germany-based index provider structured solutions.

Global X’s “GURU” comes with an annual expense ratio of 0.75 percent, according to the fund’s latest prospectus . That’s less expensive than the 0.95 percent cost of the competing AlphaClone Alternative Alpha ETF (ALFA - News) rolled out last week.

The two funds open new doors to investors who have long been fascinated with the stock picks of hedge fund managers, though the 13F filings on which funds like GURU are based are submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission 45 days after the end of each quarter. That means whatever “secret sauce” is public may no longer be part of a given manager’s allocation.

Still, GURU and San Francisco-based AlphaClone’s ALFA are serving up something different than pre-existing hedge fund replication strategies on the market before their arrival.

Those funds already on the market include IndexIQ’s Hedge Multi-Strategy Tracker ETF (QAI - News) and the ProShares Hedge Replication ETF (HDG - News), which are beta factor replications rather than true portfolio replications such as GURU and ALFA.

Global X has two other similarly structured ETFs still in registration at the SEC. Those are:

  • Global X Value Guru Holdings Index ETF

  • Global X Activist Investor Holdings Index ETF

Global X noted in GURU’s registration statement that as of April 30, the fund’s underlying index included 68 hedge funds and had 51 constituents.

To be included in GURU, a given hedge fund must have a minimum of $500 million in their Form 13F to be included in the index. The index methodology also screens out hedge funds that have high turnover rates for their equity holdings.

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