Hot ETFs to Tap Consumers’ Digital Shift Amid Coronavirus
by SWETA KILLA on APRIL 24, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the consumer landscape to a purely digital one. With lockdowns, social distancing and stay-at-home mandates across many parts of the world to contain the spread of coronavirus, consumers have come online for almost everything.
E-commerce sales increased at the highest pace since late February, jumping 25% during the week ending Apr 20, according to Signifyd’s E-commerce Pulse data. The jump surpassed the previous record of 17% for the week ending Apr 6. Overall, there is an increase of 85% in ecommerce spending since late February. According to the market research firm Rakuten Intelligence, e-commerce spending in the United States is up more than 30% from the beginning of March through mid-April compared with the same period last year.
Further, people staying indoors are looking for entertainment at home only, raising demand for cloud computing, gaming and e-sports, as well as streaming services. The strong e-commerce trend is expected to continue even after lockdowns and social distancing rules are lifted (read: ETFs Set to Benefit from Social Distancing, Stay-At-Home).
Online Shopping
According to surveys conducted in March and April by Engine Insights, online shopping has increased 74% since Mar 13 in response to the coronavirus. Per Emarsys/GoodData tracker, the number of online orders for web-only online retailers was up 56% year over year in the United States and Canada for the two weeks from Mar 22 through Apr 4. The surge in investors’ interest has made Amplify Online Retail ETF IBUY, ProShares Online Retail ETF ONLN and ProShares Long Online/Short Stores ETF CLIX popular in the retail space. These funds are up 22.5%, 26.3% and 23.9%, respectively, in the past month.
Cloud Computing
As companies across sectors and many individuals are dependent on remote working during quarantine, cloud-computing services have become essential. Microsoft (MSFT) last month said that it saw a whopping 775% increase in use of its cloud services in areas with social distancing or shelter-in-place orders. Zoom Video Communications’ teleconferencing software has become the most downloaded app on android and iOS stores. The number of people using video-conferencing app Zoom ZM ballooned in March to more than 200 million daily users from 10 million at the end of December.
Global X Cloud Computing ETF CLOU, First Trust ISE Cloud Computing Index Fund SKYY and WisdomTree Cloud Computing Fund WCLD could be exciting plays in this area and have gained 15.6%, 13.8% and 14.1%, respectively, over the past month (read: What Will Earnings Bring for Cloud ETFs?).
Video Streaming
Global streaming services are witnessing a huge surge in online viewership with Netflix NFLX leading the way as the pandemic has turned people toward movies and TV series to pass the time. Per a report from Conviva, video streaming around the world grew 20% in March, including a 26% increase in the United States. As of Mar 31, about 64% of viewers watched Netflix, 48% watched Amazon AMZN Prime Video, 37% viewed Hulu, and 29% saw Disney DIS +, according to the latest report from eMarketer. Investors could tap these surging activities through iShares Evolved U.S. Media and Entertainment ETF IEME and ARK Web x.0 ETF ARKW. IEME is up 9.2% while ARKW has gained 17.5% in the past month.
Video Gaming
Video game sales exploded last month to the highest level since March 2008, per the industry-tracking firm NPD Group. Total spending on video game hardware, software and accessories jumped 35% from a year earlier to $1.6 billion. Nintendo’s NTDOY Switch was the best-selling console in March while “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” topped the best-selling games (read: Stay-at-Home Trend Boosts Video Games Sales: ETFs to Gain).
According to Nielsen’s SuperData, digital video game revenues spiked to $10 billion in March, representing the best month ever for digital spending. Nintendo’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons, id Software’s Doom Eternal, Call of Duty: Warzone, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and Half-Life: Alyx have been the biggest hit games in this period.
Further, with traditional sport events canceled due to the coronavirus crisis, professional gaming leagues for Call of Duty, CS:GO, League of Legends, and Overwatch are all moving online. Investors could tap the booming gaming trend through VanEck Vectors Video Gaming and eSports ETF ESPO, Wedbush ETFMG Video Game Tech ETF GAMR and Global X Video Games & Esports ETF HERO. The trio has gained more than 10% each in a month.
Internet: A Combination of All
Investors could capitalize the boom from different corners of the e-commerce world under one roof through SPDR S&P Internet ETF XWEB, O’Shares Global Internet Giants ETF (OGIG), Invesco NASDAQ Internet ETF PNQI and First Trust Dow Jones Internet Index FDN. The funds XWEB OGIG PNQI and FDN are up 16.8%, 12.4%, 12.2% and 11.9%, respectively.
Read on Zacks site.
The outbreak of COVID-19 has negatively affected the worldwide economy, individual countries, individual companies and the market in general. The future impact of COVID-19 is currently unknown, and it may exacerbate other risks that apply to the Fund.
Past performance does not guarantee future results. Short-term performance may often reflect conditions that are likely not sustainable, and thus such performance may not be repeated in the future.
The views expressed may change at any time after the date of this publication. There is no guarantee that any projection, forecast or opinion will be realized.
For the most recent standard performance of the Fund, click OGIG Fund Page.
OGIG Holdings
| Name (As of 01/18/2021) | Ticker | Sector | Fund Weight | Quantity | CUSIP/ISIN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com Inc | AMZN US | Consumer Discretionary | 5.701% | 13,444.00 | 023135106 |
| Tencent Holdings Ltd | 700 HK | Communication Services | 4.515% | 390,017.00 | KYG875721634 |
| Alibaba Group Holding Ltd | BABA US | Consumer Discretionary | 4.381% | 131,721.00 | 01609W102 |
| Alphabet Inc | GOOGL US | Communication Services | 3.918% | 16,602.00 | 02079K305 |
| Microsoft Corp | MSFT US | Information Technology | 3.263% | 112,335.00 | 594918104 |
| Facebook Inc | FB US | Communication Services | 3.241% | 94,375.00 | 30303M102 |
| Meituan | 3690 HK | Consumer Discretionary | 3.004% | 524,666.00 | KYG596691041 |
| Pinduoduo Inc | PDD US | Consumer Discretionary | 2.647% | 120,196.00 | 722304102 |
| Bilibili Inc | BILI US | Communication Services | 2.327% | 138,875.00 | 090040106 |
| Shopify Inc | SHOP CN | Information Technology | 2.312% | 14,222.00 | CA82509L1076 |
| MercadoLibre Inc | MELI US | Consumer Discretionary | 2.005% | 7,927.00 | 58733R102 |
| Zoom Video Communications Inc | ZM US | Information Technology | 1.951% | 37,131.00 | 98980L101 |
| Roku Inc | ROKU US | Communication Services | 1.833% | 32,858.00 | 77543R102 |
| Crowdstrike Holdings Inc | CRWD US | Information Technology | 1.825% | 60,841.00 | 22788C105 |
| Zalando SE | ZAL GR | Consumer Discretionary | 1.751% | 110,262.00 | DE000ZAL1111 |
| Delivery Hero SE | DHER GR | Consumer Discretionary | 1.750% | 80,853.00 | DE000A2E4K43 |
| Chewy Inc | CHWY US | Consumer Discretionary | 1.536% | 103,997.00 | 16679L109 |
| Snap Inc | SNAP US | Communication Services | 1.528% | 222,273.00 | 83304A106 |
| DocuSign Inc | DOCU US | Information Technology | 1.499% | 44,023.00 | 256163106 |
| Zscaler Inc | ZS US | Information Technology | 1.491% | 51,712.00 | 98980G102 |
| JD.com Inc | JD US | Consumer Discretionary | 1.452% | 121,100.00 | 47215P106 |
| Just Eat Takeaway.com NV | TKWY NA | Consumer Discretionary | 1.401% | 96,806.00 | NL0012015705 |
| NetEase Inc | NTES US | Communication Services | 1.400% | 97,539.00 | 64110W102 |
| Etsy Inc | ETSY US | Consumer Discretionary | 1.379% | 49,386.00 | 29786A106 |
| Twilio Inc | TWLO US | Information Technology | 1.370% | 25,803.00 | 90138F102 |
| Pinterest Inc | PINS US | Communication Services | 1.358% | 142,548.00 | 72352L106 |
| Netflix Inc | NFLX US | Communication Services | 1.302% | 19,145.00 | 64110L106 |
| MongoDB Inc | MDB US | Information Technology | 1.287% | 26,068.00 | 60937P106 |
| ServiceNow Inc | NOW US | Information Technology | 1.283% | 18,277.00 | 81762P102 |
| Ubisoft Entertainment SA | UBI FP | Communication Services | 1.225% | 89,692.00 | FR0000054470 |
| Zynga Inc | ZNGA US | Communication Services | 1.212% | 917,244.00 | 98986T108 |
| Smartsheet Inc | SMAR US | Information Technology | 1.209% | 125,950.00 | 83200N103 |
| Okta Inc | OKTA US | Information Technology | 1.194% | 34,533.00 | 679295105 |
| Kingdee International Software | 268 HK | Information Technology | 1.178% | 2,096,215.00 | KYG525681477 |
| Tencent Music Entertainment Gr | TME US | Communication Services | 1.168% | 384,997.00 | 88034P109 |
| Fastly Inc | FSLY US | Information Technology | 1.133% | 94,024.00 | 31188V100 |
| HelloFresh SE | HFG GR | Consumer Discretionary | 1.109% | 104,497.00 | DE000A161408 |
| Farfetch Ltd | FTCH US | Consumer Discretionary | 1.097% | 138,439.00 | 30744W107 |
| Coupa Software Inc | COUP US | Information Technology | 1.082% | 24,089.00 | 22266L106 |
| salesforce.com Inc | CRM US | Information Technology | 1.067% | 36,651.00 | 79466L302 |
| Wayfair Inc | W US | Consumer Discretionary | 1.066% | 26,003.00 | 94419L101 |
| Adobe Inc | ADBE US | Information Technology | 1.048% | 16,743.00 | 00724F101 |
| Trade Desk Inc/The | TTD US | Information Technology | 1.037% | 9,661.00 | 88339J105 |
| Spotify Technology SA | SPOT US | Communication Services | 1.035% | 23,683.00 | L8681T102 |
| RingCentral Inc | RNG US | Information Technology | 1.021% | 20,048.00 | 76680R206 |
| Xero Ltd | XRO AU | Information Technology | 1.004% | 69,971.00 | NZXROE0001S2 |
| Elastic NV | ESTC US | Information Technology | 0.992% | 44,567.00 | N14506104 |
| Zillow Group Inc | Z US | Communication Services | 0.989% | 52,659.00 | 98954M200 |
| TeamViewer AG | TMV GR | Information Technology | 0.972% | 143,249.00 | DE000A2YN900 |
| Atlassian Corp PLC | TEAM US | Information Technology | 0.944% | 31,011.00 | G06242104 |
| Zendesk Inc | ZEN US | Information Technology | 0.930% | 47,481.00 | 98936J101 |
| Wix.com Ltd | WIX US | Information Technology | 0.887% | 26,918.00 | M98068105 |
| Anaplan Inc | PLAN US | Information Technology | 0.852% | 87,925.00 | 03272L108 |
| Splunk Inc | SPLK US | Information Technology | 0.805% | 34,682.00 | 848637104 |
| Avalara Inc | AVLR US | Information Technology | 0.793% | 36,920.00 | 05338G106 |
| HubSpot Inc | HUBS US | Information Technology | 0.783% | 14,905.00 | 443573100 |
| Palo Alto Networks Inc | PANW US | Information Technology | 0.775% | 15,544.00 | 697435105 |
| Workday Inc | WDAY US | Information Technology | 0.710% | 23,340.00 | 98138H101 |
| Match Group Inc | MTCH US | Communication Services | 0.671% | 32,552.00 | 57667L107 |
| Nexon Co Ltd | 3659 JP | Communication Services | 0.667% | 158,157.00 | JP3758190007 |
| Baidu Inc | BIDU US | Communication Services | 0.663% | 20,310.00 | 056752108 |
| Fortinet Inc | FTNT US | Information Technology | 0.637% | 31,842.00 | 34959E109 |
| Z Holdings Corp | 4689 JP | Communication Services | 0.558% | 604,677.00 | JP3933800009 |
| Twitter Inc | TWTR US | Communication Services | 0.514% | 83,279.00 | 90184L102 |
| Activision Blizzard Inc | ATVI US | Communication Services | 0.466% | 37,617.00 | 00507V109 |
| Intuit Inc | INTU US | Information Technology | 0.461% | 9,088.00 | 461202103 |
| Booking Holdings Inc | BKNG US | Consumer Discretionary | 0.432% | 1,493.00 | 09857L108 |
| VMware Inc | VMW US | Information Technology | 0.317% | 17,217.00 | 928563402 |
| eBay Inc | EBAY US | Consumer Discretionary | 0.297% | 39,255.00 | 278642103 |
| Electronic Arts Inc | EA US | Communication Services | 0.260% | 13,691.00 | 285512109 |
| USD CURNCY | USD CURNCY | 0.022% | 161,930.91 | ||
| Ocado Group PLC | OCDO LN | Consumer Discretionary | 0.009% | 188,352.00 | GB00B3MBS747 |