Skip to main content

UCS ETF update: ProShares Technology Fund

Our last ETFcast covered the concepts of selling short and why many traders and managers do it. I listed one of the largest short and leveraged ETF funds in the industry, ProShares, and I briefly mentioned that I would go a little more in depth on a number of sector funds within that particular family of funds.

I have been feeling/looking positively towards the technology sector lately, but not from a
selling short standpoint. Word on the street, is that many technology companies (especially the majors) have lots of cash on the balance sheets for capital spending, example see Microsoft, Apple, first qtr earning results; Well, if that's so, wouldn't it be just a matter of selecting the right stock or fund/s to invest in?

The
ProShares Ultra Technology Fund. The fund seeks daily investment results, before fees, and expenses, that correspond to twice (200%) the daily performance of the Dow Jones Technology Index. Inception date: 1/30/2007. The fund carries less than 100 million in assets. It's a pretty new fund and barely have much of a track record. It carries a high beta- 2.0 and since its inception the fund is down almost 59.25%. Wow! I like the top ten holdings of the fund: Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Apple, Intel, Google- Class A, HWP, Oracle, Qualcomm, and EMC Corp. ie, great stuff. I would use tightly placed sell stops to protect profits. I would not sell it short because the fund manages a short sister fund (ProShares UltraShort Technology Fund) with seven (7) times the value of the Ultra leveraged fund.

Well, if you were thinking about purchasing an individual technology stock, this fund offers an opportunity to participate in the technology sector without taking the risk of a one position exposure (losing all of your money) by owning one technology stock if the stock tanks. The last trade as of 5/21/2009 at 4:00 pm was $27.13. This etf fund traded as low as $15.64 in March of 2009, but has steadily climbed out of the doldrums. The fund is pretty volatile, because of the leverage being used. Remember, it returns twice the daily results of the index; so if you invested $1000 in the fund and the index increased 10% today, you would see a return of $ 200 today and vice-versa if the index went down 10% tomorrow you see a negative return on your investment by $200.

This blog is brought to you by:
UCS Investment Co. Have you lost a lot of money in your retirement 403(b), 401k or IRA accounts? Are you unsure on where and how to reposition your assets to prevent further losses? We can help you. Our financial planning methods using Exchange-traded funds and asset allocation modeling can help you fix or build a financial portfolio that will weather any financial storm and secure your dreams. Get investment advice tailored to your needs- from a trusted source.

Our asset management services for businesses includes financial analysis, asset selection, stock selection, plan implementation and ongoing monitoring of investments with you remaining in control of how and when to implement your plan. We bring you diversified investment strategies in any way that you want: Equity Investments, Asset Allocation & Fixed Income, Cash Management, Alternatives, Mutual Funds, Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs), Retirement Plans, and Separately Managed Accounts.
Call for a free no cost financial planning consultation now 770-572-2715.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Morning Update

By Rick Walter Still working on putting together a strong biotech portfolio. Here is a good general article on the state of the biotech industry that was posted yesterday on the online Wall Street Journal's site- Biotech Stocks Hot Right Now, Ho-Hum in the Long Run.

Semiconductor Conundrum

By Rick Walter Last weekend I worked on a new semiconductor portfolio because I thought that although the price to earnings ratio of many of the companies in the industry are still too high (P/E's of companies in this industry typically runs very high), there still may be an opportunity to take a position in the industry and make some money. Although knowing what companies to buy in this industry may be the ultimate conundrum. This sector is ferociously competitive and over the years even the best companies, such as AMD , Rambus and Novellus Sys have succumbed to the price pressures of the competitiveness in the market. Of course, most of the pressures in this market have stemmed from the relentless drive of Asian chip manufacturers quest to completely dominate the market through a combination of foreign currency exchange rate manipulation of the Renmimbi (Yuan) and cheap labor. Their domination of the markets has also been helped by a global market with an insatiable demand for...

Goodbye Mike

Before I get going today, lets take a moment to honor an American Idol, a Music Titan , and a Perfect Representation of the Gods of Music ; I would like to send my condolences and respect to the Jackson family for the sudden passing of Michael Jackson . I am profoundly saddened by his death. I was trying to ignore the whole event- news of his death . It seemed like some sort of bad dream at first. However, reality has set in this morning and have left me almost speechless. Goodbye Michael! You will always be missed! 6/26/2009 9:41 AM