AGFiQ US Market Neutral Anti-Beta Fund (BTAL)
This AGF-sponsored product provides exposure to the spread return between low- and high-beta stocks. It follows the Dow Jones U.S. Thematic Market Neutral Anti-Beta Index, which reconstitutes and rebalances monthly in equal dollar amounts in equally weighted long low-beta positions and equally weighted short high-beta positions within each sector.

BTAL seeks to generate positive returns in any market conditions, and that depends on low-beta stocks outperforming high-beta stocks. And like MOM, it has delivered the goods in 2019.

In the case of BTAL, the fund gained 13.3% in the past month and was up 18% year to date. In addition, it has produced three- and five-year average annual returns of 10.6% and 5.5%, respectively.

Like with MOM, this fund also debuted in September 2011, but it has done much better in attracting money with total assets of $143.7 million. It, too, comes with a hefty sticker price at a net expense ratio of 2.11%.

Invesco S&P 500 Downside Hedged ETF (PHDG)
PHDG debuted in 2012 and has just $21.3 million in assets to show for it, but it has been a solid performer in recent years despite its downside-hedged orientation during a bull market. In addition, its net expense ratio of 0.39% is a reasonable price for an actively managed product based on a hedging strategy.

This fund aims for positive total returns in all markets, and the intent is that these returns aren’t correlated to broad equity or fixed-income markets. Its M.O. is to apply a quantitative, rules-based strategy in search of returns that beat the S&P 500 Dynamic VEQTOR Index, which is built to provide broad equity exposure with an implied volatility hedge by dynamically allocating between equity, volatility and cash.

As of yesterday, PHDG’s allocation was 59.2% in equities and 40.8% in CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) Futures. 

This fund was up 13.6% during the past month and 17% in 2019. Its three-year average annual return is 10.9% and it’s five-year average return is 5.7%.

ProShares Managed Futures Strategy ETF (FUT)
This actively managed fund uses the S&P Strategic Futures Index as a performance benchmark and seeks to profit in rising and falling markets by taking long and short positions in futures across a range of asset classes.

Managed futures are designed to shine when traditional asset classes stumble, a concept known as “crisis alpha.” While the handful of other ETFs in the managed futures category have held up much better than the S&P 500 Index during the current downturn, FUT is the only product in this group with a positive year-to-date return through yesterday’s trading.