Traditional ETFs (31 Aug 11)

Traditional ETFs

A Traditional ETF is essentially an index fund that trades like a stock.  There are traditional ETFs covering everything from broad stock indexes to individual commodities.  These ETFs are useful tools for inexpensively diversifying your portfolio, and they are available in all major asset classes.  If you generally like to pick individual stocks but you don’t know much about a certain sector or region, you could use an ETF to complement your stock allocation so that you’re more broadly diversified.

iShares Russell 2000 (IWM) $72.80

Profit Target (15%): $83.75  

Trailing-Stop (ATR x 2): $5.74

SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) $49.25

Profit Target (15%): $56.65  

Trailing-Stop (ATR x 2): $3.88

Materials SPDR (XLB) $35.25

Profit Target (15%): $40.55  

Trailing-Stop (ATR x 2): $2.32

Industrial SPDR (XLI) $32.18

Profit Target (15%): $37.00  

Trailing-Stop (ATR x 2): $2.20

Consumer SPDR (XLY) $37.34

Profit Target (15%): $42.95 

Trailing-Stop (ATR x 2): $2.32

Like stocks, ETFs are traded on major U.S. stock exchanges and can be bought and sold anytime during normal trading hours.  Because of their diversification, the price movement in ETFs is more predictable than in individual stocks.

All positions displayed are for educational purposes only and are not intended to be recommendations.