JIVE: Leading International Value ETF Heavily Weighted In Financials

The JPMorgan International Value ETF targets international value stocks, notably overweighting financials (34.5%) but maintaining low company and country risk.JIVE has significantly outperformed the benchmark IXUS and key competitors while maintaining similar risk metrics.Despite a 0.55% expense ratio and sector concentration in financials, JIVE is well-suited for long-term or tactical international value exposure.Quantitative Risk & Value members get exclusive access to our real-world portfolio. See all our investments here » IvelinRadkov/iStock via Getty ImagesThe JPMorgan International Value ETF (JIVE) is an actively managed ETF launched on September 13, 2023, with an objective of long-term capital appreciation. JIVE has a portfolio of 337 companies, a trailing 12-month yield of 2.67%, a 30-day SEC yield of 3.12%, and an expense ratio of 0.55%. Distributions are paid annually. It is quite a large and liquid ETF, with about $2 billion in assets under management (“AUM”) and an average daily dollar trading volume of $30 million. The fund’s sponsor, JP Morgan (JPM), is a leading global financial services firm with about $3.9 trillion of assets.As described in the prospectus by JP Morgan, the fund may invest in both developed (ex-U.S.) and emerging markets and intends to maintain geographic and sector exposures similar to those of the MSCI ACWI ex USA Value Index. Value companies are primarily identified based on price/sales, price/earnings, and price/net assets ratios. The investing process blends quantitative screens and in-depth fundamental analysis. The fund may also invest in ETFs and use derivatives for investing and hedging purposes. Exposure in certain currencies may be hedged with currency forwards from time to time, even though the fund is generally not currency-hedged.The portfolio’s turnover rate was 46% in the most recent fiscal year. This article will use the iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF (IXUS) as a benchmark. IXUS tracks the MSCI ACWI ex USA IMI Index.The portfolio is mostly invested in large- and mega-cap companies (about 75% of asset value), with notable exposure in Japan (15.3%) and the U.K. (10.7%). The geographical allocation is close to that of IXUS, although JIVE significantly downplays Canada and Taiwan.JIVE top countries, % of asset value (Chart: author; data: iShares)The fund has a focus on financials (34.5% of asset value), in particular banks (22.5%). The second heaviest sector (energy) weighs only 12%. Compared to the benchmark, JIVE overweights financials and energy, while it mostly downplays technology and industrials.JIVE sector breakdown, % of asset value (Chart: author; data: iShares)The portfolio is well-diversified, with low company-specific risk. The top 10 issuers, listed in the next table, represent 15.4% of asset value, and the largest position weighs 2.65%.NameCountryTickerSectorWeightSamsung Electronics CoSouth KoreaA005930Technology2.65%HSBC Holdings plcUnited KingdomHSBAFinancials1.71%Roche Holding AGSwitzerlandROPHealth Care1.66%Shell plcUnited KingdomSHELEnergy1.56%Nestlé SASwitzerlandNESNConsumer Staples1.55%Taiwan SemiconductorTaiwan2330Technology1.41%Royal Bank of CanadaCanadaRYFinancials1.37%Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Japan8306Financials1.20%TotalEnergies SEFranceFPEnergy1.15%BHP Group LimitedAustraliaBHPMaterials1.10%In accordance with the strategy description, JIVE has strong value characteristics. It is much cheaper than IXUS based on valuation ratios and has lower growth rates, as reported in the table below.JIVEIXUSP/E TTM11.9417.05Price/Book1.351.99Price/Sales1.041.66Price/Cash Flow6.2210.66Earnings growth7.95%10.92%Sales growth %1.91%2.73%Cash flow growth %2.66%4.71%Data source: FidelityPortfolio composition and fundamental metrics are given as an example from April 7, 2026. They may have changed by the time you read this.JIVE has greatly outperformed IXUS, by 9.7% annualized from its inception to the present, with similar risk measured by maximum drawdown and volatility.From 9/20/23Total ReturnAnnual. ReturnDrawdownSharpe ratioVolatilityJIVE88.40%28.24%-13.79%1.8911.62%IXUS54.24%18.55%-13.75%1.1811.97%Data: Portfolio123JIVE is 18% ahead of IXUS just over the 12 months prior to April 7, 2026, again with similar risk metrics.12 monthsTotal ReturnAnnual. ReturnDrawdownSharpe ratioVolatilityJIVE44.08%44.11%-11.36%1.5713.45%IXUS62.08%62.14%-10.57%2.5213.40%The next table compares characteristics of JIVE and five international value ETFs without currency hedges:This list is not intended to be exhaustive.JIVEFNDFDFIVIVLUAVIVUIVMInception09/13/202308/14/201304/16/199906/16/201509/28/202110/24/2017Expense Ratio0.55%0.25%0.27%0.31%0.25%0.35%AUM$2.01B$21.83B$18.38B$3.84B$1.20B$309.18MAvg. Daily Volume$30.14M$93.47M$88.43M$71.40M$6.78M$537.88KHoldings336886557344612197Top 1015.40%15.53%16.90%17.10%15.48%10.17%Turnover46.00%12.00%6.00%16.00%11.00%99.00%Yield TTM2.67%3.13%2.65%3.50%2.95%3.32%Total. Return*88.40%66.96%73.11%71.09%67.84%75.15%Annual. Return*28.24%22.30%24.05%23.48%22.55%24.62%Drawdown*-13.79%-13.89%-14.72%-15.48%-14.13%-11.69%Sharpe ratio*1.891.381.571.51.41.51Volatility*11.62%12.80%11.95%12.29%12.34%12.90%* Calculated with Portfolio123 from 9/20/2023.JIVE has the highest expense ratio and is the best performer based on total return and Sharpe ratio (a measure of risk-adjusted return) since its inception.JIVE holds over 300 international value stocks with a focus on large companies. The fund has low company-specific risk, moderate country risk, but high sector risk in financials. JIVE has greatly outperformed the ex-U.S. benchmark IXUS and its closest competitors since its inception, with similar volatility. JIVE is best suited for investors seeking exposure in international value as a long-term holding or for tactical allocation.This article answers these three main questions about JIVE:Editor's note: This article is intended to provide a general overview of the ETF for educational purposes only and, unlike other articles on Seeking Alpha, does not offer an investment opinion about the ETF.Quantitative Risk & Value (QRV) provides you with risk indicators and data-driven, time-tested strategies. Get started with a two-week free trial now. This article was written byAnalyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. 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