Key missing holdings make one choice better than the other as we head into the new year.For most investors interested in growth opportunities, their mind goes to tech stocks. Given how the tech sector has performed over the last decade or so, it's easy to see why this is the case. Overall, it has outperformed all of the other major sectors of the U.S. economy.Hitting it big on an individual tech stock can get you life-changing money, but it doesn't take that to make good money from the tech sector. Many tec ...

Core Insights - The rise of cryptocurrency ETFs has led to an increase in copycat products, with the SEC approving 11 spot bitcoin ETFs last year, all similar in nature but differing in fees and share prices [1] - The ETF market is experiencing a surge in copycat filings, as firms attempt to replicate successful strategies within a short timeframe, often within 75 days of a product's initial submission to the SEC [2][4] - The number of ETF issuers in the US has doubled over the past three years, reaching 268, indicating a growing interest in the ETF structure among investors [6] Group 1: Copycat ETFs - Copycat ETFs have been a part of the ETF industry since its inception, with early examples including SPY and its mimics [1] - The emergence of copycat ETFs is driven by the desire to offer similar strategies that have proven successful in the market, creating more choices for investors [3][5] - The competitive landscape encourages firms to improve upon existing products, akin to the evolution seen in technology products like smartphones [7] Group 2: Market Dynamics - The SEC's recent deregulatory approach has facilitated the proliferation of copycat ETFs, with the adoption of the ETF Rule in 2019 speeding up the market entry process [4] - Firms are increasingly filing for new ETFs even before the original strategy begins trading, reflecting a proactive approach to capturing market share [6] - The presence of multiple similar products in the market does not necessarily indicate a negative trend, as it can foster innovation and provide investors with more options [5][8]

Group 1 - The Invesco Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQM) and the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ) track the same index and have approximately $450 billion in assets under management, representing about 40% of the market [1] - The Sunday Investor focuses exclusively on U.S. Equity ETFs and has developed a proprietary ETF Rankings system that evaluates nearly 1,000 ETFs based on various factors [1] - The ETF Rankings system provides individual factor scores covering costs, liquidity, risk, size, value, dividends, growth, quality, momentum, and sentiment, resulting in a composite score from 1-10 [1]

Core Viewpoint - Bank of America has adopted a bullish stance on large-cap growth ETFs in its 2025 outlook, upgrading its category view from Neutral to Favorable and initiating coverage on 14 growth ETFs while refreshing ratings on five others [1][5][7]. Market Context - The upgrade occurs amidst a market dominated by tech, mega-cap, and AI stocks, with the concentration of the top stocks in the S&P 500 reaching unprecedented levels, driven by the "magnificent 7" [2][4]. - Despite high valuations, Bank of America believes that improved balance sheet quality and revenue growth could sustain the ongoing market rally [2]. ETF Performance - Large-cap growth ETFs like VUG and SCHG have seen significant inflows as investors pursue AI-driven earnings momentum [5]. - A total of 8 ETFs received the highest "1-FV" rating from Bank of America, indicating strong performance relative to other factors [9]. Risk Considerations - The market is currently facing additional risks, including potential government shutdowns, a weaker labor market, and possible fatigue from three years of continuous gains in the S&P 500 [4][7]. Rating Methodology - Bank of America evaluates ETFs based on various factors such as ROA, ROE, valuation, earnings growth, and expense ratios, with the best ETFs earning a "1-FV" rating and the worst receiving a "3-UF" rating [8][10].

Group 1 - Signal Advisors Wealth increased its position in Invesco Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQM) by 25,696 shares, bringing total holdings to 119,618 shares valued at $27.35 million as of July 10, 2025 [1] - The ETF accounted for 2.12% of Signal Advisors' $1.28 billion 13F portfolio at the end of Q2 2025 [1] - QQQM closed at $228.63 on July 10, 2025, reflecting an 11.61% year-over-year increase, but underperformed the S&P 500 by 1 percentage point [2] Group 2 - Invesco Nasdaq 100 ETF has assets under management of $55.25 billion and a dividend yield of 0.54% [3] - The fund aims to replicate the performance of the Nasdaq-100 Index, providing access to leading nonfinancial companies listed on Nasdaq [4][8] - QQQM has a lower annual expense ratio of 0.15% compared to 0.20% for the QQQ fund, making it more suitable for long-term investors [6][9] Group 3 - The fund's strategy targets diversified exposure to large-cap growth equities, particularly in technology and consumer sectors [8] - Signal Advisors' increase in QQQM holdings by 27% over a three-month period indicates a bullish outlook on the tech sector despite macroeconomic uncertainties [9]

Group 1: Market Index Overview - The S&P 500 is the primary measure of broad stock performance, but there are other indexes and variations that can be confusing for investors [1] - The Dow Jones Industrial Average is flawed as it weights constituents by stock price, leading to a skewed representation of market performance [2] - The S&P 500 uses a market cap-weighting methodology, making it more representative of the U.S. economy compared to the Dow [3] Group 2: Equal Weighting vs. Market Cap Weighting - The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF allows each company to impact performance equally, which has historically outperformed the regular S&P 500 index [4][5] - The Nasdaq-100 index consists of the 100 largest companies in the Nasdaq Composite and is also market cap-weighted, but its construction differs significantly from the S&P 500 [6] - The Direxion NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares has underperformed compared to the market cap-weighted Nasdaq-100 index [7] Group 3: Performance Analysis - Both equal-weighted and market cap-weighted indexes have experienced similar price drawdowns, indicating comparable risk [8] - Investors in the Direxion Nasdaq-100 Equal Weighted Index Shares face less reward with the same level of risk, which is not an advantageous trade-off [9] - Equal weighting benefits the S&P 500 by allowing smaller companies to have equal impact, but this logic does not apply well to the Nasdaq-100, which focuses on the largest companies [10] Group 4: Investment Recommendations - For those looking to invest in the Nasdaq-100, it is advisable to choose a straightforward ETF like the Invesco Nasdaq 100 ETF, rather than attempting to apply equal weighting [11]