My Favorite ETFs Have Nothing To Do With Trump

The first 100 days of Donald Trump’s presidency has been good for the stock market. Whether you agree with his policies or not, there is optimism for the future of the global economy that is being reflected in the recent price action.

Now, of course, that doesn’t mean we are going to see a straight path of gains for the next four years. There are going to be a myriad of stumbling blocks, uncertainty, and possibly even a bear market that will creep up when we least expect it. Those declines will be opportunities for those who are ready to take advantage with cash on the sidelines and a well-tuned watch list of solid funds to buy.

Those who have followed me for years know that I’m not one to change my investment outlook or discipline based on the prevailing political climate. I have always advocated that you keep politics out of your portfolio and instead focus on the factors that you can control. These qualities include: security selection, position sizing, asset allocation, and any risk management tools you choose to employ.

With that goal in mind, here are a short list of my favorite exchange-traded funds that should be on your radar over the next several years.

iShares S&P 500 Value ETF (IVE)

Growth stocks, especially those in the technology and consumer discretionary fields, have had their day in the sun. Investors have been handsomely rewarded for the strength of these companies over the course of this long bull market. However, in my opinion, we are starting to see a turning of the tide towards the value sector of the market.

IVE is one way to play this trend through a diversified and low-cost investment vehicle. This ETF has over 350 large-cap stocks culled from the larger S&P 500 Index with fundamental qualities that suggest they may be undervalued. Top sectors within IVE include: financials (26%), health care (12%), and consumer staples (12%).

A fund like IVE can be used for core U.S. stock exposure to keep your portfolio correlated with the domestic equity markets. It will largely follow the direction of most major indices and charges a modest 0.18% expense ratio to track its underlying index.