What You Need to Know about BOCT, POCT, UOCT

These are the only  ETFs in the world to provide investors with S&P 500 performance and defined downside buffers. The initial buffers are 9%, 15% or 30% over  the one-year outcome period. The ETFs reset  annually and can be held indefinitely. They are part of the Innovator Defined Outcome ETF series, with the next quarterly listing planned for January 2019.

Where  BOCT, POCT, UOCT Fit in Your Portfolio

These ETFs are designed for investors seeking more control over their investment outcomes by eliminating defined levels of downside risk  each year. They are typically used in one of three ways: to de-risk equity exposure, as a bond replacement or as an alternative investment. The ETFs serve as liquid, low-cost and fee- based alternatives to fixed indexed annuities or structured notes.

What You Need to Know About COMB

COMB is the lowest-cost broad-commodity ETF available on the market. COMB is technically an active ETF that  seeks to outperform the broad commodity benchmark (Bloomberg Commodity Index). This is achieved through active management of the fund’s  cash collateral. Investing in futures  contracts on up to 24 commodity futures, COMB has broad exposure across  commodity markets. Perhaps the most important aspect of this ETF is the fact  that investors do not have to deal with the headache of a K-1 at tax time.

Where  COMB Fits in Your Portfolio

COMB represents a diversified basket of the most economically significant global commodities and is a great way for  investors to fill up their commodity bucket in an asset allocation. With exposure to over  24 different areas of the commodity market, there isn’t one sector that  dominates. With COMB being active, ETF exposure can change,  as it looks to track the broad-based  commodity benchmark. COMB is a great strategy for the investor who  doesn’t want to deal with the headache of a K-1 and has been sitting on the commodity sidelines, waiting to jump into the game.

What You Need to Know About DINT

DINT is an actively managed ETF that provides a focused, high-conviction and benchmark-agnostic portfolio of international equities. Its investments are individually selected through a bottom-up approach that  seeks to identify durable, well-managed companies  with sustainable competitive advantages that  are “best of breed” and expected to compound in value over  time.  DINT brings a successful long-term track record of the firm investing in international stocks, and offers investors the opportunity for outperformance.

Where  DINT Fits in Your Portfolio

DINT would sit squarely in the international equity portion of investors’ portfolios as a complement and diversifier to domestic and indexed international investments. DINT is managed by veteran portfolio manager Danton Goei, with a strategic long-term time horizon to help investors access international markets by investing in developed as well as emerging markets.

What  You Need to Know About DTEC

DTEC is a unique ETF both in focus and construction. It focuses on 10 major thematic areas of technological  innovation that are disrupting various industries, screening for 10 pure-play companies in each theme. The companies and themes are equally weighted. Equal weighting at both the stock and theme level allows for  diversification across the disruptive technological segments of the market, while having the potential to lower volatility as the themes evolve.

Where  DTEC Fits in Your Portfolio

DTEC is an ETF designed for the forward-looking investor. With an eye toward investing in disruptive companies, this ETF focuses on 10 themes, ranging from clean energy to innovation in health care. DTEC seeks to be a complement to a global portfolio by holding pure-play companies that are typically not widely held in broad-based indices.

What  You Need to Know About FLQL

FLQL seeks to smooth the peaks and valleys of the return patterns in the U.S. large-cap equity market over  the long term. With a starting universe of the Russell 1000 Index, FLQL tracks the LibertyQ U.S. Large Cap Equity Index,  a rules-based multifactor  index, and invests in companies that  have favorable exposure to four investment-style factors: 50% Quality, 30% Value, 10% Low Volatility, 10% Momentum. By emphasizing Quality and Value, FLQL invests in high-quality companies without stretching the valuations.

Where  FLQL Fits in Your Portfolio

FLQL can serve as a core building block for a portfolio’s U.S. large-cap equity exposure. The fund  is designed to protect a portfolio during down markets and may provide stronger risk-adjusted returns over the long term, helping to keep clients invested in times of volatility.

What  You Need to Know About JPGB

The global bond market is robust, risky and full of opportunity, yet most  investors tend  to shy away from building a global bond portfolio. Investors looking beyond our borders have found their  answer. With the ability to bounce between markets, explore both EM and developed debt, JPGB can tilt between currencies while  aiming to have 50% of the portfolio denominated in USD. A true active ETF, JPGB is not  constrained by an index, allowing the portfolio manager the ability to stay flexible across markets to discover hidden pockets of opportunity.

Where  JPGB Fits in Your Portfolio

Diversifying across the fixed income market can enhance portfolio returns and reduce volatility. This extended sector fund taps into our best ideas across global bond markets to seek total return and higher income.

What You Need to Know About KLDW

This unique ETF takes a different approach to investing in innovation, seeking to capture the “knowledge factor,” the tendency of highly innovative companies to generate excess returns in the stock market. To better understand how companies are innovating, it adjusts historical financials to take into account a firm’s  R&D, branding and other innovation activities. This knowledge factor is measured through a knowledge intensity test. Once a company passes, it’s equally weighted in the index and ETF. KLDW offers investors a new approach to investing in the companies that  are innovation leaders in their  groups.

Where  KLDW Fits in Your Portfolio

KLDW is a new way to gain exposure to the developed markets. With its largest weighting to Japan and the U.S., KLDW  is somewhat top heavy, but  offers plenty of exposure to innovative sectors like health care and technology. KLDW is perfect for investors looking for a fund  that invests with a new approach using  the knowledge factor to try and capture companies likely to outperform.

What You Need to Know About ONLN

ONLN  is specifically designed for investors to benefit from the changing retail landscape, as consumers move toward online shopping and away from physical retail stores. ONLN’s strategy pinpoints retailers that principally sell online or through other non- store channels, such as mobile or app purchases, and separates them from those reliant on bricks-and-mortar stores. The fund focuses on the largest players in the space—iconic companies like Amazon and Alibaba, whose rise is reshaping the retail world. ONLN  is reasonably priced and tracks the Pro- Shares Online  Retail Index.

Where  ONLN Fits in Your Portfolio

ONLN  is the perfect ETF to add to a core-and-explore approach to investing. This fund allows  you to gain access to what could become the new consumer staples of online retailers. ONLN invests in companies like Etsy, Shutterfly as well as online behemoths like Amazon and Netflix.

What  You Need to Know about PRID

PRID is a principles-based market-cap-weighted ETF that includes both large and midcap companies. The constituents are selected using  the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI). The CEI rates a company’s policies and practices toward LGBT employees, including nondiscrimination policies, equitable benefits and other factors. But  like many  modern ESG products, PRID also has profitability and liquidity screens. Companies rated at least 85 out of 100 are selected for the index and weighted by market cap.

Where  PRID Fits in Your Portfolio

Focused on U.S. equities, PRID is another way to get core exposure to predominately large-cap U.S equities through an ESG filter. For investors looking to put  their money to work in a good cause, PRID is a perfect way to invest in companies that  are doing right by their  employees and the growing LGBT community.

What You Need to Know about PUTW

There are a few things investors need to know about PUTW before investing. First, you need to understand what an option is as well as what the put-write strategy is. PUTW generates income by  selling at-the-money put options that are fully  cash collateralized. This income stream acts as a shock  absorber, partially absorbing losses during equity drawdowns. While the ETF may only  be a few years old, the underlying index that the ETF tracks has a 10-year history. This pure-play ETF looks  to distribute gains annually and has a unique tax structure investors should be aware of before buying.

Where  PUTW Fits in Your Portfolio

PUTW is a good option for an investor looking for  returns in a sideways or volatile market, and may offer a less volatile ride than the S&P 500. This options strategy will give investors some protection against a market downturn, in addition to partial upside participation in upward-trending markets. This ETF is a great complement to your existing equities strategy.

What You Need to Know About RVRS

A new take on the traditional S&P 500 Index, RVRS inversely weights the securities of the S&P 500, giving investors  greater exposure to the smallest members of the index. This slightly contrarian play rebalances every quarter, selling  the best performers and buying the underperforming stocks.

Where  RVRS Fits in Your Portfolio

RVRS is an interesting fund, as it could be deployed in several  different ways. The most  common way investors will use RVRS is in a contrarian play  on the S&P 500. One could make the argument that  this fund is closer to a midcap approach than a large- cap one. In addition, RVRS could be used to manage size exposure or place bets with the S&P 500 universe.

What You Need to Know About ULBR

The  first thing any investor needs to take note of is that ULBR is not an ETF but  an exchanged-traded note, meaning investors would have credit risk associated with CitiBank. It’s important that  buyers know the difference, as structure matters. ULBR is a more complex investment approach involving Libor, shorting of eurodollar futures and the use of leverage. ULBR is not for the “set it and forget it” investor, as the effects of contango could derail long-term performance. After looking under the hood,  any investor chasing returns may have found their answer, as ULBR has been portfolio rocket fuel in 2018.

Where  ULBR Fits in Your Portfolio

As previously mentioned, ULBR is not for beginners, but can and has served investors well this year as an alpha  booster. For those looking to deploy ULBR, it will be on the edges of their portfolio rather than a core holding. This hidden gem must be handled with caution, as it has moving parts and leverage, but with strong 1-month and 3-month returns, investors can be tactical with ULBR and see strong returns.