PowerShares Technical Leaders ETFs Cross $1B in AUM

Invesco's IVZ PowerShares unit, the fourth-largest ETF issuer, announced today that its suite of ETFs based on Dorsey Wright & Associates relative index methodology has topped a combined $1 billion in assets under management. The PowerShares DWA Technical Leaders ETF were among the first factor-based funds made available to U.S. investors. The PowerShares DWA Technical Leaders Portfolio PDP is the largest of the four PowerShares ETF based on the Dorsey Wright relative strength methodology. That fund currently has $771 million in assets under management. PDP is home to 101 U.S. stocks, with about two-thirds of the fund's weight allocated to mid-cap growth and value names. Financial services and consumer discretionary names combine for over 40 percent of PDP's weight. PDP outperformed the S&P 500 by 187 basis points in 2012, according to PowerShares. The PowerShares DWA Emerging Markets Technical Leaders Portfolio PIE has $276 million in AUM, making it the second-largest PowerShares DWA ETF. PIE is also home to 101 stocks. Top country weights include Indonesia, South Africa, Thailand and Mexico. PIE allocates nearly half its weight to mid-cap growth and value names while large-cap growth value names represent another 42 percent of the fund's weight. At almost 20.7 percent, industrials are the largest sector weight in PIE. Discretionary and staples names receive allocations of 18.6 and 15.3 percent, respectively. PIE's developed market equivalent, the PowerShares DWA Developed Markets Technical Leaders Portfolio PIZ, has $132.3 million in assets. The U.K. represents a quarter of that fund's country weight with Germany, Singapore and Australia all receiving weights greater than 10 percent. PIZ is also dominated by mid- and large-cap growth and value stocks. The newest PowerShares DWA product is the PowerShares DWA SmallCap Technical Leaders Portfolio DWAS. DWAS, which debuted in July 2012, is now home to $18.1 million in AUM. About 90 percent of that ETF's weight goes to small-caps with the remainder going to mid-caps. DWAS is home to 200 stocks consumer discretionary names leading the sector weights at 23.4 percent. Financials and health care issues receive allocations of 18.4 percent and 15.5 percent, respectively. Since its debut, DWAS has gained 11.1 percent, outperforming the iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund by 110 basis points along the way. For more on ETFs, click here.