“What the iShares build ETFs are designed to do is to deliver a tool kit of simple solutions for investors to be able to capture the growth of some of the largest companies within the U.S. equity market today, but to do so in a broader and more diversified manner,” BlackRock’s Rachel Aguirre told CNBC’s “ETF Edge” on Monday.
Aguirre, the firm’s head of U.S. iShares product, noted the ETF’s mission is to deliver an easy and accessible way to tap into the innovation of megacaps – “whether that be in the tech-heavy Nasdaq space or, more broadly, within the S&P [500].”
The ETF, according to Aguirre, provides a way for investors worried about the concentration of the Magnificent Seven stocks in the S&P 500.
On Thursday, the Magnificent Seven slid more than 3.5% as a group — losing around $615 billion in market cap. That’s equivalent to the size of JPMorgan Chase.
However, the Magnificent Seven is still up about 43% so far year while the S&P 500 is up around 20%
“It’s important for clients and investors to remember that there are split views on this topic. There are many investors who believe that the big will get bigger [and] that the winners will continue to win,” Aguirre said. “There’s also another side to this argument. There are many investors who believe that it’s actually a very worrisome time to continue investing in… mega-cap companies because of just their high valuations.”
The iShares Top 20 U.S. Stocks ETF is down 2% since its Oct. 23 launch.
Check out the companies making headlines in premarket trading. Novo Nordisk — The stock jumped about 5%, rebounding from the nearly 18% losses seen in the previous session. On Friday, the Danish pharmaceutical giant’s experimental weight loss drug, CagriSema, reported late-stage trial results that missed expectations . Honda – U.S.-listed shares surged 15% after the company officially began merger talks with fellow Japanese automaker Nissan. The automakers plan to conclude discussions in June 2025. Xerox — The document services provider added nearly 7% after announcing its acquisition of printer maker Lexmark. The deal is worth $1.5 billion. Occidental Petroleum , Sirius XM , VeriSign — The stocks continued to rise in Monday’s premarket after Warren Buffett disclosed last week that his Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate added to its stake in each name. Occidental and Sirius XM each climbed more than 2%, while VeriSign advanced 1.8%. Tesla — The electric vehicle maker bounced 3% before the bell, regaining some ground after last week’s decline. Tesla slid 3.5% last week, which marked its worst weekly performance since before the U.S. presidential election. Despegar.com — Shares soared 32% after Prosus entered into a definitive agreement to buy the Argentina-based online travel platform for $19.50 per share. Prosus will pay $1.7 billion as part of the deal, which is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025. Traws Pharma — Shares of the clinical-stage virology company skyrocketed more than 76% after it announced progress in the development of its treatment for H5N1 bird flu. The company said tivoxavir marboxil showed safety and tolerability in the phase 1 trial, and it will begin a phase 2 study early next year. The news comes as the threat of bird flu is expected to rise. Immunocore — The biotech stock rose more than 5% on word that the first patient has been dosed with its experimental immunotherapy treatment, IMC-0115C. — CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Christina Cheddar Berk contributed reporting
Investors may want to consider adding exposure to the world’s second-largest emerging market.
According to EMQQ Global founder Kevin Carter, India’s technology sector is extremely attractive right now.
“It’s the tip of the spear of growth [in e-commerce] … not just in emerging markets, but on the planet,” Carter told CNBC’s “ETF Edge” this week.
His firm is behind the INQQ The India Internet ETF, which was launched in 2022. The India Internet ETF is up almost 21% so far this year, as of Friday’s close.
‘DoorDash of India’
One of Carter’s top plays is Zomato, which he calls “the DoorDash of India.” Zomato stock is up 128% this year.
“One of the reasons Zomato has done so well this year is because the quick commerce business blanket has exceeded expectations,” Carter said. “It now looks like it’s going to be the biggest business at Zomato.”
Carter noted his bullishness comes from a population that is just starting to go online.
“They’re getting their first-ever computer today basically,” he said, “You’re giving billions of people super computers in their pocket internet access.”