Making its debut on 03/07/2023, smart beta exchange traded fund F/m US Treasury 6 Month Bill ETF (XBIL) provides investors broad exposure to the Government Bond ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
There are some investors, though, who think it's possible to beat the market with great stock selection; this group likely invests in another class of funds known as smart beta, which track non-cap weighted strategies.
These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination of such characteristics.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by Us Benchmark Series, XBIL has amassed assets over $748.87 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Government Bond ETFs. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the BBG US TRSR BELLWETHER 6M TR USD UNHG ID.
The Bloomberg US Treasury Bellwether 6M Total Return USD Unhedged Index tracks the most recent or on-the-run 6 Month US Treasury security and is rebalanced on the last day of each month.
Cost & Other Expenses
Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long-term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins, other things remaining the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.15%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.67%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
Looking at individual holdings, United States Treasury Bill 12/24/2026 (912797TC1) accounts for about 53.32% of total assets, followed by United States Treasury Bill 01/07/2027 (912797VS3) and United States Treasury Bill 12/31/2026 (912797VJ3).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 99.99% of XBIL's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, XBIL has added roughly 2.19%, and was up about 3.72% in the last one year (as of 08/18/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $49.99 and $50.21.
XBIL has a beta of 0.00 and standard deviation of 0.33% for the trailing three-year period. With about 4 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .
Alternatives
F/m US Treasury 6 Month Bill ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Government Bond ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL) tracks Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index and the iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) tracks ICE 0-3 MONTH US TREASURY SECURITIES IND. State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF has $46.78 billion in assets, iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF has $102.73 billion. BIL has an expense ratio of 0.14% and SGOV changes 0.09%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Government Bond ETFs
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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F/m US Treasury 6 Month Bill ETF (XBIL): ETF Research ReportsThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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