SmartETFs Dividend Builder ETF

SmartETFs Dividend Builder ETF (DIVS) is an actively managed fund from Guinness Atkinson Asset Management. It holds about 35 dividend-paying companies from around the world in roughly equal amounts. The manager picks firms with long records of high returns on capital that it expects to raise dividends faster than inflation. About half the money is outside the US. Its 0.45% expense ratio is well above index rivals such as VIG (0.05%) and DGRO (0.08%).

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, DIVS returned +12.3%, 4th of 4 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +9.9%.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-9.0%); its best was 2023 (+15.9%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 20.7% (Jan 4, 2022 to Oct 11, 2022), recovered by Jun 15, 2023.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 35 securities; the ten largest made up 34.55% of assets.

By sector

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors withdrew a net $2.5M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.58%, +0.64%, +7.62%.

DIVS does not track an index. It is actively managed, so the adviser picks every holding. It must put at least 80% of net assets in dividend-paying companies that the adviser expects to raise their dividends over the next three to five years. One main screen is return on capital, which measures how much income a company earns on the money invested in its business. The adviser looks for firms whose inflation-adjusted cash flow return on investment was at least 10% in each of the last 10 years. This is one of several criteria, and not every holding has to meet it.

The fund usually holds around 35 stocks of about equal weight, but it can hold as few as 25 or 75 or more. It held 35 as of June 30, 2026. The top ten made up 34.55% of assets, led by Cisco (4.28%), Texas Instruments (4.09%) and Taiwan Semiconductor (3.6%). It can buy companies of any size anywhere in the world. US stocks were 52.01% of assets, followed by the United Kingdom (9.68%), France (8.75%) and Switzerland (8.5%). The prospectus sets no fixed split between US and foreign stocks.

Trading is light. Portfolio turnover was 11.69%, which means the fund replaced roughly a tenth of its holdings over the year. It held no derivatives as of June 30, 2026. Many holdings are priced in foreign currencies, so exchange-rate moves against the US dollar can raise or lower the fund's value. In rough markets, the adviser may temporarily move into cash.

• DIVS charges 0.45% a year, versus an average of 0.26% for the similar funds below (3rd of 4, cheapest first).
• The fee includes a 0.53% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $46 in the first year and $1,047 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

DIVS aims for moderate current income that grows faster than inflation, and it pays a dividend every quarter from a global mix of established companies.

DIVS could add a stream of quarterly dividends from mostly large global companies. Its trailing 12-month yield was 2.87% as of October 27, 2026. Its price has moved less than the broad stock market, with a one-year beta of 0.56. (Beta compares a fund's swings with the market's.) That did not prevent real losses. Its price data does not go back to 2008. The prospectus shows an 18.55% drop in the first quarter of 2020 and a 9.39% loss in 2022, its worst calendar year. From January 4 to October 11, 2022, the price fell 20.7%. It took about eight months to recover, until June 15, 2023. Anyone who sold shares for cash during that stretch would have locked in losses. The 0.45% expense ratio comes to $1,047 over 10 years in the SEC's standard $10,000 example. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.