Putnam Emerging Markets ex-China ETF

Putnam Emerging Markets ex-China ETF (PEMX) is an actively managed, concentrated fund of emerging-market stocks outside China and Hong Kong. As of July 31, 2026, it had 47 holdings, led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing at about 21% of assets. Its three-year return led a comparison group of five funds as of October 27, 2026. The trade-off is cost: a 0.70% expense ratio, versus 0.25% for the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ex China ETF (EMXC).

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, PEMX returned +28.4%, 2nd of 7 among similar funds.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2024 (+17.2%); its best was 2025 (+33.9%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 19% (Jun 22, 2026 to Jul 29, 2026), not yet recovered.

As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 47 securities; the ten largest made up 53.81% of assets, and 2.13% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

• Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors added a net $11.3M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +12.13%, +1.85%, -7.61%.

PEMX, issued by Franklin Templeton, does not track an index. Its investment manager, Putnam Management, picks the stocks. Under normal conditions, at least 80% of net assets goes to emerging-market companies, excluding those based or listed in China and those based in Hong Kong. Emerging markets here means countries in the MSCI Emerging Market ex-China Index, plus others the manager judges to be emerging. The 80% policy can change after 60 days' notice to shareholders.

The manager looks for high-quality companies whose earnings growth it believes the market has mispriced. It favors durable competitive advantages, strong balance sheets and above-average profitability. It can own growth or value stocks of any size and says it invests significantly in small and mid-size companies. With no index to follow, holdings change whenever the manager's views on companies change. Portfolio turnover, roughly the share of holdings replaced in a year, was 78%.

The fund is non-diversified, so it can hold bigger stakes in fewer companies. As of July 31, 2026, it had 47 holdings, the top 10 made up about 54% of assets, and it held no derivatives. Unlike many ETFs, when large traders add or remove fund shares, PEMX may pay or receive cash instead of stocks. That can force it to realize taxable gains it might otherwise avoid.

• PEMX charges 0.7% a year, versus an average of 0.44% for the similar funds below (4th of 6, cheapest first).
• Of that, 0.69% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• The fee includes a 0.01% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $72 in the first year and $881 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

A concentrated, actively managed emerging-markets fund with a short record and large price swings fits better as a small add-on than as a core position.

PEMX could add emerging-market stocks outside China, led by Taiwan, South Korea and India. It launched on May 17, 2023, so it did not exist during the 2008, 2020 or 2022 sell-offs. The weaker of its two full calendar years, 2024, still gained 17.55%. Its deepest drop was 19%, from June 22 to July 29, 2026, and it had not recovered that loss as of October 27, 2026. Anyone who may need to draw money in a bad year could end up cashing out after such a fall.

Its trailing yield was 5.63% as of October 27, 2026. That came from a single annual payment, so income may vary widely. The SEC's standard $10,000 example puts costs at $881 over 10 years, and the 0.70% expense ratio is higher than the 0.44% peer average. Past results don't predict future returns, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

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