Putnam Focused Large Cap Growth ETF

Putnam Focused Large Cap Growth ETF (PGRO) is an actively managed, non-diversified Franklin Templeton fund. Its managers hand-pick about 39 large US growth stocks, led by NVIDIA, Alphabet and Apple. It is more concentrated than index growth funds, with 58% of assets in its top 10 holdings as of August 31, 2026. Its 0.49% expense ratio is well above index peers such as Vanguard Russell 1000 Growth ETF (VONG), which charges 0.07%.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, PGRO returned +3.1%, 3rd of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +10.6%.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-31.5%); its best was 2023 (+45.2%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 34.7% (Nov 19, 2021 to Oct 14, 2022), recovered by Jan 19, 2024.

As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 39 securities; the ten largest made up 58.13% of assets.

By sector

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors added a net $97.6M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: -2.58%, -4.91%, +3.47%.

PGRO does not track an index. Its goal is capital appreciation, meaning growth in share value. It must keep at least 80% of its net assets in companies about the size of those in the Russell 1000 Growth Index. As of October 31, 2025, that meant market values from about $1.1 billion to $4.9 trillion. The index only sets the size range. The fund does not copy its holdings. Growth stocks are shares of companies whose earnings are expected to grow faster than those of similar firms.

The managers decide what to buy and sell. They look at each company's valuation, financial strength, growth potential, competitive position, projected earnings, cash flows and dividends. The fund is "non-diversified," so it can put more money into fewer companies than a diversified fund. As of August 31, 2026, it held 39 companies. NVIDIA made up 13.9% and Alphabet 9.5%, and technology stocks totaled 47.8%. The prospectus does not describe a fixed weighting formula or rebalancing schedule. Its portfolio turnover was 15%, which means fairly little trading.

As of August 31, 2026, the fund held no derivatives and no leverage. It was 99.6% stocks with 0.42% in cash. Because it is an actively managed ETF, its shares may trade at wider spreads and bigger premiums or discounts to net asset value (the value of its holdings) than other ETFs. Other funds run by the same manager may own it, so large purchases or sales by them can move the fund.

• PGRO charges 0.49% a year, versus an average of 0.37% for the similar funds below (5th of 9, cheapest first).
• 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 $50 in the first year and $628 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It is a concentrated, actively managed growth fund with a beta of 1.35 over the past year, meaning it has swung more than the market, and it pays almost no income, so it fits as a smaller add-on beside broader core holdings.

PGRO launched in May 2021, so it has no record in the 2008 financial crisis or the 2020 COVID crash. Its one real test was the 2022 bear market. Its deepest drop was 34.7%, from November 2021 to October 2022. It took about 15 months from that low to get back to its old high, in January 2024. Its worst calendar year was 2022, when it lost 31.45%. Anyone who had to sell shares or draw cash during a slump like that would have locked in steep losses. It offers almost no income: the trailing yield was about 0.02% as of October 27, 2026, paid once a year. It costs 0.49% a year. Under the SEC's standard example, that comes to $628 over 10 years on $10,000. Past results don't predict future ones, and a retirement plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

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