Investors who want to bet on a continued rebound in U.S. manufacturing should take a look at ETFs that hold stocks across different sectors to capture the theme, according to Bank of America. The bank’s ETF strategist Jared Woodard launched coverage of funds tracking this theme earlier this month. The idea has seen increased interest in recent years amid rising trade tensions and efforts of both Republicans and Democrats to boost domestic manufacturing. “The agenda is well known: 1. near-shoring production via trade policy, 2. protecting new industries, 3. investment in construction & manufacturing, not just intellectual R & D. The successes are less known,” Woodard said in an Aug. 6 note. Traditional sector funds don’t do a great job capturing this theme in one basket, so Bank of America prefers ETFs that have a wider scope. Woodard’s top ETF pick in the space is the First Trust RBA American Industrial Renaissance ETF (AIRR) . The fund, launched in 2014, has about $1.4 billion in assets and has outperformed the S & P 500 over the past decade, according to FactSet. Its top holdings include pipe maker Mueller Industries and road and infrastructure builder Granite Construction , though no one stock makes up more than 4% of the fund. AIRR ALL mountain This ETF has outperformed the S & P 500 over the past decade. “The fund has the most small and mid-cap exposure relative to other funds in our coverage. While AIRR has the highest expense ratio of the group, it has the best 5Y risk adjusted returns,” the Bank of America note said. The fund’s expense ratio is 0.70%. Second on Bank of America’s list is the Global X US Infrastructure ETF (PAVE) . As its name implies, PAVE is more heavily focused on industrial and materials stocks than AIRR. Its top holdings include refrigeration equipment maker Trane Technologies and industrial equipment provider United Rentals , again with no one stock accounting for 4% or more of the fund. “The fund screens for companies that derive their revenue from construction, engineering, raw materials, related productions and equipment, and industrial transportation,” the Bank of America note said. The Global X fund launched in 2017, so it doesn’t have as long a track record as AIRR. However, it is larger, with nearly $8 billion in assets, and has an average annualized return of more than 20% over the past five years, according to FactSet. PAVE also has a lower management fund than AIRR, with a cost of 0.47%.
