Investing Port

This ETF offers exposure to the global energy industry, splitting exposure between U.S. and domestic stocks. While IXC may be too granular for those with a long-term buy-and-hold strategy, it can be a useful tool for tilting overall exposure towards this sector or perhaps for use in a long/short pairs trade as well. Not surprisingly, IXC has a heavy tilt towards mega cap stocks, as this ETF includes a number of the world's biggest oil companies (IOIL offers complementary exposure to small caps). IXC gives significant exposure to the U.S.; those seeking to steer away from domestic oil stocks may prefer ex-U.S. energy ETFs such as AXEN. Like many large cap energy funds, IXC features a fair amount of concentration; a few stocks make up big chunks of the total portfolio, potentially diminishing the balance of exposure offered. This ETF may be useful for some, but because it is somewhere in between broad-based and finely-tuned, it's likely that there may be a more appropriate option out there in the Energy Equities ETFdb Category.