Invesco PowerShares unveils first active equity ETFs

Invesco PowerShares has launched the first three actively managed equity exchnage traded funds (ETFs), as well as an actively managed fixed-income ETF, on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Arca.

The Active Low Duration Fund invests in a portfolio of US government, corporate and agency debt securities, selected by Invesco World-Wide Fixed Income. The fund aims to outperform its benchmark, the Lehman Brothers 1-3 Year US Treasury index, by using an actively managed, top-down portfolio construction and bottom-up security selection total return strategy. The Active Mega Cap Fund invests in the equity securities of mega-capitalisation companies in the Russell Top 200 index, according to a quantitative approach developed by Invesco Quantitative Strategies.

The approach uses quantitative models based on fundamental and technical evaluations and an optimisation process that aims to manage risk. The Active AlphaQ Fund invests in a portfolio of around 50 securities listed on the Nasdaq Global Market, selected subsequent to a proprietary stock screening methodology, developed by AER Advisors. AER aims to achieve returns in excess of the Nasdaq 100 index by focusing on the stocks identified by the screening methodology. Similarly, the Active Alpha Multi-Cap Fund invests in a portfolio of approximately 50 securities selected by AER’s screening process from the S&P 500 index.

The PowerShares Active Low Duration Fund and Active Mega Cap Fund are managed by Invesco, while the Active AlphaQ Fund and Active Multi-Cap Fund are sub-advised by AER Advisors. AER Advisors is a private financial services firm that focuses on product development of actively managed ETFs.