Investors Are Dumping Value Funds to Shovel Money Into AI Bets

  • Smart-beta ETFs in US saw record $5.8 billion outflows in May
  • Value as a factor is ‘always disappointing,’ says BI analyst
Photographer: Carl Court/Getty Images
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Equity smart-beta exchange-traded funds in the US saw record outflows in the month of May, with outsized drops in value funds targeting cheap stocks.

Even as US-listed equity ETFs gained $12.5 billion in assets last month, so-called smart-beta ETFs — which generally target stocks according to a specific trait like growth or momentum — saw net outflows in May, per monthly data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence since 2016. Much of the dip came from a decline in assets in value funds, which saw outflows nearing $6 billion.