Understanding the VanEck Real Assets ETF (RAAX)

What this ETF is trying to do

The VanEck Real Assets ETF (ticker: RAAX) is an exchange-traded fund listed on the NYSE. While specific holdings are not listed in the current data, this type of ETF generally focuses on "real assets."

What the numbers show

The data shows that RAAX has experienced growth in its share price over different time periods.

• Year-to-Date (YTD): The price return is approximately 16.92%.

• One Year: The share-price change (one-year price return) was approximately 18.34%. When including distributions, the one-year total return was approximately 21.09%.

• Three Years: The share-price change (three-year price return) was approximately 62.58%. The three-year total return was approximately 75.73%.

• Five Years: The five-year total return was approximately 84.82%.

It is important to know the difference between these numbers. The price return only tracks how much the share price moved. The total return includes both the price movement and any cash distributions paid out to investors.

To give you an idea of the price change, the current price is $40.84. An estimated price from roughly one year ago was approximately $34.51.

Income and distribution explanation

RAAX provides cash distributions to investors. The current distribution yield is approximately 2.00%. This means the amount of cash distributed is about 2% of the ETF's price. Over the last 12 months, the trailing distributions totaled approximately $0.82 per share.

The data shows that the distribution frequency is "irregular" or "less frequent," with only one payout recorded in the last 12 months.

NAV erosion explanation

Some investors worry about "NAV erosion," which is when the value of the underlying assets in a fund decreases over time.

The supplied data is sufficient to evaluate price erosion, but it does not include enough historical NAV-per-share data to confirm or rule out NAV erosion. However, regarding the market price, the erosion score is 100, which is labeled as "No price erosion detected." The erosion severity is rated as "good," and there is no severe erosion-risk flag.

Pros

• Strong Total Returns: The fund has shown significant total returns over one, three, and five-year periods.

• Positive Price Trend: The price return data shows the share price has increased over the measured timeframes.

• Income Rating: The fund has an income rating grade of "A."

Cons

• Irregular Payouts: The distributions are described as irregular and less frequent, which may make it harder to predict when cash will arrive.

• Limited Distribution Frequency: There was only one payout count in the last 12 months.

Beginner takeaway

RAAX has shown strong price growth and total returns over the last several years. While it pays a distribution yield of approximately 2.00%, these payments are not made on a regular, frequent schedule. When looking at this ETF, remember to distinguish between the share-price return and the total return, which includes those distributions.