Ishares clean energy Etf - thoughts

ChilliBob

Very close to pulling the trigger on this for an ss ISA, just wondering what others thought of it?
I understand it's risky compared to other available ETFS but I feel I has the potential to keep doing well as it has been recently. I'm aware since inception it's not done amazing, but I'd be investing from now, not inception!

Just not sure if I'm getting caught up in a thematic Etf trap! - basically looking out for some ETFS likely to give better returns than a global index, being fully aware this increases the risk!

The cloud computing Etf was another potential choice too! 

Moe_The_Bartender

You may have missed the boat on that one. I can’t see how it can continue to generate the returns of the past year.

I hold the Wisdomtree Cloud computing etf and am happy to continue holding. You might want to have a look at something like BlackRock Next Generation Technology. Not an ETF but a good selection of holdings.

Alexland

How much do you know about the underlying companies? Do you really need to take the risks associated with thematic investments? They tend to launch in bull markets, get bought by unsophisticated retail investors, can do quite well riding a speculative wave (often before you buy them) but are eventually likely to underperform a more diversified fund before getting closed in bear markets.

https://www.ft.com/content/7e16172e-ce51-4c41-a139-3a796790bbbe

ChilliBob

Not very much! On the other hand I've spent a while looking into the Cloud Computing one and I actually know most/75% of the holdings (and not just the top 10) through my former line of work.
I don't need to take the risks, essentially I'd thought of my ISA accounts as being for more risky investments, so if they did pay off big time I'm protected from tax on the gains, where as I'd thought my GIA would be mostly passive global index funds, possibly some wp funds, etc. For perspective the isa percentage is less than 10%.

ChilliBob

I do appreciate knowing the holdings, and having used them even is quite different to knowing if I'd invest in them! 

ChilliBob

Oh and the irony is I read that ft article a while ago and shook my head at people doing such whim investing into proper niche stuff! 

Stargunner

As you say since inception it did nothing until March last year and then since then it has taken off and gone up almost 200%. I bought it in May last year when the share price was 490 and it has performed brilliantly. It is very volatile though and capable of daily drops or gains around 5%. I have recently sold some of mine due to its % of my portfolio growing too high for my liking. 
See previous posts about it https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6199307/35-gain-from-an-etf-in-a-month  

ChilliBob

Moe_The_Bartender said:

You may have missed the boat on that one. I can’t see how it can continue to generate the returns of the past year.

I hold the Wisdomtree Cloud computing etf and am happy to continue holding. You might want to have a look at something like BlackRock Next Generation Technology. Not an ETF but a good selection of holdings.

Just given those a very quick look, the Wysdon tree one is closer to my knowledge area but less so than the First Trust one

ChilliBob

Stargunner said:

As you say since inception it did nothing until March last year and then since then it has taken off and gone up almost 200%. I bought it in May last year when the share price was 490 and it has performed brilliantly. It is very volatile though and capable of daily drops or gains around 5%. I have recently sold some of mine due to its % of my portfolio growing too high for my liking. 
See previous posts about it https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6199307/35-gain-from-an-etf-in-a-month  

Cheers, just skimmed through that. Looks like well timed for you! Nice one

Bobziz

Long term hold for me. Likely to be volatile I guess, and currently undergoing a correction, so may be a good time to get in. 15% down on recent high and doesn't look done yet either.

ChilliBob

Thanks, that's an interesting perspective. I do feel I should look into the top 10 holdings and actually understand what they do, otherwise I'm a bit of a fraud!