Thematic Pulse: $DRAM Dominates Flows While Gold Miners Cool Off

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Weekly Channel Summary

The EQ: Thematic channel encompasses 414 ETFs across 106 issuers, managing a robust $364B in total assets. This past week saw strong positive momentum with $6.05B in net inflows. This weekly burst contributes to a persistent longer-term growth trend, bringing year-to-date (YTD) flows to $38.54B and 1-year flows to an impressive $90.76B.

This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards

Precious Metals led the thematic channel this week with a stellar 8.30% WTD return, pushing its YTD performance to 11.47%. FinTech and Disruptive Tech also posted strong weekly gains of 7.80% and 7.58%, respectively. Conversely, Midstream & MLPs lagged the group, shedding -2.27% over the past five days, though it remains firmly positive on a YTD basis at 18.51%.

Category Performance Snapshot

Category WTD 1 Month 3 Month 6 Month YTD 1 Year
Precious Metals 8.30% -1.07% -1.67% 41.01% 11.47% 120.12%
FinTech 7.80% 21.82% 19.64% -4.75% 13.69% 53.96%
Disruptive Tech 7.58% 21.12% 22.52% 16.19% 18.74% 50.27%
Industrial Revolution 3.65% 10.13% 11.46% 23.10% 20.82% 61.45%
Thematic – Multi-Sector 3.51% 12.35% 12.08% 10.63% 11.99% 40.05%
Natural Resources 1.43% 3.73% 5.81% 29.75% 18.89% 78.39%
Sustainability 1.41% 11.26% 11.81% 18.70% 23.44% 76.42%
Health Innovation 0.96% 0.75% -0.75% 8.60% -0.55% 37.90%
Infrastructure 0.07% 5.34% 10.13% 21.67% 21.85% 43.89%
Evolving Consumer 0.04% 5.88% 0.52% -4.86% -5.31% 14.65%
Alternative Equity -1.05% 6.40% -1.57% -4.03% -7.53% -2.97%
Midstream & MLPs -2.27% 0.37% 8.48% 20.88% 18.51% 23.41%

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance

Looking at specific funds, the Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) was the absolute standout, soaring 27.71% for the week. On the downside, the ProShares Pet Care ETF (PAWZ) and REX Drone ETF (DRNZ) struggled, declining -6.27% and -4.29%, respectively.

Top Performers
Ticker Fund Name WTD Performance
DRAM Roundhill Memory ETF 27.71%
MNRS Grayscale Bitcoin Miners ETF 21.14%
WGMI CoinShares Bitcoin Mining ETF 20.50%
BKCH Global X Blockchain ETF 16.66%
DECO State Street Galaxy Digital Asset Ecosystem ETF 16.55%
Bottom Performers
Ticker Fund Name WTD Performance
PAWZ ProShares Pet Care ETF -6.27%
DRNZ REX Drone ETF -4.29%
USAI Pacer American Energy Infrastructure ETF -3.89%
NBET Neuberger Energy Transition & Infrastructure ETF -3.83%
SHLD Global X Defense Tech ETF -3.80%

Analyzing the Weekly Flows

The Thematic channel experienced robust activity with $6,040M in net inflows this week. Disruptive Tech commanded the lion’s share of new money, hauling in $3,781M to boost its total AUM to $73.5B. Infrastructure also witnessed significant buying interest, gathering $1,334M. Conversely, Precious Metals faced head-winds, suffering the largest category outflows at -$517M.

Category Flows Summary

Category Fund Count AUM 5 Day 30 Day 90 Day YTD 1 Year
Disruptive Tech 65 $73.5B $3,781M $7,474M $9,249M $10,642M $28,457M
Infrastructure 43 $61.9B $1,334M $4,662M $8,962M $10,923M $20,681M
Natural Resources 56 $62.3B $369M $910M $2,900M $10,048M $17,294M
Industrial Revolution 42 $23.6B $361M $1,393M $3,098M $5,686M $10,220M
Sustainability 27 $9.1B $321M $571M $671M $1,042M $1,785M
Evolving Consumer 43 $13.9B $183M -$14M -$1,439M -$1,595M -$1,976M
FinTech 25 $5.5B $146M $468M $265M $124M $623M
Thematic Multi-Sector 45 $30.5B $77M $770M $428M $1,092M $8,253M
Midstream & MLPs 17 $25.9B $40M $234M $902M $1,090M $2,026M
Alternative Equity 9 $2.5B $18M $160M $271M $305M $814M
Health Innovation 23 $2.4B -$74M $17M -$60M $74M $64M
Thematic Precious Metals 15 $52.8B -$517M -$1,429M -$3,776M -$897M $2,509M

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow

At the fund level, the Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) dominated the inflows chart, absorbing a massive $2,682M. On the outflow side, gold-focused strategies faced pressure, with the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) and VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ) experiencing the steepest redemptions of -$296M and -$125M, respectively.

Inflows
Ticker Fund Name 5-Day Flow
DRAM Roundhill Memory ETF $2,682M
GRID First Trust Nasdaq Clean Edge Smart GRID Infrastructure ETF $417M
BAI iShares A.I. Innovation and Tech Active ETF $315M
PAVE Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF $207M
AGIX KraneShares Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF $184M
Outflows
Ticker Fund Name 5-Day Flow
GDX VanEck Gold Miners ETF -$296M
GDXJ VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF -$125M
ARKK ARK Innovation ETF -$112M
ARKG ARK Genomic Revolution ETF -$89M
COPX Global X Copper Miners ETF -$73M

Issuer League Table Update

Global X and iShares continue to battle for supremacy in the thematic space, controlling 18.95% and 16.88% of market share, respectively. However, Roundhill emerged as the dominant force in terms of weekly flows, gathering a massive $2,650M. Meanwhile, VanEck experienced the most significant weekly outflows among top issuers, shedding -$219M.

Top 5 Issuers by AUM

Brand Fund Count AUM AUM Market Share
Global X 37 $68.97B 18.95%
iShares 33 $61.41B 16.88%
VanEck 18 $50.22B 13.80%
First Trust 30 $49.02B 13.47%
ARK 7 $13.56B 3.73%

Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow

Inflows
Brand 5-Day Flow
Roundhill $2,650M
iShares $928M
Global X $760M
Outflows
Brand 5-Day Flow
VanEck -$219M
ARK -$92M
JPMorgan -$30M

For a deeper dive into these trends, access our FREE, in-depth Thematic ETF reports in the right side panel of this page.

Disclosures

This material is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. All investments, including ETFs, involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Investors should consider their investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing.

This analysis was developed by the team at ETF Action. We leverage advanced AI tools to assist in the drafting and refinement of our content, based on our expert prompts, direction, and final review.