KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active Reaches 500 Billion KRW in Net Assets

KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active is attracting individual investment among US monthly dividend ETFs, thanks to its performance of declining less during volatile markets and rising more in upward markets.

On August 6, Samsung Asset Management announced that the net asset value of KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active had reached 508 billion KRW. This represents a growth of approximately 283% from 132.3 billion KRW at the end of last year.

KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active was listed domestically in September 2022 by replicating the US 'DIVO' ETF, which is well known among Korean retail investors. In the US, the DIVO ETF outperformed the SCHD (US Dividend Dow Jones) ETF, posting returns of 0.14% over one month, 7.34% over three months, 9.26% year-to-date, and 15.94% over one year.

While US dividend ETFs have shown lackluster returns year-to-date, KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active recorded returns of 2.05% over one month, 7.98% over three months, 0.13% over six months, 1.90% year-to-date, and 18.31% over one year.

Its relatively superior returns have established it as a new alternative among US dividend products for Korean investors. In addition, KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active has steadily increased its monthly distribution rate from 0.47% at the time of listing to 0.82% recently, raising its annual distribution rate to around 9.6%.

As word spread about its differentiated returns and high monthly distribution rate, KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active saw net individual purchases reach 307.2 billion KRW this year, surpassing all 11 US Dividend Dow Jones-type ETFs listed in Korea.

KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active employs a flexible options strategy to reduce downside risk during periods of high market volatility, and its active stock selection allows it to overcome the limitations of traditional dividend stocks.

Ma Seunghyun, a manager at Samsung Asset Management, said, "It appears that individual investors are making net purchases after directly experiencing the high monthly distribution rate of around 9% per year and the differentiated returns of KODEX US Dividend Covered Call Active compared to existing US dividend products."

He added, "This ETF will be a good investment vehicle for investors seeking not only a flexible active covered call strategy but also stable cash flow and stock price appreciation through stock selection that goes beyond the limitations of traditional dividend stocks."