A Brief Introduction On PowerShare Invesco


The PowerShares Buyback Achievers Fund (NYSEARCA: PKW) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that seeks to produce investment results, before fees and expenses, that correspond generally to the Mergent Buyback Achievers Index. This index is built from an equity portfolio selected by Mergent, Inc.

Main Competitors and Alternatives

PKW lives in a crowded fund space; depending on how you measure it, there may be as many as 50 different competitors in the all-cap domestic equity category. The most obvious competitor is Vanguard's Total Stock Market ETF, the gargantuan $55 billion fund with an average volume north of 2.5 million. Total Stock Market is cheaper and less sophisticated than PKW, so much depends on investor preference.

A more conservative option could be the MSCI USA Minimum Volatility ETF. Income-focused investors should probably consider the U.S. Dividend Equity ETF by Charles Schwab.

Management

The PowerShares fund series is an Invesco offering, and PKW is one of the stars of the PowerShares lineup. This fund company is known for offering three types of funds: regional, industry-specific or niche strategies. PKW undoubtedly falls into the niche category.

Characteristics

PKW was first issued in December 2006 by Invesco PowerShares. As of August 2015, PKW had accumulated $2.68 billion in assets under management. The fund is rebalanced quarterly and reconstituted annually.