ETF Evaluator:
Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF (METL)
Follow This ETF
(as of Aug 14)
Best Performing in Natural Resources Over the Last Year
| 88.7% | Global X Copper Miners ETF (COPX) |
| 83.8% | Themes Copper Miners ETF (COPA) |
| 82.3% | Sprott Copper Miners ETF (COPP) |
| 81.2% | Sprott Junior Copper Miners ETF (COPJ) |
| 76.4% | iShares Copper and Metals Mining ETF (ICOP) |
Risk
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Risk
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ETF Details
Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF Overview
Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF (METL) is an actively managed Sector Equity Natural Resources exchange-traded fund (ETF). Sprott launched the ETF in 2025.
The investment seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation.
The fund, which is actively managed, seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities of (i) companies that are engaged in the mining, exploration, production, development, distribution or recycling of metals and raw materials that frequently are used to support growing global demand for energy and (ii) royalty and streaming companies engaged in financing such metals and raw materials. The fund is non-diversified.
About Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF (METL)
There are 5 members of the management team with an average tenure of 0.89 years: Maria Smirnova (2025), Ryan Mischker (2025), Shree Kargutkar (2025), Charles Perkins (2025) and Justin Tolman (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF has 45 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 39.6% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the Sector Equity ETF group. Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF has 71.8% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 24.9% There is 71.8% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF has 3.4% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $77 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Natural Resources category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
METL Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Natural Resources category. Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF has an expense ratio of 0.99%, which is 87% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a F. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 6%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.2 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 41% for the Natural Resources category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF returned -5.3%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Natural Resources category had an average return of -2.2%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.
Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF has a trailing yield of 0.00%, which is below the 2.30% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income annually and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned -3.2%, 9.7 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F.
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METL Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| METL Return (NAV) | -5.3% | -15.6% | na | na | na | na |
| METL Return (Price) | -5.9% | -16.6% | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | 0.576% | 0.993% | na | na | na | na |
| Natural Resources Avg | -2.2% | -9.2% | 33.5% | 9.8% | 7.4% | 10.4% |
| METL Grade (NAV) | D | D | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | -3.1% | -6.4% | na | na | na | na |
| METL Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | na | na | na | na |
METL Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| METL Return (NAV) | -3.2% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| METL Return (Price) | -4.2% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | 0.303% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Natural Resources Avg | 6.5% | 43.5% | -6.0% | 9.9% | -7.3% | 30.1% | 22.9% | 18.4% | -16.7% | 25.1% | 28.4% |
| METL Grade (NAV) | F | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | -9.7% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | na |
| R-Squared: | na |
| Standard Deviation: | na |
| Category Risk Index: | na |
| Category Risk Rating: | |
| Total Risk Index: | na |
| Total Risk Rating: | |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | -- |
| Total Assets: | $ 77 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 77 Mil |
| Turnover: | 6.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.99% |
| Index Fund: | No |
| Index Tracked: | N/A |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | Annually |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Annually |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 5 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 0.9 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 0.9 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Smirnova Maria (2025), Mischker Ryan (2025), Kargutkar Shree (2025), Perkins Charles (2025), Tolman Justin (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 45 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 39.6% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 71.8% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 24.9% |
| Foreign Stock: | 71.8% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 3.4% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | Sprott |
| Phone Number: | 888-622-1813 |
| Website: | www.sprottetfs.com |
| Inception Date: | September 9, 2025 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.99% (Rating: High) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.53% |
