ETF Evaluator:
Defiance Retail Kings ETF ()
Follow This ETF
(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Consumer Cyclical Over the Last Year
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Risk
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Risk
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ETF Details
Defiance Retail Kings ETF Overview
Defiance Retail Kings ETF (RKNG) is an actively managed Sector Equity Consumer Cyclical exchange-traded fund (ETF). Defiance ETFs LLC launched the ETF in 2026.
The investment seeks long-term capital appreciation.
The fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing in equity securities, including American depositary receipts (“ADRs”), of “Retail Kings. Under normal market conditions, the fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of Retail Kings companies. It is non-diversified.
About Defiance Retail Kings ETF (RKNG)
There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 0.52 years: Dustin Lewellyn (2026), Ernesto Tong (2026), Christine Johanson (2026) and Sylvia Jablonski (2026). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
Defiance Retail Kings ETF has 32 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 40.5% 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.
Defiance Retail Kings ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the Sector Equity ETF group. Defiance Retail Kings ETF has 11.8% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 88.0% There is 11.8% 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). Defiance Retail Kings ETF has 0.3% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $5 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Consumer Cyclical 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.
RKNG 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 Defiance Retail Kings ETF expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the Consumer Cyclical category. Defiance Retail Kings ETF has an expense ratio of 0.79%, which is 86% 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. Defiance Retail Kings ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 0%, which indicates that it holds its assets around /years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 41% for the Consumer Cyclical category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Defiance Retail Kings ETF returned -24.5%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Consumer Cyclical category had an average return of -0.2%. 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.
Defiance Retail Kings ETF has a trailing yield of 0.00%, which is below the 0.97% 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.
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RKNG 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 |
|
| RKNG Return (NAV) | -24.5% | -12.5% | na | na | na | na |
| RKNG Return (Price) | -24.5% | -12.5% | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | 0.040% | 0.028% | na | na | na | na |
| Consumer Cyclical Avg | -0.2% | 1.5% | 3.6% | 9.5% | 2.6% | 10.2% |
| RKNG Grade (NAV) | F | F | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | -24.2% | -14.0% | na | na | na | na |
| RKNG Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | na | na | na | na |
RKNG Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| RKNG Return (NAV) | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| RKNG Return (Price) | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Consumer Cyclical Avg | 0.0% | 8.1% | 17.0% | 30.5% | -30.4% | 17.0% | 38.6% | 26.9% | -8.6% | 25.0% | 5.1% |
| RKNG Grade (NAV) | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | na | 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: | $ 5 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 5 Mil |
| Turnover: | na |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.79% |
| 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: 4 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 0.5 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 0.5 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Lewellyn Dustin (2026), Tong Ernesto (2026), Johanson Christine (2026), Jablonski Sylvia (2026) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 32 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 40.5% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 11.8% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 88.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 11.8% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | -0.1% |
| Cash: | 0.3% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | Defiance ETFs LLC |
| Phone Number: | 800-617-0004 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | January 21, 2026 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.79% (Rating: Above Avg) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.43% |
