ETF Evaluator: Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF () Follow This ETF

Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF Overview

Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (STXE) is a passively managed International Equity Diversified Emerging Mkts exchange-traded fund (ETF). Strive AM launched the ETF in 2023.

The investment seeks to track the total return performance, before fees and expenses, of the Bloomberg Emerging Markets ex China Large & Mid Cap Index composed of emerging market, ex-China securities. The index tracks large and mid-capitalization equity securities across 24 emerging market economies, excluding China. Under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the fund’s total assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in the emerging market securities, which may include depositary receipts (including American Depository Receipts (“ADRs”) or Global Depository Receipts (“GDRs”) representing securities included in the index.

About Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (STXE)

There are 2 members of the management team with an average tenure of 3.30 years: Matthew Cole (2023) and Jeffrey Sherman (2023). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 1 primary benchmark: Bloomberg EM ex China L&M TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF has 208 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 50.1% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.

Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the International Equity ETF group. Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF has 98.9% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.9% There is 98.9% 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). Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF has 0.4% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $139 million in total assets, which is below the $3 billion average for the Diversified Emerging Mkts 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.

STXE 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 Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Diversified Emerging Mkts category. Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF has an expense ratio of 0.32%, which is 38% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. 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. Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 21%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 44% for the Diversified Emerging Mkts category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF returned -6.9%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Diversified Emerging Mkts category had an average return of -3.0%. 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.

Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF has a trailing yield of 1.86%, which is below the 2.41% category average. The fund normally distributes its income quarterly 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.

Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 34.0%, 16.9 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 57.8% over the past year (grade of A) and 24.4% over the past three years (grade of A).

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