ETF Evaluator:
Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF ()
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(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Moderately Conservative Allocation Over the Last Year
| 13.6% | Franklin Income Focus ETF (INCM) |
| 11.9% | Moderately Conservative Allocation () |
| 11.1% | ETC Cabana Target Beta ETF (TDSB) |
| 11.0% | Strategy Shares Nasdaq 7 Handl™ ETF (HNDL) |
| 0.0% | Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF (YLDW) |
Risk
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Risk
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ETF Details
Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF Overview
Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF (YLDW) is an actively managed Allocation Moderately Conservative Allocation exchange-traded fund (ETF). Westwood launched the ETF in 2025.
The investment seeks to provide current income.
Under normal circumstances, the fund seeks to meet its investment objectives by investing generally more than 80% of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in dividend-paying and/or interest-bearing securities. By utilizing primarily income-producing securities from diverse asset classes, the fund also seeks to maintain a lower volatility profile than traditional equity-only products.
About Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF (YLDW)
There are 6 members of the management team with an average tenure of 0.64 years: Jeffrey Kernagis (2025), P. Adrian Helfert (2025), Austin Wen (2025), Scott Barnard (2025), Yin Bhuyan (2025) and Ben Chittenden (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF has 140 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 27.8% 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.
Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF is part of the Allocation global asset class and is within the Allocation ETF group. Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF has 7.1% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 71.1% There is 5.8% allocated to foreign stock, and 2.1% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 20.1% (18.7% domestic bond, 1.4% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF has 0.9% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $35 million in total assets, which is below the $609 million average for the Moderately Conservative Allocation 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.
YLDW 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 Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the Moderately Conservative Allocation category. Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF has an expense ratio of 0.79%, which is 4% higher 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. Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity 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 73% for the Moderately Conservative Allocation category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF returned 0.6%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Moderately Conservative Allocation category had an average return of -0.1%. 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.
Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF has a trailing yield of 0.00%, which is below the 4.84% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income monthly 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.
Westwood Enhanced Income Opportunity ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned 5.7%, 0.2 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of D.
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YLDW 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 |
|
| YLDW Return (NAV) | 0.6% | 2.0% | na | na | na | na |
| YLDW Return (Price) | 0.7% | 2.2% | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | -0.137% | -0.184% | na | na | na | na |
| Moderately Conservative Allocation Avg | -0.1% | 0.4% | 11.9% | 9.4% | 2.8% | na |
| YLDW Grade (NAV) | B | A | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | 0.7% | 1.6% | na | na | na | na |
| YLDW Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | na | na | na | na |
YLDW Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| YLDW Return (NAV) | 5.7% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| YLDW Return (Price) | 5.7% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | -0.014% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Moderately Conservative Allocation Avg | 5.5% | 12.0% | 7.0% | 8.8% | -17.8% | 8.9% | 12.5% | 17.0% | na | na | na |
| YLDW Grade (NAV) | D | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | 0.2% | 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: | $ 35 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 35 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: | Monthly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 6 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 0.6 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 0.6 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Kernagis Jeffrey (2025), Helfert P. Adrian (2025), Wen Austin (2025), Barnard Scott (2025), Bhuyan Yin (2025), Chittenden Ben (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 140 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 27.8% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 7.1% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 71.1% |
| Foreign Stock: | 5.8% |
| Preferred Stock: | 2.1% |
| Domestic Bond: | 18.7% |
| Foreign Bond: | 1.4% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.1% |
| Cash: | 0.9% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | Westwood |
| Phone Number: | 800-994-0755 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | December 11, 2025 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.79% (Rating: Above Avg) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.76% |
