ETF Evaluator: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF (DBEF) Follow This ETF

Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF Overview

Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF (DBEF) is a passively managed International Equity Foreign Large Blend exchange-traded fund (ETF). Xtrackers launched the ETF in 2011.

The investment seeks investment results that correspond generally to the performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI EAFE U.S. Dollar Hedged Index. The fund, using a "passive" or indexing investment approach, seeks investment results that correspond generally to the performance, before fees and expenses, of the underlying index, which is designed to track developed market performance while mitigating exposure to fluctuations between the value of the U.S. dollar and the currencies of the countries included in the underlying index. It will invest at least 80% of its total assets in component securities of the underlying index. It is non-diversified.

About Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF (DBEF)

There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 5.90 years: Patrick Dwyer (2016), Shlomo Bassous (2017), Ashif Shaikh (2022) and Daniel Park (2024). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: MSCI EAFE NR USD index with a weighting of 100% and MSCI EAFE 100% Hedged NR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF has 721 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 13.3% 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.

Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the International Equity ETF group. Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF has 94.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 1.1% There is 93.9% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.1% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.1% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF has 4.6% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $9 billion in total assets, which is below the $9 billion average for the Foreign Large Blend 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.

DBEF 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 Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Foreign Large Blend category. Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF has an expense ratio of 0.35%, which is 11% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. 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. Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 12%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 39% for the Foreign Large Blend category.

Recently, in the month of June 2026, Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF returned 2.5%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Foreign Large Blend 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.

Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF has a trailing yield of 2.30%, which is below the 2.63% category average. The fund normally distributes its income semi-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.

Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 13.0%, 2.0 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of B. The fund has returned 27.6% over the past year (grade of B), 18.5% over the past three years (grade of B) and 13.8% per year over the past five years (grade of A) and 12.7% per year over the past 10 years (grade of A).

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