Should You Invest in the Invesco S&P Global Water Index ETF (CGW)?

Launched on May 14, 2007, the InvescoIVZ-- S&P Global Water Index ETFCGW-- (CGW) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Industrials - Water segment of the equity market.

While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.

Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Industrials - Water is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 8, placing it in top 50%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by Invesco. It has amassed assets over $1.03 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Industrials - Water segment of the equity market. CGWCGW-- seeks to match the performance of the S&P GLOBALSPGI-- WATER INDEX before fees and expenses.

The S&P Global Water Index comprises of developed market securities including water utilities, infrastructure, equipment, instruments and materials.

Costs

When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.58%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.54%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.Looking at individual holdings, Cia De Saneamento Basico Do Estado De Sao Paulo Sabesp (SBSP3) accounts for about 9.39% of total assets, followed by American Water Works Co Inc (AWK) and Xylem Inc/ny (XYL).

The top 10 holdings account for about 55.86% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the Invesco S&P Global Water Index ETF has gained about 2.46% so far, and was up about 17.15% over the last 12 months (as of 04/02/2026). CGW has traded between $51.36 and $68.86 in this past 52-week period.

The ETF has a beta of 1.02 and standard deviation of 14.1% for the trailing three-year period, making it a low risk choice in the space. With about 77 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Invesco S&P Global Water Index ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, CGW is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Industrials ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

First Trust Water ETF (FIW) tracks ISE Clean Edge Water Index and the Invesco Water Resources ETF (PHO) tracks NASDAQ OMX US Water Index. First Trust Water ETF has $1.80 billion in assets, Invesco Water Resources ETF has $2.01 billion. FIW has an expense ratio of 0.51%, and PHO charges 0.59%.

Bottom Line

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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