These seven gold ETFs play with the precious metal in different ways, providing protection against volatility and uncertainty in a simple and profitable investment. GraniteShares Gold Trust (BAR). ETF Database. abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF (SGOL).
Abren. The SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust is a lower cost product launched by the same investment managers as the SPDR Gold Shares ETF. The Aberdeen Standard Physical Gold Shares ETF (SGOL) is an even cheaper way to access the same gold index, with an expense ratio of 0.17%. Some investors consider ETFs to be a relatively liquid and low-cost option for investing in gold compared to alternatives such as gold futures or stocks of gold mining companies.
The fund seeks to track the NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index, a market-capitalization-weighted index of gold miner stocks from around the world. Those who want leveraged exposure to gold may want to use the ProShares Ultra Gold (UGL) ETF, which seeks to provide twice the daily return on gold bars. When selecting gold ETFs, decide if you want exposure to physical gold or to public companies involved in gold mining. That makes it the best gold ETF for those who want to invest in mining companies as a way to play in the gold market.
The best-performing gold ETF, based on last year's performance, is the SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust (GLDM) fund. This gold ETF offers the same direct exposure to the price of gold, since it also owns gold bars, but at a lower cost. SPDR has long held absolute dominance in the gold trading market, but the iShares Gold Trust slowly mined the assets of the buying and holding crowd. In addition to buying gold bars directly, another way to gain exposure to gold is to invest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that hold gold as their underlying asset or to invest in gold futures contracts.
With these ETFs physically backed by gold bullion, they reliably track the price of gold while eliminating the uncertainties of futures contracts. This iShares gold ETF isn't as liquid as SPDR's gold stocks, and its buy and demand spreads aren't as tight, so it's not ideal for short-term traders. Gold miners can use the cash flow they earn from gold production to expand their production, make dividend payments and buy back shares. Gold ETFs that represent physical holdings are the most direct way to invest in gold through the stock market.
Those investments and shareholder returns position gold mining companies so that they can deliver better overall returns compared to gold price gains.
