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ETF Innovators

Active by Design: MFS Enters the ETF Market With Nine Strategies and 100 Years of Conviction

MFS Investment Management—the firm behind the first U.S. open-end mutual fund—has entered the active ETF market with nine strategies spanning equities, fixed income, and municipal bonds. The move isn’t a reinvention. It’s an extension of more than a century of investment discipline into a modern structure. Jamie Harrison, Head of ETF Capital Markets at MFS, breaks down the lineup, the case for blending active and passive, and what’s driving advisor adoption.

ETF Innovators

When the Market Cracks, Music Plays On: The Case for MUSQ, The Music ETF

While equity markets contend with geopolitical turbulence and AI-driven whiplash, the MUSQ Global Music Industry ETF is holding steady—by design. David Schulhof, CEO at MUSQ, LLC, The Music ETF, argues that music is not a luxury good or a tech proxy. It is a daily habit with global scale, recurring revenue, and structural growth drivers that traditional sector allocation simply cannot replicate. Here is why advisors are paying attention.

ETF Innovators

When to Grow, When to Hold: Pacer ETFs’ QQWZ Takes the Rotation Decision Off Your Plate

Growth-value rotation sounds good in theory. Executing the tactic—without triggering taxes, without optimal timing, without constant oversight—is where most advisors hit a wall. Pacer ETFs’ QQWZ aims to solve all three problems at once. The fund alternates between the Nasdaq-100 and the Pacer US Cash Cows 100 Index based on a monthly relative strength screen, using the ETF wrapper to rotate without generating capital gains. Sean O’Hara, President at Pacer ETF Distributors, breaks down how it works.

ETF Innovators

CEMFX versus EM Index Funds: Cullen’s Active Advantage in Emerging Markets

While passive EM funds often default to market-cap-weighted indexes dominated by a handful of mega-cap tech names, Cullen’s CEMFX applies a rigorous value discipline to uncover dividend-paying companies across a broader, more diverse emerging markets universe. Portfolio Manager Rahul Sharma explains why a weakening dollar, improving EM earnings growth, and six times the qualifying stocks make this actively managed fund a compelling complement to index-based strategies in today’s global environment.

ETF Innovators

Where Income Meets Quality: The John Hancock Preferred Income ETF (JHPI)’s Active Strategy

Preferred securities occupy a unique space between bonds and equities—offering income with investment-grade credit quality and tax advantages. Joseph Bozoyan, Portfolio Manager at Manulife Investment Management, manages the JHPI ETF with the flexibility to invest across institutional, retail, convertible, and European bank preferreds. He discusses the fund’s defensive utility overweight and in-house bank research capabilities, and why current market conditions create opportunities for advisors seeking quality income alternatives.

ETF Innovators

As Timely and Compelling as the Grammys: MUSQ, The Music ETF for the Global Music Industry

The music industry is projected to double in value by 2030, driven by streaming growth, superfan spending, and emerging-market adoption. MUSQ, The Global Music ETF, seeks to capture returns across the ecosystem—from Spotify and Tencent Music to Live Nation and Universal Music Group. Founder and CEO David Schulhof explains how advisors can use music industry exposure to differentiate portfolios while tapping into a sector with low correlation to traditional equity indexes.

ETF Innovators

Innovation Without Borders: How Pacer’s PATN Targets International Growth Through Patent Value

Traditional international indexes weighted toward financials, materials, and industrials rarely deliver the growth clients expect from equity allocations. The Pacer Nasdaq International Patent Leaders ETF (PATN) takes a different approach, targeting the 100 non-U.S. companies with the most valuable patent portfolios. By filtering international exposure through intellectual property rather than market capitalization, the fund seeks to match the innovation-driven characteristics of U.S. technology exposure while maintaining geographic diversification.

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