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Launched · SEC filings

Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta Emerging Markets Equity ETF

GEMNYSE ArcaGoldman SachsB

$46.56−0.02 (−0.04%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

B56/ 100

Rank 9 of 20 in Emerging Markets Multifactor

B56/100Rank 9 of 20inEmerging Markets Multifactor
Intraday session: down, 79 prints from 46.58 to 46.56. Range 46.56 to 47.57. Use the arrow keys to read each point.46.8047.0047.2047.4047.6010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.35%
Fund size
$1.68B
1Y total return
+13.2%
Yield · Last 12 months
2.06%
Holdings
734
Avg volume · 30D
124K sh
52W range
low $40.18high $54.29
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net GEM Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

B

Score 56 out of 100

Category
Emerging Markets Multifactor⁠
Rank
9 of 20
Six-pillar profile for GEM. Scores out of 100: Cost 68, Risk 41, Mission not scored, Tradability 52, Holdings 37, Durability 76. Strongest: Durability (76). Weakest: Holdings (37). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

Score 56 of 100 falls in the B band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.

  • Cost

    The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.
    B68 out of 100
    Rank 6 of 20

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    Not scored

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    C41 out of 100
    Rank 15 of 19

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    C52 out of 100
    Rank 8 of 20

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    D37 out of 100
    Rank 17 of 20

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A76 out of 100
    Rank 3 of 20

Our read on GEM

ETF.net Research

In short

BGoldman's 2015 ETF debut class included this one: emerging markets screened through four factors (value, momentum, quality, low volatility) across roughly 700 names for 0.35% a year. A full-market map with tilts, not a concentrated bet.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks to closely track, before fees and expenses, the Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta® Emerging Markets Equity Index, which provides exposure to equity securities of emerging-market issuers.

Why people hold it

  • Four factors at once: good value, strong momentum, high quality and low volatility, scored stock by stock and blended, so no single tilt runs the portfolio.gsam.com
  • 0.35% a year, below the median for emerging-market multifactor funds, with no fee waiver doing the work: the gross and net numbers are the same.
  • Roughly 700 holdings gives it the breadth of a core EM index fund rather than a narrow factor sleeve, and it has been a multi-billion-dollar fund trading since 2015.
  • One of the stronger implementations in a crowded multifactor emerging-market field, and it tracks a single named index rather than a shifting in-house process.gsam.com

Worth knowing

  • Cheaper multifactor EM options exist: EMGF at 0.26% and FDEM at 0.25%, neither leaning on a waiver.
  • Blending four factors mutes each one, so the tilt is gentler than a single-factor fund like AVES, which goes all in on value.
  • Emerging-market stocks swing hard, and currency moves and country concentration come with the mandate. The factor screen tilts that exposure, it does not defuse it.

GEM Performance

Launched Sep 25, 2015

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

GEM$11,315
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,199
Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. GEM $11,315. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000$12,000$13,000Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Returns run to the Oct 30, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.

Trailing total return for GEM. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodGEM
Year to date+11.9%
1 month−8.8%
3 months−5.0%
1 year+13.2%
3 yearsper year+20.9%
5 yearsper year+7.0%
10 yearsper year+7.5%

With distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for GEM
YearReturn barGEM
2026 YTD+11.9%
2025+33.4%
2024+6.7%
2023+11.8%
2022−21.3%
2021−0.2%
2020+13.2%

GEM in the news

GEM Dividends

Adds up every distribution paid per share over the last 12 months, divided by the last completed close. Distributions are counted by ex-date. Data through Oct 30, 2026.
2.06%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$0.96Last 12 months
Last payment
$0.96 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Annual

Distribution history

2017–2026

One bar per payment. 28 payments from 2017 to 2026 YTD. Mar 24, 2017 $0.03; Jun 23, 2017 $0.16; Sep 22, 2017 $0.24; Dec 21, 2017 $0.22; Mar 23, 2018 $0.04; Jun 25, 2018 $0.18; Sep 24, 2018 $0.27; Dec 24, 2018 $0.14; Mar 25, 2019 $0.19; Jun 24, 2019 $0.22; Sep 24, 2019 $0.32; Dec 24, 2019 $0.35; Jun 24, 2020 $0.14; Sep 24, 2020 $0.26; Dec 24, 2020 $0.22; Jun 24, 2021 $0.21; Sep 24, 2021 $0.70; Dec 27, 2021 $0.20; Mar 25, 2022 $0.23; Jun 24, 2022 $0.36; Sep 26, 2022 $0.18; Dec 27, 2022 $0.07; Mar 27, 2023 $0.34; Jun 26, 2023 $0.19; Sep 25, 2023 $0.21; Dec 26, 2023 $0.17; Dec 23, 2024 $0.82; Dec 23, 2025 $0.96. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2017201820192020202120222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Dec 23, 2025Dec 30, 2025$0.96
Dec 23, 2024Dec 30, 2024$0.82
Dec 26, 2023Jan 2, 2024$0.17
Sep 25, 2023Sep 29, 2023$0.21
Jun 26, 2023Jun 30, 2023$0.19
Mar 27, 2023Mar 31, 2023$0.34
Dec 27, 2022Dec 30, 2022$0.07
Sep 26, 2022Sep 30, 2022$0.18
Jun 24, 2022Jun 30, 2022$0.36
Mar 25, 2022Mar 31, 2022$0.23
Dec 27, 2021Dec 31, 2021$0.20
Sep 24, 2021Sep 30, 2021$0.70

See all 33 payments⁠

$10,000 in GEM 10 years ago paid $2,812 in dividends.⁠

GEM Risk

Risk pillarC41 out of 100Rank 15 of 19 in Emerging Markets Multifactor
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
15.6%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: standard deviation

The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
1.02
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio

Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.

Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
−31.4%
Trough Oct 2022
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown

The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.

Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
1.10
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

GEM Cost

Compare GEM and QLVE

Overpaying vs QLVE, cheapest in Emerging Markets Multifactor

$3,377

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • GEM 0.35%

    $7,126

  • QLVE 0.18% Cheapest

    $3,749

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • GEM 0.35%
  • QLVE 0.18%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2K$4K$6K$8K051015202530GEM $7,126QLVE $3,749

Year by year

YearGEMQLVEOverpaying
10$634$328$306
20$2,454$1,281$1,173
30$7,126$3,749$3,377

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