Northern Trust US Quality Low Volatility ETF
$78.86−0.32 (−0.40%)
- Expense ratio
- 0.09%
- Fund size
- $167M
- 1Y return
- +13.1%
- Yield · Last 12 months
- 1.48%
- Holdings
- 125
- Volume · 30D
- 0M sh
- NAV per share
- $79.32
- 52W range
The ETF.net QLV Grade
Score 76 of 100 sits in the A band. Bands: A ≥ 70, B ≥ 55, C ≥ 40, D ≥ 25, F < 25; the scale skips E.
Cost
What you pay to own it — the expense ratio plus trading frictions, ranked within its category.AScore 100Category rankMission
How faithfully it does the job it claims — tracking its mandate or index with minimal slippage.AScore 78Category rankRisk
How violently it can move — volatility, drawdown depth, and downside capture versus its category.AScore 79Category rankTradability
How cheaply and easily you can get in and out — liquidity, spread, and premium/discount stability.BScore 67Category rankHoldings
What it actually owns — the quality, breadth, and concentration of the underlying portfolio.DScore 37Category rankDurability
Whether it will still be here — the fund’s assets, age, flows, and issuer staying power.DScore 30Category rank
Our read on QLV
AMost low-volatility funds just chase calm. QLV tracks a Northern Trust index that screens for quality characteristics too, and charges nine basis points, well under the typical fee in its low-vol peer group.
The fund seeks to track the Northern Trust Quality Low Volatility Index and provide exposure to U.S. companies selected for lower overall volatility and quality characteristics.
Why people hold it
- At 0.09%, it undercuts the low-vol field, sitting below LGLV (0.12%) and USMV (0.15%) and under half the peer group's typical fee.
- Two screens, not one: the Northern Trust Quality Low Volatility Index selects US companies on quality characteristics as well as lower volatility.flexshares.com
- Simple plumbing: a 1940 Act index fund holding roughly 120 US stocks, with distributions paid quarterly.
- Low fee plus close index tracking make it one of the stronger packages in its low-volatility peer group.
Worth knowing
- It trades lightly next to the category giants, so spreads can run wider and big orders can push the price around more.
- A smaller fund that launched in 2019, so it carries a shorter history and thinner asset base than the low-vol veterans.
- Low volatility means a smoother ride, not a shield. The fund stays invested in US stocks and moves with them.
QLV Holdings
- Stocks
- 125
- 36%
- NVDA
Sectors
- Technology31.5%
- Health Care14.2%
- Financials12.6%
- Cons. Staples7.7%
- Energy7.1%
- Communication6.5%
- Industrials6.2%
- Consumer Discr.6.1%
- Utilities5.7%
- Materials1.4%
- Real Estate1.0%
Geography
- United States95.16%
- Bermuda1.09%
- Israel0.88%
- Canada0.71%
- Ireland0.68%
- Switzerland0.68%
- United Kingdom0.60%
- Singapore0.20%
QLV Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
Returns run to the Sep 22, 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.
| Period | QLV |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +11.1% |
| 1 month | −0.7% |
| 3 months | +7.1% |
| 1 year | +13.1% |
| 3 years | +16.8% |
| 5 years | +10.5% |
| 10 years | — |
Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.
| Year | Return bar | QLV |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +11.1% | |
| 2025 | +12.3% | |
| 2024 | +18.1% | |
| 2023 | +13.7% | |
| 2022 | −10.0% | |
| 2021 | +26.1% | |
| 2020 | +9.7% |
QLV in the news
ETF.net Research hasn’t filed on QLV yet — coverage lands here as it’s written.
QLV Dividends
- 1.48%
- $1.18
- $0.28 per share
- Quarterly
Distribution history
| Ex-date | Pay date | Amount per share |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 18, 2026 | Pays Sep 24, 2026 | $0.28 |
| Jun 18, 2026 | Jun 25, 2026 | $0.31 |
| Mar 20, 2026 | Mar 26, 2026 | $0.23 |
| Dec 19, 2025 | Dec 26, 2025 | $0.36 |
| Sep 19, 2025 | Sep 25, 2025 | $0.29 |
| Jun 20, 2025 | Jun 26, 2025 | $0.28 |
| Mar 21, 2025 | Mar 27, 2025 | $0.23 |
| Dec 20, 2024 | Dec 27, 2024 | $0.35 |
| Sep 20, 2024 | Sep 26, 2024 | $0.25 |
| Jun 21, 2024 | Jun 27, 2024 | $0.30 |
| Mar 15, 2024 | Mar 21, 2024 | $0.17 |
| Dec 22, 2023 | Dec 29, 2023 | $0.02 |
QLV Risk
- 8.8%
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.
- 1.22
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.
- −17.9%
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.
- 0.58
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
QLV Cost
- The middle half of US Low Volatility Index funds
- Median 0.20%
No US Low Volatility Index fund charges less.