FIW vs PHO: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

First Trust Water ETF

FIWBNYSE Arca

Invesco Water Resources ETF

PHOCNasdaq

Overlap

74.9%by weight

Expense ratio

FIW −0.09pt a year

FIW0.50%PHO0.59%

Avg volume · 30D

PHO 1.5×the volume

FIW49KPHO74.7K

10Y return · a year

FIW +0.1pt

FIW+12.7%PHO+12.6%

FIW vs PHO Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+28.4%FIW+30.7%PHO

Expense ratio: FIW 0.50%, better; PHO 0.59%
Fund size: FIW $1.83B; PHO $2.05B
1Y total return: FIW +1.6%; PHO +3.8%, better
Yield (12M): FIW 0.71%, better; PHO 0.50%
Holdings: FIW 37; PHO 42
Avg volume (30D): FIW 49K sh; PHO 74.7K sh, better
NAV per share: FIW $112.27; PHO $73.79
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for FIW, PHO, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	FIW	PHO
Cost30% weight	B66Higher	D38
Mission25% weight	Not scored	Not scored
Risk15% weight	C50	C50
Tradability15% weight	A79	A85Higher
Holdings10% weight	A79Higher	C54
Durability5% weight	A76	A77Higher

Rank among Water funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. FIW and PHO are both graded against the same 6 Water funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Water⁠

Category · 6 funds

See all 6 ›

FIW ranks 1st and PHO 3rd of 6 funds in the Water Category.

Rank 1BFIWFirst Trust Water ETFScore 67
Rank 2BTBLUTortoise Global Water FundScore 58
Rank 3CPHOInvesco Water Resources ETFScore 54
Rank 4CCGWInvesco S&P Global Water Index ETFScore 53

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

FIWBFirst Trust Water ETF

PHOCInvesco Water Resources ETF

In short

FIW Water is the least glamorous essential business on earth, and FIW has been buying it since 2007: roughly 40 companies earning real revenue from drinking water and wastewater, at a fee below most of the water field.

PHO The original water ETF, listed in 2005 and still on the same beat: about 40 US-listed companies that purify, pump and conserve water. Rivals roam the globe. This one stays home.

Stated mandate

FIW The fund seeks returns that generally track the pre-expense price and yield of the ISE Clean Edge WaterTM Index, which covers listed companies deriving substantial revenue from potable and wastewater activities.

PHO The fund seeks to track the NASDAQ OMX US Water Index, investing primarily in US-listed companies whose products are designed to conserve and purify water for homes, businesses, and industries.

Why people hold it

FIW Launched in 2007, it predates most of the water theme. Its track record covers a financial crisis and a rate shock, not just one friendly stretch of market.
0.50% a year undercuts the two best-known rivals in the space, Invesco's CGW (0.58%) and PHO (0.59%), and sits below the water cohort's median fee.
Narrow by design: the ISE Clean Edge Water Index holds companies drawing substantial revenue from potable and wastewater work, so about 40 names instead of a loose infrastructure grab bag.
A multi-billion-dollar fund in a thin category, and one of the stronger builds in its water peer group on cost, tradability and portfolio quality. It pays quarterly.

PHO Launched in 2005, one of the first water-themed ETFs anywhere, and today a multi-billion-dollar fund with two decades of live history behind the strategy.invesco.com
Strictly domestic: the index holds US exchange-listed water names, while cohort peers CGW and TBLU cast a global net. A cleaner way to own the US water build-out.invesco.com
A focused basket of roughly 40 names spanning pumps, pipes, filtration and water utilities, so the theme actually shows up in the portfolio. Pays quarterly.

Worth knowing

FIW Concentration cuts both ways: about 40 stocks in one theme swing harder than a broad market fund, and water can drift out of favor for years at a time.
Cheap for water, not cheap outright. 0.50% is many times what a plain broad-market index fund charges for the same equity exposure wrapper.
Trading is moderate rather than heavy, so spreads can widen when markets move fast. Income arrives quarterly, not monthly.

PHO At 0.59% a year it sits at the pricier end of the water shelf: FIW charges 0.50% and TBLU 0.40%.
US-only by design, so water utilities and infrastructure listed overseas simply are not in the index.invesco.com
One theme, about 40 stocks. A basket this narrow can travel a very different path from a broad market fund.

Full FIW profile⁠

Full PHO profile⁠

FIW vs PHO Holdings

How FIW and PHO differ

Overlap by weight

74.9%

Shared holdings make up 94.1% of PHO and 90.5% of FIW.

Level by level

Holdings32 in both74.9%
Sector7 Sectors83.6%
Countryby domicile96.5%
Asset classEquity100%

Sector

Sector weights in FIW and PHO, widest gap first
Sector	More in FIWMore in PHO	FIW	PHO
Industrials	FIW +10.5 points	58.0%	47.5%
Materials	PHO +6.1 points	5.5%	11.6%
Health Care	PHO +5.8 points	13.2%	19.0%
Technology	PHO +4.4 points	10.5%	14.9%
Utilities	FIW +4.1 points	11.0%	6.9%
Consumer Staples	FIW +1.8 points	1.8%	0.0%
Financials	PHO +0.1 points	0.0%	0.1%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in FIW and PHO, widest gap first
Country	More in FIWMore in PHO	FIW	PHO
United States	PHO +3.5 points	95.0%	98.5%
Canada	FIW +3.1 points	3.8%	0.7%
Brazil	FIW +0.3 points	1.2%	0.8%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

FIW41.7%
PHO59.0%

Securities held

FIW36
PHO41

Asset class

FIW: Equity
PHO: Equity

Holdings

Only in FIW4
In both32
Only in PHO9

Only in FIW

4 securities, 9.4% of FIW by weight

Masco Corporation3.82%
Fortune Brands Innovations Inc.1.97%
Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.1.88%
Primo Brands Corporation (Class A)1.69%

Only in PHO

9 securities, 5.9% of PHO by weight

Trimble Inc4.19%
NWPX Infrastructure Inc0.46%
Lindsay Corp0.35%
Gorman-Rupp Co/The0.31%
Middlesex Water Co0.18%
Energy Recovery Inc0.16%
Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio0.10%
York Water Co/The0.09%
Consolidated Water Co Ltd0.06%

Weight gaps

All 32 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in FIW and PHO, widest gap first
Holding	More in FIWMore in PHO	FIW	PHO
Ferguson Enterprises Inc.FERG	PHO +4.10 points	4.15%	8.25%
Ecolab Inc.ECL	PHO +4.00 points	4.18%	8.18%
Waters CorporationWAT	PHO +3.18 points	4.36%	7.54%
IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.IDXX	PHO +3.09 points	3.87%	6.96%
Roper Technologies, Inc.ROP	PHO +2.88 points	4.29%	7.17%
Bentley Systems, Inc. (Class B)BSY	FIW +1.55 points	3.80%	2.25%
Franklin Electric Co., Inc.FELE	FIW +1.27 points	1.86%	0.59%
Mueller Industries, Inc.MLI	FIW +1.27 points	2.99%	1.72%
Stantec Inc.STN	FIW +1.27 points	1.94%	0.67%
Pentair plcPNR	PHO +0.98 points	3.21%	4.19%
Jacobs Solutions Inc.J	FIW +0.98 points	4.05%	3.07%
Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc.WMS	FIW +0.97 points	3.41%	2.44%
Hawkins, Inc.HWKN	FIW +0.95 points	1.55%	0.60%
Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corp.ZWS	FIW +0.91 points	1.83%	0.92%
Tetra Tech, Inc.TTEK	FIW +0.86 points	3.13%	2.27%
Badger Meter, Inc.BMI	FIW +0.71 points	2.14%	1.43%
California Water Service GroupCWT	FIW +0.67 points	1.19%	0.52%
American States Water CompanyAWR	FIW +0.66 points	1.18%	0.52%
H2O AmericaHTO	FIW +0.62 points	1.15%	0.53%
Mueller Water Products, Inc.MWA	FIW +0.56 points	1.15%	0.59%
Itron, Inc.ITRI	FIW +0.50 points	1.93%	1.43%
Watts Water Technologies, Inc.WTS	FIW +0.45 points	2.78%	2.33%
Valmont Industries, Inc.VMI	FIW +0.41 points	2.63%	2.22%
Veralto CorporationVLTO	FIW +0.36 points	4.40%	4.04%
AecomACM	PHO +0.36 points	2.75%	3.11%
Core & Main, Inc. (Class A)CNM	PHO +0.31 points	2.01%	2.32%
Cia. de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo - SABESP (ADR)SBS	FIW +0.29 points	1.14%	0.85%
A.O. Smith CorporationAOS	PHO +0.23 points	2.08%	2.31%
American Water Works Company, Inc.AWK	FIW +0.12 points	4.08%	3.96%
IDEX CorporationIEX	FIW +0.11 points	3.50%	3.39%
Xylem Inc.XYL	FIW +0.11 points	3.28%	3.17%
Agilent Technologies, Inc.A	PHO +0.09 points	4.45%	4.54%

All 36 FIW holdings⁠All 41 PHO holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

FIW vs PHO Cost

Overpaying PHO vs FIW

$1,656

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

FIW 0.50%
$9,979
PHO 0.59%
$11,635

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

FIW 0.50%
PHO 0.59%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	FIW	PHO	Overpaying
10	$900	$1,058	$158
20	$3,460	$4,051	$591
30	$9,979	$11,635	$1,656

Expense ratio

0.50%FIW, cheaper
0.59%PHO

FIW0.50%PHO0.59%

0.40%0.75%

Middle half of Water funds
Median 0.54%

FIW 2nd cheapest of 6 funds

PHO 5th cheapest of 6 funds

FIW vs PHO Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): FIW 0.71%, better; PHO 0.50%
Payout (12M): FIW $0.79; PHO $0.37
Last payment: FIW $0.19; PHO $0.06
Ex-dividend: FIW Sep 24, 2026; PHO Sep 21, 2026
Paid on: FIW Sep 30, 2026; PHO Sep 25, 2026
Frequency: FIW Quarterly; PHO Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

FIWQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll FIW payments⁠

PHOQuarterly · 36 paymentsAll PHO payments⁠

FIW vs PHO Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: FIW 16.1%PHO 15.8%, better
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: FIW 0.59PHO 0.62, better
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: FIW −28.5%, betterPHO −28.6%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: FIW 0.99PHO 0.95; Market = 1

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