ETFriday: Emerging Markets at 5% Yields While Gold Sits at Eight-Month Lows

This Week's Setup

Fear & Greed sits at 40, the first fear read in three weeks, while emerging markets own three of the top five Pixie Ranks with earnings yields near 5–6 percent and drawdowns under 13 percent.

Energy climbed back to a 4.8 percent earnings yield at Pixie Rank 2 with a 10 percent drawdown, and gold miners sit 37 percent below peak despite a 5.9 percent earnings yield at 17× trailing.

Sweden trades at 6.2 percent earnings yield with an 8.6 percent drawdown, the tightest pullback in the top eight.

Quick Scan

The 8 Names

1. Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (FRDM)

3y annualized return: n/a | Life annualized return: 16.77% | 52w drawdown: 12.53%

The setup here is a 4.8 percent earnings yield at 21× trailing in emerging markets with a 12.5 percent drawdown and a 17 percent annualized return since inception. The yield spread over 10Y Treasuries sits at 22 basis points, the tightest in the top five.

iShares ETFs dominate 2026 returns, crushing the S&P 500 by 30 points according to 24/7 Wall St., and FRDM sits at Pixie Rank 1 with a one-year trend slope of 0.25 percent. The portfolio excludes state-controlled enterprises and tracks only market-driven companies.

The drawdown is moderate at 12.5 percent, but the one-year trend slope of 0.25 percent is the weakest in the top five, and the fund holds no FCF yield or dividend data to anchor downside valuation.

2. State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE)

3y annualized return: n/a | Life annualized return: 6.25% | 52w drawdown: 10.01%

Energy trades at a 4.8 percent earnings yield with a 3.8 percent dividend yield and a 10 percent drawdown, the second-best Pixie Rank this week. The yield spread over 10Y sits at 21 basis points, and the price-to-book ratio of 1.10 is the lowest in the top eight.

Sector Update from MT Newswires shows energy stocks advancing premarket Friday, while equity futures retreated from chipmaker stocks. XLE owns four of the top five energy Pixie Ranks with drawdowns of 10–14 percent, and the one-year trend slope of 0.16 percent is the second-weakest in the top eight.

The life annualized return of 6.25 percent is the second-lowest in the top eight, and the one-year trend slope of 0.16 percent flags slowing momentum even as the sector advances.

3. iShares MSCI Sweden ETF (EWD)

3y annualized return: n/a | Life annualized return: 6.38% | 52w drawdown: 8.61%

Sweden trades at a 6.2 percent earnings yield with an 8.6 percent drawdown, the tightest pullback in the top eight and a 161 basis point yield spread over 10Y Treasuries. The price-to-book ratio of 1.05 is the second-lowest in the screener, and the 2.8 percent dividend yield covers nearly half the earnings yield.

The one-year trend slope of 0.06 percent is the weakest in the top eight, and the life annualized return of 6.38 percent sits just above XLE at 6.25 percent. The drawdown zone is moderate, not deep, and the yield spread advantage over emerging markets is 140 basis points but the momentum is flat.

4. Avantis Emerging Markets Equity ETF (AVEM)

3y annualized return: n/a | Life annualized return: 11.95% | 52w drawdown: 9.09%

The setup here is a 6.1 percent earnings yield at 16.5× trailing with a 9.1 percent drawdown and a 151 basis point yield spread over 10Y Treasuries. The life annualized return of 12 percent is the second-best in the top eight, and the one-year trend slope of 0.14 percent is mid-pack.

Avantis Investors reached $150 billion in assets under management in less than seven years according to PR Newswire, and AVEM sits at Pixie Rank 4 with a 9.1 percent drawdown. ETFs primed for gains on NVIDIA's $150 billion AI spending vow in Taiwan according to Zacks, and 2026 is the year to pick your emerging-market ETF carefully according to 24/7 Wall St.

The price-to-book ratio is unavailable, FCF yield is unavailable, and dividend yield is unavailable, leaving earnings yield as the only valuation anchor in a 9 percent drawdown.

5. iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG)

3y annualized return: n/a | Life annualized return: 6.18% | 52w drawdown: 8.96%

Core emerging markets trade at a 5.2 percent earnings yield with an 8.96 percent drawdown and a 67 basis point yield spread over 10Y Treasuries. The 1.5 percent dividend yield is the lowest in the top eight, and the price-to-book ratio of 1.21 is mid-pack.

Record money is pouring into emerging markets according to 24/7 Wall St., and IEMG sits at Pixie Rank 5 with a 9 percent drawdown. Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF vs iShares Core MSCI Emerging Market ETF is the comparison according to Motley Fool, and BlackRock and Vanguard ETFs diverge over a 170 percent AI-fueled rally according to Bloomberg.

The life annualized return of 6.18 percent is the third-lowest in the top eight, and the yield spread of 67 basis points is the weakest in the emerging markets cohort at the top of this screener.