ETF Watch from Un-Herd Newsletter
Here is a summary of the 3 ETFs from our investment universe with the highest 1-month trailing return and the factors that contributed to that performance.
The top performing sector we monitor over the last month fits with the broader theme of “running it hot” we’ve seen prevail over markets as gold miners, effectively a levered bet on the price of gold, was the top performer over the past month. Outside of that, there’s not a major unifying theme to be found other than risk has generally paid off recently.
(The source for all return figures is Bloomberg as 9/12/2025)
1. Gold miners (GDX) – 20.11%.
Far and away the top performing ETF in our universe, Gold miners, saw their fortunes improve as the price of gold climbed steadily (as it has for much of the year) to over $3500. The combination of a fairly volatile geopolitical atmosphere globally, stubbornly high US inflation and improving odds for multiple rate cuts created a classic favorable backdrop for owning the malleable metal.
2. Solar Power (TAN) – 12.16%.
This group of companies has performed strongly since the April tariff pullback and are highly regulatory-focused. The largest holding, First Solar, is one of the only large US based solar manufacturers. It may be worth noting that Wind stocks such as those represented in the comparable ETF “Fan” have not performed well of late. Wind energy seems to be less politically popular than solar which could be providing a boost to the companies in that ecosystem as well.
3. US Healthcare Providers (IHF) – 10.90%.
Second best performer is more of a small comeback story from what was one of the worst performing sectors for much of the year. Driven mostly by the largest holding, United Healthcare, Healthcare providers have suffered from higher than anticipated medical costs as well as ongoing regulatory scrutiny over the past year. The group bounced strongly at the beginning of August when 13F filings revealed Warren Buffet had built a small stake in UNH.
The 3 ETFs with the lowest returns from our investment universe:
- Indonesia (EIDO) -0.05%
- Turkey (TUR) -0.06%
- Argentina (ARGT) -0.17%
Our Decathlon Universe:
The AIM Decathlon strategies select from a carefully curated pool of ~230 ETFs representing nearly every asset class and geography — and everything in between.
Each ETF in the pool must offer distinct characteristics reducing overlap and increasing the opportunity for diversifying exposure.
We are independent and evaluate ETFs from any provider.
These are the five highest-returning ETFs drawn from the curated 230-ETF investment universe used in our Decathlon strategies. over the trailing 1-month period ending September 12th, 2025. We use this universe because we believe it captures all investable areas of the global markets while excluding derivatives, single-company ETFs, and overlapping exposures. We believe this makes it a better lens for highlighting the top five prevailing market themes than looking at all available ETFs on the market.
We are going to seek to post a summary like this each month as part of our newly launched monthly newsletter, Un-Herd. If you’d like to view our first issue of this newsletter and subscribe, click here.
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