What happened
According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission dated Jan. 20, 2026, SHEPHERD WEALTH MANAGEMENT Ltd Liability Co initiated a new stake in the Invesco Water Resources ETF (PHO 1.91%), purchasing 198,306 shares. The estimated transaction value was $39.47 million, based on the fund’s average share price during the filing quarter. The quarter-end valuation for this stake matched the transaction estimate of $39.47 million.
What else to know
This purchase opens a new position, representing 27.45% of the fund’s 13F reportable AUM following the trade.
Top holdings after the filing:
- Invesco Water Resources ETF: $39.47 (27.5% of AUM)
- Nvidia: $11.99 million (8.3% of AUM)
- Palantir: $9.93 million (6.9% of AUM)
- Tesla: $9.14 million (6.4% of AUM)
- iShares Russell 2000 ETF: $6.35 million (4.4% of AUM)
As of Jan. 22, 2026, shares of PHO were priced at $74.52, up 8.2% over the past year, underperforming the S&P 500 by 6 percentage points.
PHO’s annualized dividend yield was 0.51%, and shares closed 0.82% below their 52-week high as of Jan. 20, 2026.
ETF overview
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| AUM | $2.09 billion |
| Price (as of market close 2026-01-22) | $74.52 |
| Dividend Yield | 0.51% |
| 1-Year Total Return | 9.56% |
ETF snapshot
Invesco Water Resources ETF’s:
- Investment strategy focuses on tracking an index of companies engaged in water conservation, purification, and related infrastructure solutions.
- Portfolio primarily consists of equities, including common stocks and ADRs, representing firms with significant exposure to the water resources sector.
- Fund structure is non-diversified, with an expense ratio embedded in the ETF framework, designed for investors seeking targeted exposure to water-related themes.
The Invesco Water Resources ETF provides investors with access to companies at the forefront of water technology and infrastructure. Its strategy leverages a rules-based index to capture growth opportunities in water conservation and purification, offering diversification within a specialized sector. The fund’s targeted approach and disciplined portfolio construction create a unique value proposition for those seeking thematic exposure to global water resource trends.
What this transaction means for investors
Shepherd Wealth Management’s purchase of the Invesco Water Resources ETF (PHO) is certainly noteworthy for investors. Not only is it a new purchase, but PHO now accounts for nearly one quarter of Shepherd’s holdings. This is a massive investment for the fund. While this is a risky investment (simply due to its sheer size), many of PHO’s holdings are undeniably steady and safe thanks to their focus on water — a resource that will never fall out of favor.
Over the last two decades, PHO has delivered annualized total returns of 8.7% versus the S&P 500’s 10.8%. While slightly lagging the index, these returns are acceptable for such a steady, mature industry, in my opinion. PHO’s fairly hefty 0.59% expense ratio also eats into these returns, but it’s on par with many specialized ETFs, especially those tracking the water industry.
Personally, I’d rather buy individual water-focused stocks with clear growth potential, such as Badger Meter, Core & Main, and Ferguson, which have each grown sales by 9% or more annually over the last five years while improving the world’s largely outdated water systems. Shepherd’s large purchase of PHO may seem risky, but the ETF is very stable in my opinion, so it makes a lot of sense for a fund seeking exposure to the niche. That said, individual investors focused on holding for the long-term (five years and beyond) can probably do better by picking the best of the best from PHO’s holdings.
