Barron's 400 ETF (BFOR) Adds Energy and Utilities, Cuts Back on Consumer Discretionary and Materials in Spring Rebalance
The Barron’s 400 ETF (NYSE Arca: BFOR, the “Fund”), a smart beta exchange-traded fund, has completed its semi-annual rebalance following the reconstitution and equal weighting of its underlying benchmark, the Barron’s 400 Index (B400, the “Index”). The rebalance, effective March 20, 2026, replaced 155 of the Index’s 400 constituents based on a decline in their fundamentals-based scores from the Index’s last rebalance in September 2025. This represents a turnover rate of 39%, slightly below B400’s historical average of 42%. Against a backdrop of increased market volatility and uncertainty due to a rapidly evolving geopolitical climate and potential macroeconomic impacts as well as AI’s potentially disruptive forces, the “stock picker’s index” increased its exposure to Energy and Utilities, while reducing exposure to Consumer Discretionary, Materials and Technology.
- Prominent large-cap additions to the B400 include Apple (AAPL), Procter & Gamble (PG), Coca-Cola (KO), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), AT&T (T), Stryker (SYK), Northrop Grumman (NOC), Southern Company (SO) and Dell Technologies (DELL). Noteworthy names among the 40 companies selected for the first time include Eversource Energy (ES), Expand Energy Corporation (EXE), Samsara (IOT), Roku (ROKU) and DT Midstream (DTM), while the highest-ranked new addition is Slide Insurance (SLDE), a small-cap with a MarketGrader overall grade of 93.7 out of 100.
- Notably, four members of the “Magnificent 7” were chosen: Apple (AAPL), returning to B400 after a year-long absence from the Index; Nvidia (NVDA); Alphabet (GOOGL); and Microsoft (MSFT), which holds the record for most all-time selections. Prominent large-cap deletions included Amazon (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), GE Aerospace (GE), Caterpillar (CAT), Abbott Laboratories (ABT), Walt Disney (DIS) and…