There can be huge differences between the prices of the accumulating and distributing versions of ETFs following the same index.
For instance, as of 17 Jan 2020 for iShares Core MSCI EM IMI UCITS ETF - the accumulating ETF is 6 times more expensive than the distributing ETF:
accumulating | distributing | |
---|---|---|
EIMI / IE00BKM4GZ66 | EIMU / IE00BD45KH83 | |
NAV | $31.02 | $4.83 |
inception year | 2014 | 2018 |
net assets | $15,478M | $313M |
On the other hand, SPDR® Dow Jones Global Real Estate UCITS ETF (Dist) - the distributing ETF's NAV is twice as expensive as the accumulating ETF's NAV:
accumulating | distributing | |
---|---|---|
GLRA / IE00BH4GR342 | GLRE / IE00B8GF1M35 | |
NAV | $20.26 | $39.79 |
inception year | 2019 | 2012 |
total fund assets | $944M | $944M |
share class assets | $0.40M | $944M |
The only differences between those ETFs seem to be the assets under management (AUM) and the inception dates.
What may explain the huge differences in NAV?
What are the consequences for buy-and-hold / long-term strategies?
Should the gap decrease in the long run?