ETF Spotlights

Heatwaves and Data Centers Rally ELFY’s Holdings in June

Written by SS&C ALPS Advisors | Jul 1, 2025 11:54:42 PM
  • Last month, the ALPS Electrification Infrastructure ETF (ELFY) returned 4.77% as extreme heat and growing electricity demand from artificial intelligence (AI) data centers stressed the US power grid in June. Above-average expected temperatures this summer in the US are expected to act as a tailwind for Utilities and Industrials companies focused on electrification, as higher expected demand for electricity is resulting in billions of dollars of grid modernization projects.

  • ELFY’s Industrials sector had the highest contribution to overall returns in June, with backup power generator manufacturer, Generac (GNRC, 1.25% weight*), rallying 17.26% for the month as analysts cited Generac as a key beneficiary of numerous power outages due to the US heatwave and inclement weather. Another ELFY Industrials name riding the data center theme was Vertiv Holdings (VRT, 1.26% weight*), which rallied 19.01% last month after analysts were positive on the company’s power and cooling solutions for new data center builds, globally. Additionally, Acuity Inc. (AYI, 1.24% weight*) returned over 14% in June within ELFY’s Industrials sector after posting better-than-expected earnings on record gross margins and a positive outlook for its lighting, audio and video solutions within building management.

  • ELFY’s Utilities names also saw strong performance in June, thanks to the Trump administration’s orders to accelerate nuclear technologies to help power America’s data centers and the reshoring of US manufacturing facilities. Independent power producer, Talen Energy Corp. (TLN, 1.19% weight*), jumped 19.19% last month after Amazon (AMZN, not in ELFY) agreed to purchase nearly 2 gigawatts of nuclear power from Talen’s Pennsylvania reactors to help power its data centers. Another Utilities name in ELFY that benefited from recent nuclear power tailwinds was Vistra Corp. (VST, 1.26% weight*), which rallied 20.85% in June after Meta (META, not in ELFY) announced a 20-year deal to secure nuclear power from Vistra’s competitor, Constellation Energy (CEG, 1.21% weight*), to help support Meta’s AI power needs.

“We estimate that rising electricity demand from data centers, manufacturing and automation, transportation, and climate initiatives will require USD 3 trillion in annual investment by 2030, up 50% from 2023. In our view, this confluence of trends should disproportionately benefit a relatively small group of companies providing the backbone of electrical infrastructure, supporting organic revenue growth and equity performance.”

– Mark Haefele, UBS CIO, June 26, 2025

The Latest Strains on the Grid Underscore the Importance of Rapid Infrastructure Investment
  • With data center electricity usage set to double by 2030 as the rate of technological advancement for AI rises in a non-linear (exponential) fashion, the demand-pull on the US electricity grid will require rapid infrastructure investments by US Utilities and data centers running on natural gas turbines or small modular reactors. Recognizing that reliable electrical capacity is now a national need, regulators have begun to mandate grid modernization through landmark rulings, like the 2024 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)’s Order 1920-A, that steered $73 billion into US grid modernization with added policy support necessary to meet increasing electrification goals. Per S&P Global, US electric Utility capital expenditure spending in 2026 could potentially jump 15% year-over-year, above baseline estimates, as higher rate cases in the US receive approval.

  • The June 2025 “heat dome” that scorched the Eastern US is the latest example of a strained power grid grappling with increasing electricity demand, not only from AI data center build-out and improving computing capacity, but also from rising heating and cooling needs that impact everyday life. To put this into perspective, bracing for the heatwave, the nation’s largest electricity transmission operator, PJM Interconnection LLC (serving over 65 million people located across the eastern US), warned of blackouts and higher power prices as expected energy demand in June was projected to reach levels not seen since 2013. 

  • A diversified approach to capturing the electrification infrastructure theme across US Utilities, power producers, power solutions providers, battery technology manufacturers, electrical industrials, and natural gas infrastructure companies, etc. has allowed the ALPS Electrification Infrastructure ETF (ELFY) to witness strong performance and flows since its April 2025 launch, while also adding a layer of market defensiveness with its ~ 40% Utilities weight.* 

 

Performance Summary
  1 M SI
 ELFY - NAV (Net Asset Value) 4.77% 22.66%
 ELFY - Market Price 4.65% 22.75%
 Ladenburg Thalmann Electrification Infrastructure Index - TR 4.82% 22.81%


Source: Bloomberg L.P. and SS&C ALPS Advisors, cumulative performance as of 06/30/2025

Performance data quoted represents past performance. Past performance is no guarantee of future results so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. The investment return and principal value will fluctuate. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance quoted. For current month-end performance call 1-866-759-5679 or visit www.alpsfunds.com. Performance includes reinvested distributions and capital gains.

High short-term performance, when observed, is unusual and investors should not expect such performance to continue or be repeated.

Market Price is based on the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4 p.m. ET and does not represent the returns an investor would receive if shares were traded at other times.

Fund inception date: 04/09/2025

Total Operating Expenses: 0.50%

* Weight in ELFY as of 06/30/2025

 

Top 10 Holdings
Sterling Infrastructure Inc 1.27%   Generac Holdings Inc 1.25%
EMCOR Group Inc 1.27%   Acuity Inc 1.24%
Cameco Corp 1.26%   Coherent Corp 1.24%
Vertiv Holdings Co 1.26%   IES Holdings Inc 1.22%
Vistra Corp 1.26%   GE Vernova Inc 1.22%


As of 06/30/2025, subject to change

Important Disclosures & Definitions

An investor should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. To obtain a prospectus containing this and other information, call 1-866-759-5679 or visit www.alpsfunds.com. Read the prospectus carefully before investing.

Shares of ETFs are bought and sold at market price (not NAV) and are not individually redeemable.

Performance data quoted represents past performance. Past performance is no guarantee of future results; current performance may be higher or lower than performance quoted.

All investments are subject to risks, including the loss of money and the possible loss of the entire principal amount invested. Additional information regarding the risks of this investment is available in the prospectus.

The Fund is new and has limited operating history.

The Fund invests in companies that are involved in conventional and alternative electricity generation, transmission, and distribution and technological solutions, as well as the development of grid infrastructure and smart grid technologies. General risks include the general state of the economy, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics and excess capacity.

The Fund seeks to track the underlying index, which itself may have concentration in certain regions, economies, countries, markets, industries or sectors. Underperformance or increased risk in such concentrated areas may result in underperformance or increased risk in the Fund.

The Fund may be subject to risks relating to its investment in Canadian securities. Investments in securities of Canadian issuers involve risks and special considerations not typically associated with investments in the US securities markets and can make investments in the Fund more volatile and potentially less liquid than other types of investments.

Investing in securities of medium capitalization companies involves greater risk than customarily is associated with investing in larger, more established companies. The large capitalization companies in which the Fund invests may underperform other segments of the equity market or the equity market as a whole.

The Fund employs a “passive management” - or indexing - investment approach and seeks investment results that correspond (before fees and expenses) generally to the performance of its underlying index. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund is not “actively” managed. Therefore, it would not necessarily sell or buy a security unless that security is removed from or added to the underlying index, respectively.

Diversification does not eliminate the risk of experiencing investment losses.

Ladenburg Thalmann Electrification Infrastructure Index: designed to track the performance of US-listed large- and mid-capitalization companies in subsectors of the economy that are likely to benefit most consistently from the process of charging, equipping, supplying or operating with electricity, or the conversion of a machine or system to the use of electrical power (“electrification”). One may not invest directly in an index.

ALPS Advisors, Inc., registered investment adviser with the SEC, is the investment adviser to the Fund. ALPS Advisors, Inc. and ALPS Portfolio Solutions Distributor, Inc., affiliated entities, are unaffiliated with Osaic Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries (including Ladenburg Thalmann Index, LLC).

ALPS Portfolio Solutions Distributor, Inc. is the distributor for the Fund.

Not FDIC Insured • No Bank Guarantee • May Lose Value

ELF000130  10/31/2025