CAC
Amundi CAC 40 UCITS ETF Dist
Published by Radif Partners · Updated
Overview
Amundi CAC 40 UCITS ETF Dist (CAC) tracks the CAC 40 index and holds its constituents directly, a physical replication managed by Amundi. Dividends are paid out to holders rather than reinvested, so CAC suits investors seeking regular income. The fund is domiciled in FR, which determines the withholding tax treatment applied to its dividends. Annual charges come to 0.25% of assets, and the fund holds 4.2B under management. Over five years the fund returned 3.7% a year on average, against 4.9% over three years. It is eligible for the French PEA, and can also be held in a securities account or a German Depot. Its risk level is rated medium. Launched on 2000-12-13, the fund is denominated in EUR and has 26 years of track record. It is a UCITS fund, so it follows the European framework on diversification, liquidity and asset segregation. Because CAC distributes, every payment is taxable in the year it is received, against the dividend allowance in a general account, while it stays sheltered inside an ISA or a SIPP. Domicile in FR sets the withholding the fund itself suffers on the dividends it receives, a cost absent from the stated fee but present in the return.
Ongoing charges of 0.25% place this fund 138th of 225 comparable funds, whose median is 0.19%. On £10,000 that costs about 25 a year and 250 over ten years at a constant amount, deducted daily and never visible on a statement: it shows up in the gap between the fund's return and its index's. At this level, neither low enough to be an argument nor high enough to be an obstacle, the decision rests elsewhere: on the index tracked, on the distribution policy, and on what your broker charges to buy.
Replication is physical: the fund actually holds the constituents of CAC 40, which makes its contents verifiable line by line in the issuer's report. Two points deserve attention. Securities lending first, practised by most physical funds to reduce costs: it earns a few hundredths of a point and creates an exposure to the borrower, covered by collateral, with the annual report stating the proportion lent. Rebalancing second: every change in the index's composition forces the fund to buy and sell, and those internal costs are not in the 0.25% headline. That is why two funds at the same price do not track their index with the same fidelity.
The fund is domiciled in FR, outside the two usual homes for European listed funds. Three checks come before buying: whether your broker lists it, since a fund outside the usual venues is not always dealable from a European account; what withholding the fund suffers on dividends it receives, which follows FR's treaties rather than your country's; and how your own tax authority treats it, an answer that can differ from the treatment of an Irish fund tracking the same index.
Income is distributed: the fund pays out the dividends it receives, usually one to four times a year. For a holder living off the portfolio that is what is wanted, since the income arrives without selling. For someone still accumulating it is a tax disadvantage in a taxable account: each payment is taxed in the year received, so the amount reinvested is reduced before it starts working again. Reinvesting by hand also costs a dealing commission each time and often leaves cash idle for want of the price of a whole unit. An accumulating class on the same index, where one exists, settles the question.
With 4.2 billion in assets and 26 years of history, this fund has the size and the record that make closure unlikely and the spread narrow. Three checks remain, once a year, none of which depends on the market. The ongoing charge, which an issuer revises without notice and whose gap to a competitor can invert. The tracking difference, the only figure that says whether replication stays faithful. And the methodology of CAC 40, which can change its selection or weighting rules without the fund's name moving, in which case what you hold has changed with nothing to announce it.
CAC 40 is a broad index, and that is the building block most portfolios have reason to own before any other, for a simple reason: it requires no forecast. Two points deserve checking before calling it diversified. Cap weighting concentrates the portfolio on the largest companies, so the top ten holdings can make up a substantial share, and that concentration grows without any rule changing. And the geographic scope matters: a developed-world index leaves out emerging markets, while a broad US index is not global exposure despite the international revenue of the companies it holds.
Over one year the fund shows -4.6% against 3.7% annualised over five years: the recent year lags the long average. Before drawing a conclusion, two possible causes have to be separated, because they have different consequences: a fall in the index tracked, which affects every fund replicating it, or a deterioration specific to the fund, which shows in the tracking difference rather than in the return.
0.25%
4.2B
4,179M EURMedium
468
Physical
Distributing
EUR
FR
CAC 40
Amundi
2000-12-13 (25 years)
Contextual Analysis
Fund Size
With 4.2B in assets, this is a large fund, good liquidity and tight spreads.
Fee Positioning
A TER of 0.25% is in line with the market average (~0.35%).
Track Record
Launched in 2000-12-13, this fund has 25 years of history, long and reliable track record.
Risk Profile
Medium risk, good risk/return balance for a 5+ year horizon.
Performance
Returns Summary
| Period | Ann. Return | Cumulative |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Month (est.) | – | -0.4% |
| 3 Months (est.) | – | -1.2% |
| 6 Months (est.) | – | -2.3% |
| YTD (est.) | – | -1.9% |
| 1 Year | -4.6% | -4.6% |
| 3 Years | +4.9% | +15.5% |
| 5 Years | +3.7% | +19.7% |
| Since inception (25y) | +1.3% | +39.4% |
Key Facts
Fund Profile
Themes & Zones
Holdings
Risk
How to Buy This ETF
Select your country in the menu to see available brokers and wrappers.
About this ETF
The Amundi CAC 40 UCITS ETF Dist tracks the CAC 40 index. It is managed by Amundi using physical replication and follows a distributing distribution policy. The fund is denominated in EUR and domiciled in FR. It has a total expense ratio (TER) of 0.25%.
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Frequently asked questions
What do CAC's 0.25% charges actually cost?
They are taken from the fund's value continuously and never billed separately: on £1,000 invested that is about £2.50 a year and roughly £25 over ten years at a constant amount. That is the only cost of the fund itself. Your broker's commission and the spread between buying and selling price come on top, and they weigh most on small frequent purchases.
How do you buy CAC, and on which venue?
Through any broker that lists ISIN FR0007052782. The same strategy often exists in several share classes with different fees and distribution policies, and what counts is the class you buy rather than the one you read about: check the ISIN, not the name. A limit order avoids paying the spread of a thin order book, particularly outside the trading hours of the underlying markets.
Is CAC genuinely diversified?
Less so than the number of holdings suggests. CAC 40 weights its constituents by market capitalisation, so the largest companies make up a share of the fund far above their number, and that concentration deepens without any rule changing. The useful check is the weight of the top ten holdings, published monthly by Amundi: that figure says how many companies the outcome actually depends on.
What should you re-check on CAC once a year?
Three things, none of which depends on the market. The ongoing charge, which an issuer revises without notice and whose gap to a competitor can invert. The tracking difference, the only figure that says whether replication stays faithful. And the methodology of CAC 40, which can change its selection or weighting rules without the fund's name moving: in that case what you hold has changed with nothing to announce it.
Does CAC lend out the securities it holds?
Probably in part: most physical funds lend securities to reduce their costs, and Amundi publishes the proportion in the annual report. Lending income is worth a few hundredths of a point, shared between the fund and the issuer. The risk is the borrower's, covered by collateral worth more than the amount lent, and it appears in the prospectus rather than in the stated fee.
This ranking is for informational purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Displayed performance is simulated.