Liberty One Defensive Dividend Growth ETF (EASY)
The Liberty One Defensive Dividend Growth ETF (NASDAQ: EASY) is an actively managed exchange-traded fund introduced in September 2025 that pools investor capital into a concentrated portfolio of large-cap American stocks chosen for their strong histories of rising dividends and defensive characteristics.
Inception and the defensive dividend thesis
Liberty One Investment Management created EASY in September 2025 to serve investors seeking income that would not vanish during economic downturns. The fund’s timing reflected a broader market conversation: after years of zero-interest-rate policy, investors dependent on bond yields faced compressed returns, and traditional stock-dividend strategies had performed poorly during inflationary periods. The fund’s designers believed a more disciplined approach was needed — not simply chasing high yields, but selecting companies with both the willingness and the ability to grow their payouts consistently, through good times and bad.
The name encapsulates this intent. “Dividend growth” emphasizes the trajectory of the payout, not its current size. A company raising its dividend from 2 percent to 2.2 percent annually is demonstrating confidence in future cash flow. “Defensive” signals that the fund avoids the most economically sensitive sectors and instead favors industries where demand persists even in recessions. By combining these two screens — rising dividends and defensive business models — EASY positions itself between the income strategies that have disappointed and the growth-focused approaches that expose retirees to sharp drawdowns.
The selection methodology and active management
Unlike passive dividend index funds that mechanically own the top dividend payers, EASY employs active judgment. The fund’s adviser evaluates candidates for three qualities: a multi-year history of rising dividends, predominantly recession-resistant business models, and sufficient size to be liquid and substantial. The typical holding is a large-cap stock from sectors such as utilities, consumer staples, healthcare, or select industrials — industries where revenue is less dependent on discretionary spending or economic cycles.
The fund is intentionally concentrated, typically holding between 20 and 40 individual stocks. This concentration reflects conviction: the manager does not attempt to own every dividend-growth company, but instead focuses on the most defensible names. It also means EASY is more volatile than a broad dividend index, though less volatile than the overall stock market. The manager monitors holdings continuously, removing any company that cuts its dividend, faces deteriorating fundamentals, or no longer qualifies as defensive.
The appeal of dividend growth to different investors
Since its launch, EASY has attracted two distinct cohorts. The first comprises retirees and near-retirees who require current income. A dividend that grows at 5 percent annually provides an income stream that, over time, outpaces inflation — a valuable hedge for someone on a fixed living budget. The second group includes younger accumulators building long-term wealth who welcome steady dividend income reinvested into new shares. Both cohorts benefit from a strategy that emphasizes the durability of payouts over their initial size.
Trading mechanics and costs
As an exchange-traded fund, EASY trades during market hours on the NASDAQ at live market prices, unlike traditional mutual funds that price at the end of each day. The structure allows creation and redemption in kind, which keeps the share price tethered to the underlying net asset value. The active-management model results in an expense ratio above what passive dividend-index funds charge, but the adviser has structured the fund to be cost-competitive with other actively managed dividend strategies.
The dividends paid to shareholders are typically distributed quarterly. They may be reinvested automatically within a brokerage account, compounding returns over time, or withdrawn as cash if the investor needs current income. In taxable accounts, EASY’s ETF structure is more tax-efficient than a traditional mutual fund would be, minimizing unexpected capital-gains distributions.
Risks and limitations
The fund’s defensive tilt means it will lag in markets where growth and technology stocks outperform. A bull market in 2023–2024 style, driven by AI enthusiasm and large-cap tech gains, would cause EASY to underperform because it avoids the leading gainers. The concentration of the portfolio — roughly 25–40 positions — creates more risk than a 500-stock index fund, though less than owning a single stock. If a few large holdings face unexpected challenges, the impact on the fund is material.
Dividend sustainability is never assured. A company that has grown its payout for five or ten years can cut it if earnings deteriorate or capital needs shift. The fund’s screening aims to identify sustainable payers, but no formula is perfect. Additionally, EASY’s focus on large-cap stocks in stable sectors means it forgoes the potentially higher growth offered by mid-cap or smaller dividend-growth companies in more dynamic industries.
How to research EASY as an investment
Anyone considering EASY should read the fund’s prospectus and factsheet, both available from Liberty One’s website and the SEC. The documents detail the investment mandate, the specific screens used to select holdings, and the fee structure. Review the current holdings to understand which companies the manager has chosen and in which sectors. Examine the fund’s trailing yield and compare it to the yield of a broad market index or other dividend-growth funds to understand whether the defensive positioning comes at a yield cost.
Investors should also monitor the fund’s dividend-growth rate — the pace at which the per-share payout is rising. Over time, assess whether the fund’s active management and defensive tilt are delivering relative outperformance in downturns (where the fund should excel) without significant underperformance in upturns (where defensive positioning naturally lags). Read the prospectus for the manager’s criteria for dividend sustainability and which sectors are considered defensive; these define the fund’s boundaries and potential biases.