The Dan IVES Wedbush AI Revolution ETF (NYSE: IVES), a fund specifically designed to capture the rapid growth of artificial intelligence, saw its powerful initial momentum stall in November, posting a 7.51% decline for the month.
The dip comes after a strong performance since its launch in June 2025, signaling that even the most compelling secular growth stories are not immune to market corrections and investor anxiety over stretched valuations. The thematic fund, which invests in about 30 key AI companies—including a heavy weighting in megacap tech giants like Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ: NVDA), Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT), and Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ: AVGO), is particularly susceptible to broad sector shifts. Its performance is a direct reflection of the gains and losses concentrated within the narrow, high-growth AI ecosystem.
Market analysts suggest the November decline is largely a function of concentration risk inherent to sector-specific funds. While the long-term AI narrative championed by Wedbush analyst Dan Ives remains overwhelmingly bullish, November saw an environment where institutional investors began to rotate out of high-flying growth stocks and into sectors deemed less volatile or undervalued.
The Nasdaq Composite, a broader gauge of tech performance, also struggled during the month, ending its multi-month winning streak and creating strong headwinds for specialized AI vehicles like IVES.
The volatility serves as a crucial reminder to investors about the high-risk, high-reward nature of thematic ETFs. The fund's official prospectus highlights both concentration risk and AI technology risk, emphasizing that a downturn affecting the AI industry or the technology sector generally will have a magnified negative impact on the ETF's value.
Key holdings, such as semiconductor companies whose valuations soared on AI enthusiasm, faced pressure as investors paused to digest the massive run-up and potentially booked profits.
Despite the short-term pullback, the IVES ETF remains up over 27% since its inception in June 2025. This performance underscores the fund's inherent volatility. For investors with a long-term horizon, such dips are viewed as entry opportunities, while they can be jarring for those new to specialized, high-growth funds.
The future performance of the fund will depend on the continued execution of its core semiconductor and software AI platform holdings.