Designed to provide broad exposure to the Large Cap Value segment of the US equity market, the iShares Morningstar LargeCap Value ETF is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 06/28/2004.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $455.47 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Value

Companies that find themselves in the large cap category typically have a market capitalization above $10 billion. They tend to be stable companies with predictable cash flows and are usually less volatile than mid and small cap companies.

While value stocks have lower than average price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios, they also have lower than average sales and earnings growth rates. Considering long-term performance, value stocks have outperformed growth stocks in almost all markets; however, they are more likely to underperform growth stocks in strong bull markets.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.25%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.43%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Financials sector--about 18.60% of the portfolio. Consumer Staples and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ Quick QuoteJNJ - Free Report) accounts for about 6.11% of total assets, followed by Procter & Gamble (PG Quick QuotePG - Free Report) and Jpmorgan Chase & Co (JPM Quick QuoteJPM - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 39.42% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

JKF seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar Large Value Index before fees and expenses. The Morningstar Large Value Index measures the performance of stocks issued by large-capitalization comp that have exhibited value characteristics.

The ETF has lost about -12.19% so far this year and is down about -0.80% in the last one year (as of 08/10/2020). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $75.97 and $117.83.

The ETF has a beta of 0.94 and standard deviation of 22.06% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 79 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

IShares Morningstar LargeCap Value ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, JKF is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (IWD Quick QuoteIWD - Free Report) and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV Quick QuoteVTV - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF has $36.10 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $50.51 billion. IWD has an expense ratio of 0.19% and VTV charges 0.04%.

Bottom-Line

While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.