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Is iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 07/24/2000, the iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - All Cap Growth category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $13.67 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Style Box - All Cap Growth. IUSG, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P 900 Growth Index.
The S&P 900 Growth Index measures the performance of the large and mid-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market.
Cost & Other Expenses
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for IUSG are 0.04%, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.60%.
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.
For IUSG, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 42.20% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Telecom round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) accounts for about 10.95% of the fund's total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) and Amazon Com Inc (AMZN - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 48.43% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added roughly 29.74% and is up about 29.83% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 12/22/2021), respectively. IUSG has traded between $85.70 and $116.13 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 1 and standard deviation of 23.32% for the trailing three-year period, which makes IUSG a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 478 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
IShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - All Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
First Trust US Equity Opportunities ETF (FPX - Free Report) tracks IPOX-100 U.S. Index and the iShares Morningstar Growth ETF (ILCG - Free Report) tracks MORNINGSTAR US LARGE-MID CP BRD GRWTH ID. First Trust US Equity Opportunities ETF has $1.84 billion in assets, iShares Morningstar Growth ETF has $2.20 billion. FPX has an expense ratio of 0.57% and ILCG charges 0.04%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - All Cap Growth.
Bottom Line
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.
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Is iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 07/24/2000, the iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - All Cap Growth category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $13.67 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Style Box - All Cap Growth. IUSG, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P 900 Growth Index.
The S&P 900 Growth Index measures the performance of the large and mid-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market.
Cost & Other Expenses
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for IUSG are 0.04%, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.60%.
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.
For IUSG, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 42.20% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Telecom round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) accounts for about 10.95% of the fund's total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) and Amazon Com Inc (AMZN - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 48.43% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added roughly 29.74% and is up about 29.83% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 12/22/2021), respectively. IUSG has traded between $85.70 and $116.13 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 1 and standard deviation of 23.32% for the trailing three-year period, which makes IUSG a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 478 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
IShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - All Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
First Trust US Equity Opportunities ETF (FPX - Free Report) tracks IPOX-100 U.S. Index and the iShares Morningstar Growth ETF (ILCG - Free Report) tracks MORNINGSTAR US LARGE-MID CP BRD GRWTH ID. First Trust US Equity Opportunities ETF has $1.84 billion in assets, iShares Morningstar Growth ETF has $2.20 billion. FPX has an expense ratio of 0.57% and ILCG charges 0.04%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - All Cap Growth.
Bottom Line
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.