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Should iShares Core S&P MidCap ETF (IJH) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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If you're interested in broad exposure to the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market, look no further than the iShares Core S&P MidCap ETF (IJH - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 05/22/2000.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $67.43 billion, making it the largest ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Blend

Mid cap companies, with market capitalization in the range of $2 billion and $10 billion, offer investors many things that small and large companies don't, including less risk and higher growth opportunities. Thus, companies that fall under this category provide a stable and growth-heavy investment.

Typically holding a combination of both growth and value stocks, blend ETFs also demonstrate qualities seen in value and growth investments.

Costs

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.05%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.54%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector--about 19.80% of the portfolio. Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Fair Isaac Corp (FICO - Free Report) accounts for about 0.73% of total assets, followed by First Horizon Corp (FHN - Free Report) and Rpm International Inc (RPM - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 3.75% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

IJH seeks to match the performance of the S&P MidCap 400 Index before fees and expenses. The S&P MidCap 400 Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market.

The ETF has gained about 6.06% so far this year and is down about -6.01% in the last one year (as of 01/18/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $219.07 and $276.36.

The ETF has a beta of 1.11 and standard deviation of 29.95% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 412 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

IShares Core S&P MidCap 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, IJH is a reasonable option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Russell MidCap ETF (IWR - Free Report) and the Vanguard MidCap ETF (VO - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell MidCap ETF has $28.71 billion in assets, Vanguard MidCap ETF has $52.30 billion. IWR has an expense ratio of 0.18% and VO charges 0.04%.

Bottom-Line

Retail and institutional investors increasingly turn to passively managed ETFs because they offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; these kind of funds are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.

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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