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Should iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF (IJT) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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The iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF (IJT - Free Report) was launched on 07/24/2000, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $4.90 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

Why Small Cap Growth

Sitting at a market capitalization below $2 billion, small cap companies tend to be high-potential stocks compared to its large and mid cap counterparts, but come with higher risk.

While growth stocks do boast higher than average sales and earnings growth rates, and they are expected to grow faster than the wider market, investors should note these kinds of stocks have higher valuations. Further, growth stocks have a higher level of volatility associated with them. Compared to value stocks, growth stocks are a safer bet in a strong bull market, but don't perform as strongly in almost all other financial environments.

Costs

When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.18%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.23%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector--about 18.50% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Financials round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Onto Innovation Inc (ONTO - Free Report) accounts for about 1.44% of total assets, followed by Rambus Inc (RMBS - Free Report) and Fabrinet (FN - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 12.36% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

IJT seeks to match the performance of the S&P SmallCap 600 Growth Index before fees and expenses. The S&P SmallCap 600 Growth Index measures the performance of the small-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market.

The ETF has added roughly 3.89% so far this year and is down about -0.65% in the last one year (as of 11/22/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $103.08 and $120.85.

The ETF has a beta of 1.11 and standard deviation of 22.51% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 377 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

IShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth 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, IJT is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Growth area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO - Free Report) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF (VBK - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF has $9.63 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF has $13.42 billion. IWO has an expense ratio of 0.24% and VBK charges 0.07%.

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.

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