We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Should You Invest in the iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM)?
Read MoreHide Full Article
If you're interested in broad exposure to the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market, look no further than the iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 06/12/2000.
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.
Additionally, sector ETFs offer convenient ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Materials - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 15, placing it in bottom 6%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $681.15 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market. IYM seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Basic Materials Index before fees and expenses.
The Russell 1000 Basic Materials RIC 22.5/45 Capped Gross Index measures the performance of the basic materials sector of the U.S. equity market.
Costs
Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts, other things remaining the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.40%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.26%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Materials sector--about 92% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Linde Plc (LIN - Free Report) accounts for about 20.41% of total assets, followed by Air Products And Chemicals Inc (APD - Free Report) and Freeport Mcmoran Inc (FCX - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 63.65% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, IYM has gained about 10.56%, and it's up approximately 10.10% in the last one year (as of 12/21/2023). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $119.29 and $140.43.
The ETF has a beta of 1.14 and standard deviation of 21.74% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 43 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
IShares U.S. Basic Materials 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, IYM is a good option for those seeking exposure to the Materials ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB - Free Report) tracks Materials Select Sector Index and the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF (GUNR - Free Report) tracks Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index. Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF has $4.99 billion in assets, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF has $6.96 billion. XLB has an expense ratio of 0.10% and GUNR charges 0.46%.
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.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Should You Invest in the iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM)?
If you're interested in broad exposure to the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market, look no further than the iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 06/12/2000.
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.
Additionally, sector ETFs offer convenient ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Materials - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 15, placing it in bottom 6%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $681.15 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Materials - Broad segment of the equity market. IYM seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Basic Materials Index before fees and expenses.
The Russell 1000 Basic Materials RIC 22.5/45 Capped Gross Index measures the performance of the basic materials sector of the U.S. equity market.
Costs
Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts, other things remaining the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.40%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.26%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Materials sector--about 92% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Linde Plc (LIN - Free Report) accounts for about 20.41% of total assets, followed by Air Products And Chemicals Inc (APD - Free Report) and Freeport Mcmoran Inc (FCX - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 63.65% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, IYM has gained about 10.56%, and it's up approximately 10.10% in the last one year (as of 12/21/2023). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $119.29 and $140.43.
The ETF has a beta of 1.14 and standard deviation of 21.74% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 43 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
IShares U.S. Basic Materials 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, IYM is a good option for those seeking exposure to the Materials ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB - Free Report) tracks Materials Select Sector Index and the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF (GUNR - Free Report) tracks Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index. Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF has $4.99 billion in assets, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources ETF has $6.96 billion. XLB has an expense ratio of 0.10% and GUNR charges 0.46%.
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.