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.
Is iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
A smart beta exchange traded fund, the iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG - Free Report) debuted on 07/24/2000, and offers broad exposure to the Style Box - All Cap Growth category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.
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.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $15.79 billion, making it the largest ETF in the Style Box - All Cap Growth. This particular fund, 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
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.04% for this ETF, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.05%.
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.
For IUSG, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 37.10% of the portfolio --while Healthcare and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) accounts for about 12.69% of the fund's total assets, followed by Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) and Nvidia Corp (NVDA - Free Report) .
IUSG's top 10 holdings account for about 43.41% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 6.38% and is up roughly 27.86% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 02/06/2024), respectively. IUSG has traded between $82.78 and $110.74 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.05 and standard deviation of 21.15% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 497 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.
Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF (FBCG - Free Report) tracks ---------------------------------------- and the iShares Morningstar Growth ETF (ILCG - Free Report) tracks MORNINGSTAR US LARGE-MID CP BRD GRWTH ID. Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF has $1.17 billion in assets, iShares Morningstar Growth ETF has $2.02 billion. FBCG has an expense ratio of 0.59% 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.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG) a Strong ETF Right Now?
A smart beta exchange traded fund, the iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG - Free Report) debuted on 07/24/2000, and offers broad exposure to the Style Box - All Cap Growth category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.
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.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $15.79 billion, making it the largest ETF in the Style Box - All Cap Growth. This particular fund, 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
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.04% for this ETF, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.05%.
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.
For IUSG, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 37.10% of the portfolio --while Healthcare and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) accounts for about 12.69% of the fund's total assets, followed by Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) and Nvidia Corp (NVDA - Free Report) .
IUSG's top 10 holdings account for about 43.41% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 6.38% and is up roughly 27.86% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 02/06/2024), respectively. IUSG has traded between $82.78 and $110.74 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.05 and standard deviation of 21.15% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 497 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.
Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF (FBCG - Free Report) tracks ---------------------------------------- and the iShares Morningstar Growth ETF (ILCG - Free Report) tracks MORNINGSTAR US LARGE-MID CP BRD GRWTH ID. Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF has $1.17 billion in assets, iShares Morningstar Growth ETF has $2.02 billion. FBCG has an expense ratio of 0.59% 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.