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

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Launched on May 22, 2000, the iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF (IJH - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $99.96 billion, making it the largest ETF attempting to match the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Blend

Compared to large and small cap companies, mid cap businesses tend to have higher growth prospects and are less volatile, respectively, with market capitalization between $2 billion and $10 billion. Thus, companies that fall under this category provide a stable and growth-heavy investment.

Blend ETFs are aptly named, since they tend to hold a mix of growth and value stocks, as well as show characteristics of both kinds of equities.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain 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 1.64%.

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.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector -- about 23.4% of the portfolio. Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Interactive Brokers Group Inc Clas (IBKR) accounts for about 0.99% of total assets, followed by Emcor Group Inc (EME) and Comfort Systems Usa Inc (FIX).

The top 10 holdings account for about 1.94% 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 added about 5.85% so far this year and it's up approximately 8.56% in the last one year (as of 09/17/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $51.16 and $67.87.

The ETF has a beta of 1.07 and standard deviation of 19.2% 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 Mid-Cap 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 Mid-Cap ETF (IWR) and the Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF (VO) track a similar index. While iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF has $44.53 billion in assets, Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF has $87.72 billion. IWR has an expense ratio of 0.18% and VO charges 0.04%.

Bottom-Line

An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they 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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