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Is iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Making its debut on 03/29/2011, smart beta exchange traded fund iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
HDV is managed by Blackrock, and this fund has amassed over $11.68 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar Dividend Yield Focus Index.
The Morningstar Dividend Yield Focus Index offers exposure to high quality U.S. domiciled companies that have had strong financial health and an ability to sustain above average dividend payouts.
Cost & Other Expenses
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 cousins, other things remaining the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.08% for HDV, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 4.11%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Healthcare sector - about 23.4% of the portfolio. Energy and Consumer Staples round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM) accounts for about 8.44% of the fund's total assets, followed by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Abbvie Inc (ABBV).
HDV's top 10 holdings account for about 51.4% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, HDV has gained about 10.82%, and was up about 6.9% in the last one year (as of 09/25/2025). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $108.41 and $123.66.
HDV has a beta of 0.65 and standard deviation of 12.67% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 82 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
iShares Core High Dividend ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Value Index. Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF has $71.03 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $147.01 billion. SCHD has an expense ratio of 0.06% and VTV changes 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 - Large Cap Value
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.
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Is iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Making its debut on 03/29/2011, smart beta exchange traded fund iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
HDV is managed by Blackrock, and this fund has amassed over $11.68 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar Dividend Yield Focus Index.
The Morningstar Dividend Yield Focus Index offers exposure to high quality U.S. domiciled companies that have had strong financial health and an ability to sustain above average dividend payouts.
Cost & Other Expenses
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 cousins, other things remaining the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.08% for HDV, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 4.11%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Healthcare sector - about 23.4% of the portfolio. Energy and Consumer Staples round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM) accounts for about 8.44% of the fund's total assets, followed by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Abbvie Inc (ABBV).
HDV's top 10 holdings account for about 51.4% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, HDV has gained about 10.82%, and was up about 6.9% in the last one year (as of 09/25/2025). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $108.41 and $123.66.
HDV has a beta of 0.65 and standard deviation of 12.67% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 82 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
iShares Core High Dividend ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Value Index. Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF has $71.03 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $147.01 billion. SCHD has an expense ratio of 0.06% and VTV changes 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 - Large Cap Value
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.