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Is Nuveen ESG Mid-Cap Value ETF (NUMV) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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Designed to provide broad exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Value category of the market, the Nuveen ESG Mid-Cap Value ETF (NUMV - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund launched on 12/13/2016.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.

Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.

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.

This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.

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

Because the fund has amassed over $404.1 million, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Mid Cap Value. NUMV is managed by Nuveen. NUMV, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the TIAA ESG USA Mid-Cap Value Index.

The Nuveen ESG USA Mid-Cap Value Index primarily composes of equity securities issued by mid-capitalization companies listed on U.S. exchanges.

Cost & Other Expenses

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

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.31%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.63%.

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.

For NUMV, it has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector --about 17% of the portfolio --while Financials and Information Technology round out the top three.

Taking into account individual holdings, United Rentals Inc. (URI) accounts for about 2.56% of the fund's total assets, followed by Western Digital (WDC) and Baker Hughes Co (BKR).

The top 10 holdings account for about 21.1% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the Nuveen ESG Mid-Cap Value ETF has added about 11.03% so far, and is up about 7.52% over the last 12 months (as of 10/29/2025). NUMV has traded between $30.28 $38.99 in this past 52-week period.

The fund has a beta of 1.01 and standard deviation of 16.21% for the trailing three-year period. With about 94 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .

Alternatives

Nuveen ESG Mid-Cap Value ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Mid Cap Value segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.

Vanguard ESG U.S. Stock ETF (ESGV) tracks FTSE US ALL CAP CHOICE INDEX and the iShares ESG Aware MSCI USA ETF (ESGU) tracks MSCI USA ESG Focus Index. Vanguard ESG U.S. Stock ETF has $11.95 billion in assets, iShares ESG Aware MSCI USA ETF has $15.27 billion. ESGV has an expense ratio of 0.09% and ESGU changes 0.15%.

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 - Mid 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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