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Should You Invest in the iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF (IYH)?
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Designed to provide broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market, the iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF (IYH - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on June 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.
Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Healthcare - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 4, placing it in top 25%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $3.57 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market. IYH seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Health Care Index before fees and expenses.
The Russell 1000 Health Care RIC 22.5/45 Capped Gross Index measures the performance of the healthcare sector of the U.S. equity market.
Costs
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.38%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.2%.
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 in the Healthcare sector -- about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Eli Lilly (LLY) accounts for about 14.12% of total assets, followed by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Abbvie Inc (ABBV).
The top 10 holdings account for about 55.92% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 12.07% so far this year and is up roughly 11.15% in the last one year (as of 12/18/2025). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $53.97 and $66.86.
The ETF has a beta of 0.63 and standard deviation of 13.53% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 107 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
iShares U.S. Healthcare 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, IYH is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF ETF (XLV) tracks Health Care Select Sector Index. Vanguard Health Care ETF has $17.19 billion in assets, State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF ETF has $40.31 billion. VHT has an expense ratio of 0.09%, and XLV charges 0.08%.
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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Should You Invest in the iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF (IYH)?
Designed to provide broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market, the iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF (IYH - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on June 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.
Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Healthcare - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 4, placing it in top 25%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $3.57 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market. IYH seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Health Care Index before fees and expenses.
The Russell 1000 Health Care RIC 22.5/45 Capped Gross Index measures the performance of the healthcare sector of the U.S. equity market.
Costs
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.38%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.2%.
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 in the Healthcare sector -- about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Eli Lilly (LLY) accounts for about 14.12% of total assets, followed by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Abbvie Inc (ABBV).The top 10 holdings account for about 55.92% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 12.07% so far this year and is up roughly 11.15% in the last one year (as of 12/18/2025). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $53.97 and $66.86.
The ETF has a beta of 0.63 and standard deviation of 13.53% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 107 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
iShares U.S. Healthcare 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, IYH is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF ETF (XLV) tracks Health Care Select Sector Index. Vanguard Health Care ETF has $17.19 billion in assets, State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF ETF has $40.31 billion. VHT has an expense ratio of 0.09%, and XLV charges 0.08%.
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.