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Is iShares U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor ETF (SMLF) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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A smart beta exchange traded fund, the iShares U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor ETF (SMLF - Free Report) debuted on 04/28/2015, and offers broad exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Blend category of the market.
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.
Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.
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.
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.
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
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $3.58 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Small Cap Blend. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the MSCI USA Small Cap Diversified Multiple-Factor Index before fees and expenses.
The STOXX U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor Index (USD) composed of U.S. small-capitalization stocks that have favourable exposure to target style factors subject to constraints.
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 0.15% for this ETF, which makes it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 1.09%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector - about 20.9% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Financials round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Emcor Group Inc (EME) accounts for about 1.23% of total assets, followed by Blk Csh Fnd Treasury Sl Agency (XTSLA) and Nvent Electric Plc (NVT).
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 8.79% and was up about 34.63% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 04/29/2026), respectively. SMLF has traded between $61.03 and $83.14 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.09 and standard deviation of 19.59% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 919 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
iShares U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Small Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares (VB) tracks CRSP US Small Cap Index and the iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR) tracks S&P SmallCap 600 Index. Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares has $75.72 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF has $101.13 billion. VB has an expense ratio of 0.03% and IJR changes 0.06%.
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 - Small Cap Blend
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 U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor ETF (SMLF) a Strong ETF Right Now?
A smart beta exchange traded fund, the iShares U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor ETF (SMLF - Free Report) debuted on 04/28/2015, and offers broad exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Blend category of the market.
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.
Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.
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.
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.
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
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $3.58 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Small Cap Blend. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the MSCI USA Small Cap Diversified Multiple-Factor Index before fees and expenses.
The STOXX U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor Index (USD) composed of U.S. small-capitalization stocks that have favourable exposure to target style factors subject to constraints.
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 0.15% for this ETF, which makes it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 1.09%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector - about 20.9% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Financials round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Emcor Group Inc (EME) accounts for about 1.23% of total assets, followed by Blk Csh Fnd Treasury Sl Agency (XTSLA) and Nvent Electric Plc (NVT).
Performance and Risk
The ETF return is roughly 8.79% and was up about 34.63% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 04/29/2026), respectively. SMLF has traded between $61.03 and $83.14 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.09 and standard deviation of 19.59% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 919 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
iShares U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Small Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares (VB) tracks CRSP US Small Cap Index and the iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR) tracks S&P SmallCap 600 Index. Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares has $75.72 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF has $101.13 billion. VB has an expense ratio of 0.03% and IJR changes 0.06%.
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 - Small Cap Blend
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.