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Should iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP) Be on Your Investing Radar?
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Launched on July 17, 2001, the iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $20.46 billion, making it the largest ETF attempting to match the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Mid Cap Growth
Mid cap companies, with market capitalization in the range of $2 billion and $10 billion, offer investors many things that small and large companies don't, including less risk and higher growth opportunities. These types of companies, then, have a good balance of stability and growth potential.
Qualities of growth stocks include faster growth rates compared to the broader market, as well as higher valuations and higher than average sales and earnings growth rates. Something to keep in mind is the higher level of volatility that is affiliated with growth stocks. They are likely to outperform value stocks in strong bull markets but over the longer-term, value stocks have delivered better returns than growth stocks in almost all markets.
Costs
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 counterparts, other things remaining the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.23%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.33%.
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 26.7% of the portfolio. Consumer Discretionary and Information Technology round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Vertiv Holdings Class A (VRT) accounts for about 3.56% of total assets, followed by Howmet Aerospace Inc (HWM) and Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc (HLT).
The top 10 holdings account for about 24.33% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
IWP seeks to match the performance of the Russell MidCap Growth Index before fees and expenses. The Russell Midcap Growth Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell Midcap Index, which measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market & approximately 47% of the total market value of the Russell Midcap Index.
The ETF has added roughly 4.39% so far this year and it's up approximately 8.84% in the last one year (as of 06/01/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $123.62 and $145.30.
The ETF has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 18.96% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 282 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, IWP is a great option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF (IJK) and the Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VOT) track a similar index. While iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF has $11.01 billion in assets, Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $19.16 billion. IJK has an expense ratio of 0.17% and VOT charges 0.05%.
Bottom-Line
Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are 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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Should iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP) Be on Your Investing Radar?
Launched on July 17, 2001, the iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $20.46 billion, making it the largest ETF attempting to match the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Mid Cap Growth
Mid cap companies, with market capitalization in the range of $2 billion and $10 billion, offer investors many things that small and large companies don't, including less risk and higher growth opportunities. These types of companies, then, have a good balance of stability and growth potential.
Qualities of growth stocks include faster growth rates compared to the broader market, as well as higher valuations and higher than average sales and earnings growth rates. Something to keep in mind is the higher level of volatility that is affiliated with growth stocks. They are likely to outperform value stocks in strong bull markets but over the longer-term, value stocks have delivered better returns than growth stocks in almost all markets.
Costs
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 counterparts, other things remaining the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.23%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.33%.
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 26.7% of the portfolio. Consumer Discretionary and Information Technology round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Vertiv Holdings Class A (VRT) accounts for about 3.56% of total assets, followed by Howmet Aerospace Inc (HWM) and Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc (HLT).
The top 10 holdings account for about 24.33% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
IWP seeks to match the performance of the Russell MidCap Growth Index before fees and expenses. The Russell Midcap Growth Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell Midcap Index, which measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market & approximately 47% of the total market value of the Russell Midcap Index.
The ETF has added roughly 4.39% so far this year and it's up approximately 8.84% in the last one year (as of 06/01/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $123.62 and $145.30.
The ETF has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 18.96% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 282 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, IWP is a great option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF (IJK) and the Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VOT) track a similar index. While iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF has $11.01 billion in assets, Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $19.16 billion. IJK has an expense ratio of 0.17% and VOT charges 0.05%.
Bottom-Line
Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are 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.