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Should iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO) Be on Your Investing Radar?
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Launched on July 24, 2000, the iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $15.06 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Small Cap Growth
Small cap companies have market capitalization below $2 billion. They usually have higher potential than large and mid cap companies with stocks but higher risk.
While growth stocks do boast higher than average sales and earnings growth rates, and they are expected to grow faster than the wider market, investors should note these kinds of stocks have higher valuations. Further, growth stocks have a higher level of volatility associated with them. 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
Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.24%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.42%.
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 to the Industrials sector -- about 24.3% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Healthcare round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Bloom Energy Class A Corp (BE) accounts for about 1.95% of total assets, followed by Fabrinet (FN) and Credo Technology Group Holding Ltd (CRDO).
The top 10 holdings account for about 9.95% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
IWO seeks to match the performance of the Russell 2000 Growth Index before fees and expenses. The Russell 2000 Growth Index measures the performance of the small-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell 2000 Index, which measures the performance of the small-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market & approximately 51% of the total market value of the Russell 2000 Index.
The ETF has added roughly 20.6% so far this year and was up about 37.75% in the last one year (as of 06/25/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $284.45 and $393.85.
The ETF has a beta of 1.19 and standard deviation of 22.28% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 1106 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
iShares Russell 2000 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, IWO is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF (IJT) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VBK) track a similar index. While iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF has $7.94 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $23.78 billion. IJT has an expense ratio of 0.18% and VBK charges 0.05%.
Bottom-Line
An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also 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 2000 Growth ETF (IWO) Be on Your Investing Radar?
Launched on July 24, 2000, the iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $15.06 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Small Cap Growth
Small cap companies have market capitalization below $2 billion. They usually have higher potential than large and mid cap companies with stocks but higher risk.
While growth stocks do boast higher than average sales and earnings growth rates, and they are expected to grow faster than the wider market, investors should note these kinds of stocks have higher valuations. Further, growth stocks have a higher level of volatility associated with them. 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
Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.24%, putting it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.42%.
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 to the Industrials sector -- about 24.3% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Healthcare round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Bloom Energy Class A Corp (BE) accounts for about 1.95% of total assets, followed by Fabrinet (FN) and Credo Technology Group Holding Ltd (CRDO).
The top 10 holdings account for about 9.95% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
IWO seeks to match the performance of the Russell 2000 Growth Index before fees and expenses. The Russell 2000 Growth Index measures the performance of the small-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell 2000 Index, which measures the performance of the small-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market & approximately 51% of the total market value of the Russell 2000 Index.
The ETF has added roughly 20.6% so far this year and was up about 37.75% in the last one year (as of 06/25/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $284.45 and $393.85.
The ETF has a beta of 1.19 and standard deviation of 22.28% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 1106 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
iShares Russell 2000 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, IWO is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF (IJT) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VBK) track a similar index. While iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF has $7.94 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $23.78 billion. IJT has an expense ratio of 0.18% and VBK charges 0.05%.
Bottom-Line
An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also 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.