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Is iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Making its debut on 06/10/2014, smart beta exchange traded fund iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
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.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other 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
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $43.03 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index.
The Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index is composed of U.S. equities with a history of consistently growing dividends.
Cost & Other Expenses
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.
With one of the least expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.08%.
DGRO's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 1.94%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector - about 20.9% of the portfolio. Healthcare and Information Technology round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Microsoft (MSFT) accounts for about 3.42% of the fund's total assets, followed by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Jpmorgan Chase & Co (JPM).
The top 10 holdings account for about 27.67% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, DGRO has added roughly 12.35%, and is up about 16.02% in the last one year (as of 09/23/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $66.93 and $80.04.
DGRO has a beta of 0.76 and standard deviation of 11.54% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 398 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
Invesco S&P 500 Quality ETF (SPHQ) tracks S&P 500 Quality Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Fund ETF Shares (VIG) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. Invesco S&P 500 Quality ETF has $18.85 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Fund ETF Shares has $111.01 billion. SPHQ has an expense ratio of 0.15% and VIG changes 0.04%.
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 - Large 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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Is iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Making its debut on 06/10/2014, smart beta exchange traded fund iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
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.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other 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
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $43.03 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index.
The Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index is composed of U.S. equities with a history of consistently growing dividends.
Cost & Other Expenses
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.
With one of the least expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.08%.
DGRO's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 1.94%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector - about 20.9% of the portfolio. Healthcare and Information Technology round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Microsoft (MSFT) accounts for about 3.42% of the fund's total assets, followed by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Jpmorgan Chase & Co (JPM).
The top 10 holdings account for about 27.67% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, DGRO has added roughly 12.35%, and is up about 16.02% in the last one year (as of 09/23/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $66.93 and $80.04.
DGRO has a beta of 0.76 and standard deviation of 11.54% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 398 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
Invesco S&P 500 Quality ETF (SPHQ) tracks S&P 500 Quality Index and the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Fund ETF Shares (VIG) tracks NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index. Invesco S&P 500 Quality ETF has $18.85 billion in assets, Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Fund ETF Shares has $111.01 billion. SPHQ has an expense ratio of 0.15% and VIG changes 0.04%.
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 - Large 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.