Launched on February 8, 2022, the NYLIM U.S. Large Cap R&D Leaders ETF (LRND Quick QuoteLRND - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by New York Life Investment Management. It has amassed assets over $457.25 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Blend

Large cap companies usually have a market capitalization above $10 billion. Overall, they are usually a stable option, with less risk and more sure-fire cash flows than mid and small cap companies.

Blend ETFs are aptly named, since they tend to hold a mix of growth and value stocks, as well as show characteristics of both kinds of equities.

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 0.14%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.39%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Information Technology sector -- about 58.5% of the portfolio. Telecom and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Nvidia Corporation (NVDA) accounts for about 17.4% of total assets, followed by Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) and Apple Inc. (AAPL).

The top 10 holdings account for about 69.64% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

LRND seeks to match the performance of the NYLI U.S. LARGE CAP R&D LEADERS INDEX before fees and expenses. The NYLIM U.S. Large Cap R&D Leaders Index seeks to provide exposure to innovative companies by investing in U.S. large-cap equity securities of companies that demonstrate consistent and effective use of R&D investment.

The ETF return is roughly 16.9% so far this year and is up roughly 20.2% in the last one year (as of 09/24/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $35.87 and $48.15.

The ETF has a beta of 1.10 and standard deviation of 17.51% for the trailing three-year period. With about 108 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

NYLIM U.S. Large Cap R&D Leaders 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, LRND is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) and the Vanguard 500 Index Fund ETF Shares (VOO) track a similar index. While iShares Core S&P 500 ETF has $850.64 billion in assets, Vanguard 500 Index Fund ETF Shares has $1,052.83 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% and VOO charges 0.03%.

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.