Launched on July 24, 2000, the iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF (IJS Quick QuoteIJS - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Small Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $7.75 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

Why Small Cap Value

There's a lot of potential to investing in small cap companies, but with market capitalization below $2 billion, that high potential comes with even higher risk.

While value stocks have lower than average price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios, they also have lower than average sales and earnings growth rates. When you look at long-term performance, value stocks have outperformed growth stocks in nearly all markets. But in strong bull markets, growth stocks are more likely to be winners.

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 0.18%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.42%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Consumer Discretionary sector -- about 15.3% of the portfolio. Financials and Industrials round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Blk Csh Fnd Treasury Sl Agency (XTSLA) accounts for about 1.68% of total assets, followed by Match Group Inc (MTCH) and Paycom Software (PAYC).

Performance and Risk

IJS seeks to match the performance of the S&P SmallCap 600 Value Index before fees and expenses. The S&P SmallCap 600 Value Index measures the performance of the small capitalization value sector of the U.S. equity market.

The ETF has added about 15.66% so far this year and is up roughly 19.3% in the last one year (as of 09/24/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $104.72 and $140.68.

The ETF has a beta of 0.99 and standard deviation of 20.59% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 513 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Value 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, IJS is a great option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Value segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF (IWN) and the Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF (VBR) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF has $14.03 billion in assets, Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF has $36.02 billion. IWN has an expense ratio of 0.24% and VBR charges 0.05%.

Bottom-Line

While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.

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.