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Should iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (IWD) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Designed to provide broad exposure to the Large Cap Value segment of the US equity market, the iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (IWD - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 05/22/2000.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $60.85 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Value

Large cap companies typically 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.

Value stocks are known for their lower than average price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios, but investors should also note their lower than average sales and earnings growth rates. Considering long-term performance, value stocks have outperformed growth stocks in almost all markets; however, they are more likely to underperform growth stocks in strong bull 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 0.19%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.78%.

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 Financials sector--about 22.70% of the portfolio. Industrials and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Berkshire Hathaway Inc Class B (BRK.B - Free Report) accounts for about 3.33% of total assets, followed by Jpmorgan Chase & Co (JPM - Free Report) and Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 16.97% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

IWD seeks to match the performance of the Russell 1000 Value Index before fees and expenses. The Russell 1000 Value Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization value sector of the U.S. equity market.

The ETF has gained about 18.80% so far this year and was up about 28.48% in the last one year (as of 11/15/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $153.85 and $196.44.

The ETF has a beta of 0.95 and standard deviation of 15.27% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 877 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

IShares Russell 1000 Value ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, IWD is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD - Free Report) and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV - Free Report) track a similar index. While Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF has $65.42 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $130.75 billion. SCHD has an expense ratio of 0.06% and VTV charges 0.04%.

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.

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