Should iShares Russell Top 200 Growth ETF (IWY) Be on Your Investing Radar?
If you're interested in broad exposure to the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market, look no further than the iShares Russell Top 200 Growth ETF (IWY), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 09/22/2009.
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $12.05 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.
Why Large Cap Growth
Companies that find themselves in the large cap category typically have a market capitalization above $10 billion. Considered a more stable option, large cap companies boast more predictable cash flows and are less volatile than their mid and small cap counterparts.
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. Additionally, growth stocks have a greater level of risk associated with them. When you consider growth versus value, growth stocks are usually the clear winner in strong bull markets but tend to fall flat in nearly all other environments.
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 0.20%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.53%.
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 Information Technology sector--about 43.80% of the portfolio. Consumer Discretionary and Telecom round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Microsoft Corp (MSFT) accounts for about 13.71% of total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL) and Nvidia Corp (NVDA).
The top 10 holdings account for about 60.48% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
IWY seeks to match the performance of the Russell Top 200 Growth Index before fees and expenses. The Russell Top 200 Growth Index is a style factor weighted index that measures the performance of the largest capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell Top 200 Index issuers with relatively higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth, which measures the performance of the largest capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market.
The ETF has gained about 22.61% so far this year and is up roughly 38.58% in the last one year (as of 06/26/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $149.01 and $216.14.
The ETF has a beta of 1.07 and standard deviation of 21.67% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 115 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
IShares Russell Top 200 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, IWY is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ) track a similar index. While Vanguard Growth ETF has $133.50 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $287.84 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.04% and QQQ charges 0.20%.
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.
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iShares Russell Top 200 Growth ETF (IWY): ETF Research Reports
Apple Inc. (AAPL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Invesco QQQ (QQQ): ETF Research Reports
Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG): ETF Research Reports
