Looking for broad exposure to the Small Cap Blend segment of the US equity market? You should consider the iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on May 22, 2000.
The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $84.43 billion, making it the largest ETF attempting to match the Small Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.
Why Small Cap Blend
With more potential comes more risk, and small cap companies, with market capitalization below $2 billion, epitomizes this way of thinking.
Blend ETFs usually hold a mix of growth and value stocks as well as stocks that exhibit both value and growth characteristics.
Costs
Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.06%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.02%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector -- about 18.5% of the portfolio. Financials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Blk Csh Fnd Treasury Sl Agency (XTSLA) accounts for about 1.24% of total assets, followed by Mr Cooper Group Inc (COOP) and Kratos Defense And Security Soluti (KTOS).
Performance and Risk
IJR seeks to match the performance of the S&P SmallCap 600 Index before fees and expenses. The S&P SmallCap 600 Index measures the performance of the small capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market.
The ETF has added about 2.29% so far this year and it's up approximately 2.59% in the last one year (as of 09/03/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $90.56 and $127.38.
The ETF has a beta of 1.09 and standard deviation of 21.55% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 640 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
iShares Core S&P Small-Cap 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, IJR is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Blend segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
The Vanguard Small-Cap ETF (VB) and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) track a similar index. While Vanguard Small-Cap ETF has $65.95 billion in assets, iShares Russell 2000 ETF has $66.57 billion. VB has an expense ratio of 0.05% and IWM charges 0.19%.
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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iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR): ETF Research ReportsThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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