Is iShares Core S&P U.S. Value ETF (IUSV) a Strong ETF Right Now?

The iShares Core S&P U.S. Value ETF (IUSV) was launched on 07/24/2000, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - All Cap Value category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.

Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.

If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.

By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.

The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.

Fund Sponsor & Index

The fund is managed by Blackrock. IUSV has been able to amass assets over $19.06 billion, making it the largest ETF in the Style Box - All Cap Value. IUSV seeks to match the performance of the S&P 900 Value Index before fees and expenses.

The S&P 900 Value Index measures the performance of the large and mid-capitalization value sector of the U.S. equity market.

Cost & Other Expenses

For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.

With one of the least expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.04%.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.22%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector - about 21.30% of the portfolio. Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Apple Inc (AAPL) accounts for about 7.54% of total assets, followed by Microsoft Corp (MSFT) and Amazon Com Inc (AMZN).

IUSV's top 10 holdings account for about 26.94% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -6.43% and is up roughly 0.54% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 04/14/2025), respectively. IUSV has traded between $81.46 and $100.02 during this last 52-week period.

IUSV has a beta of 0.88 and standard deviation of 15.77% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 705 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

IShares Core S&P U.S. Value ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - All Cap Value segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

Dimensional U.S. Targeted Value ETF (DFAT) tracks ---------------------------------------- and the Capital Group Dividend Value ETF (CGDV) tracks ----------------------------------------. Dimensional U.S. Targeted Value ETF has $9.16 billion in assets, Capital Group Dividend Value ETF has $14.01 billion. DFAT has an expense ratio of 0.28% and CGDV charges 0.33%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - All Cap Value.

Bottom Line

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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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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