Should You Invest in the VanEck Oil Services ETF (OIH)?

If you're interested in broad exposure to the Energy - Equipment and services segment of the equity market, look no further than the VanEck Oil Services ETF (OIH), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 12/20/2011.

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.

Investor-friendly, sector ETFs provide many options to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Energy - Equipment and services is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 11, placing it in bottom 31%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by Van Eck. It has amassed assets over $893.01 million, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Energy - Equipment and services segment of the equity market. OIH seeks to match the performance of the MVIS U.S. Listed Oil Services 25 Index before fees and expenses.

The MVIS U.S. Listed Oil Services 25 Index tracks the overall performance of U.S.-listed companies involved in oil services to the upstream oil sector, which include oil equipment, oil services, or oil drilling.

Costs

When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.59%.

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 in the Energy sector--about 94.40% of the portfolio.

Looking at individual holdings, Schlumberger Nv (SLB) accounts for about 21.76% of total assets, followed by Baker Hughes Co (BKR) and Halliburton Co (HAL).

The top 10 holdings account for about 74.96% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -22.47% so far this year and is down about -34.53% in the last one year (as of 04/16/2025). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $196.72 and $337.37.

The ETF has a beta of 1.34 and standard deviation of 37.08% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 27 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.

Alternatives

VanEck Oil Services ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, OIH is a good option for those seeking exposure to the Energy ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

IShares U.S. Oil Equipment & Services ETF (IEZ) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Select Oil Equipment & Services Index and the SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF (XES) tracks S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services Select Industry Index. IShares U.S. Oil Equipment & Services ETF has $118.23 million in assets, SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF has $142.78 million. IEZ has an expense ratio of 0.40% and XES charges 0.35%.

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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