Best-Performing ETF Areas of February

Wall Street underperformed over the past one month, with the S&P 500 losing 0.9% (as of Feb. 27, 2026), the Dow Jones retreating 1.3% and the Nasdaq Composite nosediving 3.4%. However, the small-cap index Russell 2000 fared somewhat better with a gain of 0.7% over the past month (as of Feb. 27, 2026).

Inside the AI Scare

Artificial intelligence (AI) emerged as a growing source of market panic in February, with investors increasingly questioning the long-term viability of labor-intensive business models. Recent releases from AI startups have intensified these concerns by introducing tools capable of automating tasks in legal, marketing, finance, and research functions.

Adding to investor unease, AI startup Anthropic said in a blog post on Feb. 23, 2026 that its Claude Code tool can modernize COBOL, a legacy programming language widely used on IBM systems. No wonder, IBM shares were badly hit in the month. IBM stock was off 23.7% over the past month (as of Feb. 27, 2028) (read: AI Scare Back in the Market: ETFs That Stayed Steady).

Geopolitical Tensions

The month can be highlighted by the heightened U.S.-Iran tensions. U.S. Vice President JD Vance said in mid-February that Iran failed to meet key American demands during recent nuclear negotiations and warned that military action remains an option if diplomacy breaks down, as quoted on CNBC. 

Meanwhile, Iran conducted military exercises in the Strait of Hormuz — a critical route for global energy shipments — raising fears that oil flows could be disrupted in the event of conflict (read: Oil Prices Surge on Rising U.S.-Iran Tensions: ETFs to Gain/Lose).

On Feb. 28, 2026, the United States and Israel struck Iran in what President Trump said was intended to destroy the country's nuclear program and end the current regime’s power (per Yahoo Finance). The move led to immediate retaliation and may cause a larger scale conflict that poses threats to the oil markets, as quoted on Yahoo Finance.

The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed during the strikes, according to early reports from Reuters, Axios, and CNN citing sources within the U.S. government, as mentioned on the above-said Yahoo Finance article.

AI Behemoth NVIDIA Earnings

NVIDIA NVDA comfortably beat analysts’ expectations on both revenues and earnings. The company’s first-quarter fiscal 2027 guidance beat analysts’ expectations.Small investors jumped to buy NVIDIA on Feb. 27, 2026 following the chipmaker’s latest earnings report, according to VandaTrack, as quoted on CNBC.

Small traders recorded their highest levels of net buying in the stock during the first 80 minutes of a trading day going back to at least 2012, according to analyst Viraj Patel, as mentioned in the same CNBC article.

ETF Winners of the Month

Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few winning exchange-traded funds (ETFs) of the past one month (as of Feb. 27, 2026).

Tanker Shipping 

Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF BWET – Up 58.9%

The fund offers exposure to crude oil tanker shipping. The underlying Breakwave Tanker Futures Index follows the near-dated futures market on a constant rolling basis. Global shipping stocks rose due to sharply increased freight rates caused by ongoing disruptions in major trade routes – particularly the Red Sea – which force vessels to take longer journeys. The expense ratio of the fund is 3.50%.

South Korea

iShares MSCI South Korea ETF EWY – Up 29.0%

South Korea ETFs are emerging as quiet beneficiaries of the global AI boom, driven by strong semiconductor demand and rising export momentum. Gains were supported by chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix (read: South Korea ETFs: Quiet AI Winners).

Inverse Ether 

ProShares UltraShort Ether ETF ETHD – Up 20.1%

Ethereum prices lost 31% over the past one month (as of Feb. 27, 2026). The second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap faced mounting pressure as occasional risk-off sentiments emerged in the market.

Energy 

Invesco Oil & Gas Services ETF PXJ – Up 17.5%

Rising geopolitical tensions lifted oil prices, which boosted energy ETFs. United States Oil Fund LP (USO) added 8.8% over the past one month. US strikes in Iran could see oil prices jump $10 to $20 or more with no deescalation, per Jorge León, head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy, as quoted on Yahoo Finance (read: Oil Prices Surge on Rising U.S.-Iran Tensions: ETFs to Gain/Lose).

Emerging Markets

Nomura Focused Emerging Markets Equity ETF EMEQ – Up 11%

Emerging markets equities have been in favor lately. Emerging-market equities have attracted around $26 billion in inflows from U.S. investors so far this year, according to LSEG Lipper data, as quoted on the Reuters article issued on Feb. 20, 2026.A weakening of the U.S. dollar is a plus for commodity-rich emerging-market ETF investing, as it lowers the cost of servicing dollar-denominated debt, boosts local currency value, and increases commodity prices.

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

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