Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Should iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP) Be on Your Investing Radar?

Read MoreHide Full Article

The iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP - Free Report) was launched on July 17, 2001, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $19.54 billion, making it the largest ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Growth

Compared to large and small cap companies, mid cap businesses tend to have higher growth prospects and are less volatile, respectively, with market capitalization between $2 billion and $10 billion. Thus they have a nice balance of growth potential and stability.

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. Further, growth stocks have a higher level of volatility associated with them. Compared to value stocks, growth stocks are a safer bet in a strong bull market, but don't perform as strongly in almost all other financial environments.

Costs

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.23%, on par with most peer products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.37%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Consumer Discretionary sector -- about 22.9% of the portfolio. Industrials and Information Technology round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Royal Caribbean Group Ltd (RCL) accounts for about 2.78% of total assets, followed by Howmet Aerospace Inc (HWM) and Vistra Corp (VST).

The top 10 holdings account for about 20.28% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

IWP seeks to match the performance of the Russell MidCap Growth Index before fees and expenses. The Russell Midcap Growth Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell Midcap Index, which measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market & approximately 47% of the total market value of the Russell Midcap Index.

The ETF has gained about 10.64% so far this year and is up about 24.93% in the last one year (as of 07/23/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $103.87 and $140.64.

The ETF has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 21.05% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 281 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

iShares Russell Mid-Cap 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, IWP is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF (IJK) and the Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth ETF (VOT) track a similar index. While iShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF has $9.00 billion in assets, Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth ETF has $17.47 billion. IJK has an expense ratio of 0.17% and VOT charges 0.07%.

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.

See More Zacks Research for These Tickers

Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE: