Should iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF) Be on Your Investing Radar?

Looking for broad exposure to the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market? You should consider the iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on May 22, 2000.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $112.90 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Growth

Large cap companies typically have a market capitalization above $10 billion. Overall, they are usually a stable option, with less risk and more sure-fire cash flows than mid and small cap companies.

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. Something to keep in mind is the higher level of volatility that is affiliated with growth stocks. When you consider growth versus value, growth stocks are usually the clear winner in strong bull markets but tend to fall flat in nearly all other 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 0.18%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.39%.

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 to the Information Technology sector -- about 49.4% of the portfolio. Consumer Discretionary and Telecom round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Nvidia Corp (NVDA) accounts for about 12.32% of total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT).

The top 10 holdings account for about 58.13% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

IWF seeks to match the performance of the Russell 1000 Growth Index before fees and expenses. The Russell 1000 Growth Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market.

The ETF has lost about 9.04% so far this year and it's up approximately 18.67% in the last one year (as of 04/02/2026). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $320.42 and $491.71.

The ETF has a beta of 1.16 and standard deviation of 18.8% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 393 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, IWF is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VUG) and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ) track a similar index. While Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $188.23 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $379.41 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.03% and QQQ charges 0.18%.

Bottom-Line

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.

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 Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF): ETF Research Reports

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

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