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Looking for broad exposure to the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market? You should consider the iShares Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF (IMCB), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 06/28/2004.

The fund is sponsored by Blackrock. It has amassed assets over $847.97 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Blend

Mid cap companies have market capitalization between $2 billion and $10 billion. They usually have higher growth prospects than large cap companies and are less volatile than small cap companies. These types of companies, then, have a good balance of stability and growth potential.

Typically holding a combination of both growth and value stocks, blend ETFs also demonstrate qualities seen in value and growth investments.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.04%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.47%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector--about 17.90% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Financials round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Crowdstrike Holdings Inc Class A (CRWD) accounts for about 0.76% of total assets, followed by Workday Inc Class A (WDAY) and Trane Technologies Plc (TT).

The top 10 holdings account for about 6.04% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

IMCB seeks to match the performance of the MORNINGSTAR US MID CAP INDEX before fees and expenses. The Morningstar US Mid Cap Index comprises of mid-capitalization U.S. equities.

The ETF has gained about 5.84% so far this year and it's up approximately 24.95% in the last one year (as of 03/20/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $56.23 and $71.42.

The ETF has a beta of 1.08 and standard deviation of 18.51% for the trailing three-year period. With about 465 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

IShares Morningstar Mid-Cap 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, IMCB is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF (VO) and the iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF (IJH) track a similar index. While Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF has $62.69 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF has $84.65 billion. VO has an expense ratio of 0.04% and IJH charges 0.05%.

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.

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iShares Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF (IMCB): ETF Research Reports

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.