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Launched · SEC filings

iShares MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan ETF

AAXJNasdaqiSharesC

$105.99−0.18 (−0.17%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

C52/ 100

Rank 6 of 7 in Asia-Pacific Region

C52/100Rank 6 of 7inAsia-Pacific Region
Intraday session: down, 79 prints from 106.17 to 105.99. Range 105.99 to 108.27. Use the arrow keys to read each point.106.50107.00107.50108.0010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.72%
Fund size
$3.61B
1Y total return
+13.8%
Yield · Last 12 months
1.46%
Holdings
960
Avg volume · 30D
503K sh
52W range
low $87.98high $124.89
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net AAXJ Grade

C

Score 52 out of 100

Category
Asia-Pacific Region⁠
Rank
6 of 7
Six-pillar profile for AAXJ. Scores out of 100: Cost 10, Risk 34, Mission 100, Tradability 74, Holdings 48, Durability 67. Strongest: Mission (100). Weakest: Cost (10). Leans toward Mission.

Score 52 of 100 falls in the C band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.

  • Cost

    The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.
    F10 out of 100
    Rank 7 of 7

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    A100 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 7

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    D34 out of 100
    Rank 6 of 7

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A74 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 7

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    C48 out of 100
    Rank 4 of 7

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    B67 out of 100
    Rank 2 of 7

Our read on AAXJ

ETF.net Research

In short

CThe regional Asia trade with Japan carved out: roughly 900 large- and mid-cap stocks from developed and emerging markets, in one ticker since 2008. You pay up for that precision.

Stated mandate

The fund tracks an index of large- and mid-cap equities from developed and emerging Asian countries, excluding Japan, providing regional international equity exposure.

Why people hold it

  • One ticket, roughly 900 large- and mid-cap Asian stocks, spanning both developed and emerging markets under a single index rulebook.
  • Running since 2008 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so getting in and out is rarely the hard part.
  • Japan sits outside the MSCI AC Asia ex Japan index by design, leaving investors free to size Japan exposure on their own terms.

Worth knowing

  • At 0.72% a year, the fee runs well above the 0.28% typical of its peer group and far above broad international index funds like IXUS at 0.07%.
  • Emerging Asian markets are baked into the mandate, so currency moves and local market swings ride along with the developed-market names.
  • Cash comes back once or twice a year rather than monthly.

AAXJ Holdings

Holdings pillarC48 out of 100Rank 4 of 7 in Asia-Pacific Region
Asset class
Stocks
Holdings
960
Top-10 weight
42%
Largest holding
2330.TW17.7%

Sectors

  • Technology47.5%
  • Financials18.6%
  • Consumer Discretionary8.0%
  • Industrials7.0%
  • Communication5.7%
  • Materials3.2%
  • Health Care2.9%
  • Energy2.2%
  • Consumer Staples2.0%
  • Utilities1.6%
  • Real Estate1.4%

Geography

  • Taiwan32.79%
  • South Korea22.67%
  • China22.05%
  • India12.96%
  • Hong Kong3.76%
  • Singapore3.66%
  • Thailand1.08%
  • Malaysia1.03%

Developed 7% · Emerging 93% of the foreign sleeve

The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 64.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueHeld by ETFs
12330.TWTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing17.67%8,871,670$645M176
2005930.KSSamsung Electronics Ltd7.78%1,684,654$284M182
3000660.KSSk Hynix5.79%198,843$211M186
40700.HKTencent Holdings2.95%2,200,400$108M152
59988.HKAlibaba Group Holding2.04%6,030,340$74.6M124
62454.TWMediatek1.71%520,391$62.5M169
7D05.SIDbs Group Holdings Ltd1.19%757,850$43.4M140
80939.HKChina Construction Bank Corp H1.09%30,348,390$39.7M113
9005935.KSSamsung Electronics Non Voting Pre1.03%287,928$37.6M85
101299.HKAia Group0.98%3,716,200$35.7M155
112317.TWHon Hai Precision Industry0.91%4,433,516$33.4M122
12HDFCBANK.NSHdfc Bank0.82%4,101,982$29.9M51
132308.TWDelta Electronics0.78%692,000$28.3M156
14ICICIBANK.NSIcici Bank0.77%1,910,651$28.1M48
15O39.SIOversea-Chinese Banking0.73%1,169,375$26.8M125

Showing 1–15 of 960 holdings

AAXJ Performance

Launched Aug 13, 2008

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

AAXJ$11,382
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,199
Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. AAXJ $11,382. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$12,000Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Returns run to the Oct 30, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.

Trailing total return for AAXJ. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodAAXJ
Year to date+14.4%
1 month−8.8%
3 months−4.1%
1 year+13.8%
3 yearsper year+22.4%
5 yearsper year+6.3%
10 yearsper year+8.0%

With distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for AAXJ
YearReturn barAAXJ
2026 YTD+14.4%
2025+31.5%
2024+10.4%
2023+5.2%
2022−20.4%
2021−5.7%
2020+23.4%

AAXJ in the news

AAXJ Dividends

Adds up every distribution paid per share over the last 12 months, divided by the last completed close. Distributions are counted by ex-date. Data through Oct 30, 2026.
1.46%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$1.55Last 12 months
Last payment
$0.42 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Twice a year

Distribution history

2017–2026

One bar per payment. 19 payments from 2017 to 2026 YTD. Jun 20, 2017 $0.29; Dec 19, 2017 $1.23; Jun 19, 2018 $0.41; Dec 18, 2018 $0.93; Jun 17, 2019 $0.41; Dec 16, 2019 $0.93; Jun 15, 2020 $0.26; Dec 14, 2020 $0.68; Jun 10, 2021 $0.28; Dec 13, 2021 $1.55; Jun 9, 2022 $0.34; Dec 13, 2022 $0.79; Jun 7, 2023 $0.40; Dec 20, 2023 $1.11; Jun 11, 2024 $0.27; Dec 17, 2024 $1.07; Jun 16, 2025 $0.56; Dec 16, 2025 $1.12; Jun 15, 2026 $0.42. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2017201820192020202120222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Jun 15, 2026Jun 18, 2026$0.42
Dec 16, 2025Dec 19, 2025$1.12
Jun 16, 2025Jun 20, 2025$0.56
Dec 17, 2024Dec 20, 2024$1.07
Jun 11, 2024Jun 17, 2024$0.27
Dec 20, 2023Dec 27, 2023$1.11
Jun 7, 2023Jun 13, 2023$0.40
Dec 13, 2022Dec 19, 2022$0.79
Jun 9, 2022Jun 15, 2022$0.34
Dec 13, 2021Dec 17, 2021$1.55
Jun 10, 2021Jun 16, 2021$0.28
Dec 14, 2020Dec 18, 2020$0.68

See all 37 payments⁠

$10,000 in AAXJ 10 years ago paid $2,374 in dividends.⁠

AAXJ Risk

Risk pillarD34 out of 100Rank 6 of 7 in Asia-Pacific Region
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
17.2%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: standard deviation

The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
1.01
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio

Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.

Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
−35.8%
Trough Oct 2022
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown

The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.

Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
1.02
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

AAXJ Cost

Compare AAXJ and VPL

Overpaying vs VPL, cheapest in Asia-Pacific Region

$12,477

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • AAXJ 0.72%

    $13,957

  • VPL 0.07% Cheapest

    $1,480

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • AAXJ 0.72%
  • VPL 0.07%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$5K$10K$15K051015202530AAXJ $13,957VPL $1,480

Year by year

YearAAXJVPLOverpaying
10$1,284$128$1,156
20$4,888$503$4,385
30$13,957$1,480$12,477

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