

Virtus Biotech Clinical Trials ETF
$40.64−2.42 (−5.61%)
- 0.65%
- $42M
- +51.2%
- 1.52%
- 0M sh
- $44.12
- low $28.73high $56.18
The ETF.net BBC Grade
Score 34 out of 100
- 15 of 17
Score 34 of 100 falls in the D 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.F13 out of 100Rank 15 of 17Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.C47 out of 100Rank 8 of 9Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.D26 out of 100Rank 16 of 17Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.F21 out of 100Rank 15 of 17Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.A93 out of 100Rank 1 of 17Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.C50 out of 100Rank 11 of 17
Our read on BBC
DMost biotech funds blend approved-drug cash machines with science projects. BBC keeps only the science projects: US-listed biotechs whose lead drug is still in clinical trials, spread across roughly 200 names.
The Fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the investment results of the LifeSci Biotechnology Clinical Trials Index. The Index comprises U.S.-listed biotechnology stocks with a lead drug in clinical-stage development.
Why people hold it
- A genuinely narrow mandate: the index takes U.S.-listed biotechs with a lead drug in clinical-stage development, so commercial-stage giants stay out.
- Roughly 200 holdings, so one failed readout is a dent, not the whole fund.
- The basket lines up tightly with what the prospectus says it owns, one of the cleaner mandate-to-portfolio matches in biotech.
- Running since 2014, which makes it one of the longer-lived pure clinical-stage plays rather than a recent theme launch.
Worth knowing
- At 0.65% a year it costs more than the typical biotech fund, and more than broad peers like XBI (0.35%) and IBB (0.44%).
- Small asset base and thin trading, so spreads can widen and large orders move the price.
- Pre-approval biotech is binary by nature, and on our review the fund sits in the lower tier of its biotech peer group overall.
BBC Holdings
- Stocks
- 130
- 14%
- KOD
Sectors
- Health Care100.0%
Geography
- United States89.83%
- Canada2.43%
- Netherlands2.01%
- Ireland1.56%
- United Kingdom1.46%
- China1.05%
- Switzerland1.04%
- Germany0.61%
BBC Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
Returns run to the Oct 12, 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.
| Period | BBC |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +11.9% |
| 1 month | −12.7% |
| 3 months | −18.9% |
| 1 year | +51.2% |
| 3 years | +34.3% |
| 5 years | −0.3% |
| 10 years | +8.0% |
Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.
| Year | Return bar | BBC |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +11.9% | |
| 2025 | +63.7% | |
| 2024 | −1.1% | |
| 2023 | −1.8% | |
| 2022 | −35.1% | |
| 2021 | −22.3% | |
| 2020 | +30.3% |
BBC in the news
BBC Dividends
- 1.52%
- $0.66
- $0.66 per share
- Annual
Distribution history
BBC Risk
- 35.9%
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.
- 0.88
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.
- −70.1%
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.
- 1.26
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
BBC Cost
- The middle half of Biotech & Genomics funds
- Median 0.47%
14 of the 17 Biotech & Genomics funds charge less.
Other funds in Biotech & Genomics
- CGNOMGlobal X - Genomics & Biotechnology ETFExpense ratio 0.50%1 year return +64.9%
- CWDNAWisdomTree BioRevolution FundExpense ratio 0.45%1 year return +41.9%
- DHELXFranklin Genomic Advancements ETFExpense ratio 0.50%1 year return +31.8%
- DARKGARK Genomic Revolution ETFExpense ratio 0.75%1 year return +63.0%
- DCANCTema Oncology ETFExpense ratio 0.99%1 year return +37.4%




