Skip to content
etf.net

Launched · SEC filings

iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF

EWUNYSE ArcaiSharesB

$48.03+0.20 (+0.42%)

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

B68/ 100

Rank 6 of 38 in Developed Single Country

B68/100Rank 6 of 38inDeveloped Single Country
Intraday session: up, 79 prints from 47.83 to 48.03. Range 47.87 to 48.07. Use the arrow keys to read each point.47.9047.9548.0010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.50%
Fund size
$3.73B
1Y total return
+15.9%
Yield · Last 12 months
3.13%
Holdings
72
Avg volume · 30D
1.15M sh
52W range
low $41.33high $49.39
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net EWU Grade

B

Score 68 out of 100

Category
Developed Single Country⁠
Rank
6 of 38
Six-pillar profile for EWU. Scores out of 100: Cost 55, Risk 75, Mission 71, Tradability 81, Holdings 69, Durability 78. Strongest: Tradability (81). Weakest: Cost (55). No single pillar leads.

Score 68 of 100 falls in the B 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.
    B55 out of 100
    Rank 10 of 38

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    A71 out of 100
    Rank 15 of 35

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    A75 out of 100
    Rank 4 of 38

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A81 out of 100
    Rank 5 of 38

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    B69 out of 100
    Rank 10 of 36

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A78 out of 100
    Rank 4 of 38

Our read on EWU

ETF.net Research

In short

BTrading since 1996, EWU is the veteran one-ticker route into British blue chips: roughly 70 UK stocks in a single MSCI-tracked basket, held through Brexit, rate cycles and everything in between.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks to track an index of U.K. equities, providing targeted exposure to companies in the United Kingdom and a way to express a single-country investment view.

Why people hold it

  • A 1996 launch means this fund has tracked UK stocks through Brexit, a financial crisis and multiple rate cycles under one continuous ticker.
  • A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so getting in and out rarely means fighting the order book.
  • Rates among the stronger developed-market single-country funds in its peer group on cost, tracking and tradability together.
  • Roughly 70 holdings tracking the MSCI United Kingdom Index (Net). Concentrated, transparent, no guessing what you own.

Worth knowing

  • 0.50% a year is the category median, but cohort peers like FLKR and FLAU charge 0.09%. The liquidity and pedigree here cost extra.
  • One country, about 70 names: UK policy and the index's sector mix drive results far more than in a global fund.
  • Distributions arrive once or twice a year rather than quarterly, so income lands in lumps.

EWU Holdings

Holdings pillarB69 out of 100Rank 10 of 36 in Developed Single Country
Asset class
Stocks
Holdings
72
Top-10 weight
54%
Largest holding
SHEL.L9.9%

Sectors

  • Financials24.8%
  • Consumer Staples14.9%
  • Energy13.9%
  • Health Care13.2%
  • Industrials12.7%
  • Materials7.8%
  • Utilities5.1%
  • Consumer Discretionary3.8%
  • Communication2.0%
  • Technology1.0%
  • Real Estate0.7%

Geography

  • United Kingdom95.17%
  • Switzerland2.55%
  • Ireland1.12%
  • Hong Kong0.97%
  • Mexico0.19%

Developed 100% · Emerging 0% of the foreign sleeve

The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 5.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueHeld by ETFs
1SHEL.LShell9.88%6,827,238$369M154
2HSBA.LHsbc Holdings PLC9.30%20,299,855$347M143
3AZN.LAstrazeneca PLC8.93%1,782,910$333M166
4ULVR.LUnilever PLC4.44%2,539,827$166M126
5RR.LRolls-Royce Holdings PLC4.37%9,837,712$163M149
6BP.LBp PLC4.17%18,513,318$156M120
7BATS.LBritish American Tobacco3.89%2,359,622$145M142
8GSK.LGlaxosmithkline3.17%4,769,425$119M157
9RIO.LRio Tinto2.75%1,257,720$103M148
10NG.LNational Grid PLC2.64%5,866,439$98.6M121
11BA.LBae Systems PLC2.56%3,454,396$95.8M134
12BARC.LBarclays PLC2.37%15,924,068$88.5M132
13LLOY.LLloyds Banking Group PLC2.30%68,725,787$86.1M136
14REL.LRelx PLC2.22%2,065,130$82.8M136
15GLEN.LGlencore PLC2.06%11,071,024$77M96

Showing 1–15 of 72 holdings

EWU Performance

Launched Mar 12, 1996

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

EWU$11,592
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. EWU $11,592. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000$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 EWU. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodEWU
Year to date+10.3%
1 month+2.8%
3 months−1.2%
1 year+15.9%
3 yearsper year+20.8%
5 yearsper year+11.6%
10 yearsper year+8.9%

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 EWU
YearReturn barEWU
2026 YTD+10.3%
2025+35.0%
2024+6.8%
2023+12.4%
2022−4.4%
2021+18.2%
2020−11.8%

EWU in the news

EWU 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.
3.13%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$1.50Last 12 months
Last payment
$0.67 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 $0.74; Dec 19, 2017 $0.66; Jun 19, 2018 $0.83; Dec 18, 2018 $0.64; Jun 17, 2019 $0.81; Dec 16, 2019 $0.60; Jun 15, 2020 $0.39; Dec 14, 2020 $0.33; Jun 10, 2021 $0.57; Dec 13, 2021 $0.88; Jun 9, 2022 $0.58; Dec 13, 2022 $0.47; Jun 7, 2023 $0.62; Dec 20, 2023 $0.75; Jun 11, 2024 $0.68; Dec 17, 2024 $0.73; Jun 16, 2025 $0.81; Dec 16, 2025 $0.83; Jun 15, 2026 $0.67. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2017201820192020202120222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Jun 15, 2026Jun 18, 2026$0.67
Dec 16, 2025Dec 19, 2025$0.83
Jun 16, 2025Jun 20, 2025$0.81
Dec 17, 2024Dec 20, 2024$0.73
Jun 11, 2024Jun 17, 2024$0.68
Dec 20, 2023Dec 27, 2023$0.75
Jun 7, 2023Jun 13, 2023$0.62
Dec 13, 2022Dec 19, 2022$0.47
Jun 9, 2022Jun 15, 2022$0.58
Dec 13, 2021Dec 17, 2021$0.88
Jun 10, 2021Jun 16, 2021$0.57
Dec 14, 2020Dec 18, 2020$0.33

See all 55 payments⁠

$10,000 in EWU 10 years ago paid $4,413 in dividends.⁠

EWU Risk

Risk pillarA75 out of 100Rank 4 of 38 in Developed Single Country
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
10.8%
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.
1.40
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.
−24.9%
Trough Sep 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.
0.71
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.

EWU Cost

Compare EWU and FLKR

Overpaying vs FLKR, tied cheapest in Developed Single Country

$8,081

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

  • EWU 0.50%

    $9,979

  • FLKR 0.09% Tied cheapest

    $1,898

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • EWU 0.50%
  • FLKR 0.09%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2K$4K$6K$8K$10K051015202530EWU $9,979FLKR $1,898

Year by year

YearEWUFLKROverpaying
10$900$165$735
20$3,460$646$2,814
30$9,979$1,898$8,081

Other funds in Developed Single Country

See others