Category Review
Health care funds trail the S&P 500 this year
iShares Global Healthcare ETF
$102.71−1.02 (−0.98%)
- 0.38%
- $4.4B
- +15.9%
- 1.39%
- 0.2M sh
- $103.27
- low $90.24high $107.69
The ETF.net IXJ Grade
B
Score 68 out of 100
- 6 of 25
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.B69 out of 100Rank 7 of 25Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.B65 out of 100Rank 8 of 24Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.B64 out of 100Rank 9 of 25Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.B68 out of 100Rank 10 of 25Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A86 out of 100Rank 3 of 25
Our read on IXJ
BMost healthcare sector funds stop at the US border. IXJ tracks a global index instead: roughly 110 drugmakers, biotechs and device makers worldwide, and it has been doing it since 2001.
The fund seeks to track an index of global healthcare-sector equities, offering diversified access to pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical-device companies worldwide.
Why people hold it
- Global by charter. It tracks S&P's capped global health care index, so companies listed outside the US sit in the same basket as the American giants.ishares.com
- 0.38% a year, below the median fee in its broad healthcare peer group, for a portfolio of about 110 pharma, biotech and medical-device names.
- The word capped in the index name does real work: it limits how large any single mega-cap drugmaker can grow inside the fund.ishares.com
- Running since 2001 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund. That is a long operating record, not a launch-and-see product.
Worth knowing
- The worldwide reach carries a price tag: peers XLV and FHLC (0.08%) and VHT (0.09%) charge a fraction of IXJ's 0.38%.
- One sector, one storyline. Patent cliffs, trial data and drug-pricing politics tend to move the whole basket at once.
- Trading is moderate rather than heavy, so bid-ask spreads are worth a glance on larger orders.
IXJ Holdings
- Stocks
- 124
- 47%
- LLY
Sectors
- Health Care100.0%
Geography
- United States72.65%
- Switzerland9.72%
- United Kingdom4.86%
- Japan3.61%
- Denmark1.91%
- France1.73%
- Germany1.46%
- Ireland1.39%
- 2.67%
Developed 100% · Emerging 0%
IXJ Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
IXJ$11,587
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 | IXJ |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +7.4% |
| 1 month | +2.9% |
| 3 months | +4.6% |
| 1 year | +15.9% |
| 3 years | +9.3% |
| 5 years | +6.1% |
| 10 years | +9.4% |
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 | IXJ |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +7.4% | |
| 2025 | +15.0% | |
| 2024 | +0.6% | |
| 2023 | +3.6% | |
| 2022 | −4.9% | |
| 2021 | +19.6% | |
| 2020 | +12.7% |
IXJ in the news
IXJ Dividends
- 1.39%
- $1.44
- $0.85 per share
- Twice a year
Distribution history
IXJ Risk
- 13.4%
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.
- 0.38
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.
- −18.1%
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.
- 0.55
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
IXJ Cost
0.38%
IXJ0.38%
- The middle half of Health Care (Broad) funds
- Median 0.50%
9 of the 25 Health Care (Broad) funds charge less.
Other funds in Health Care (Broad)
- AXHSState Street SPDR S&P Health Care Services ETFExpense ratio 0.35%1 year return +37.8%
- AIYHiShares U.S. Healthcare ETFExpense ratio 0.37%1 year return +22.7%
- BPSCHInvesco S&P SmallCap Health Care ETFExpense ratio 0.29%1 year return +28.5%
- BRSPHInvesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETFExpense ratio 0.40%1 year return +29.1%
- BXHEState Street SPDR S&P Health Care Equipment ETFExpense ratio 0.35%1 year return +17.8%