Category Review
Health care funds trail the S&P 500 this year
iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF
$71.49−1.06 (−1.46%)
- 0.37%
- $4.2B
- +22.7%
- 1.10%
- 0.8M sh
- $72.13
- low $59.47high $74.59
The ETF.net IYH Grade
A
Score 69 out of 100
- 5 of 25
Score 69 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. The letter stays A for now. A new letter must hold for 3 published runs before it replaces it.
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.A71 out of 100Rank 7 of 24Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.A89 out of 100Rank 2 of 25Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.D35 out of 100Rank 21 of 25Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A83 out of 100Rank 5 of 25
Our read on IYH
AA healthcare sector ETF from the class of 2000. It tracks a Russell 1000 healthcare index of roughly 100 US names, pharma to devices, with rules that keep any one stock from swallowing the fund.
The fund is designed to follow a healthcare-sector equity index focused on U.S. companies, while providing diversified exposure to pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and healthcare equipment.
Why people hold it
- Launched in 2000, one of the longest-running US healthcare sector funds, run by iShares through multiple market cycles.
- The 0.38% fee sits below the 0.50% median for broad healthcare sector funds.
- A Russell 1000 base spreads roughly 100 names across pharma, biotech and healthcare equipment, reaching past the mega-cap handful.
- A multi-billion-dollar, actively traded fund that pays quarterly, and it ranks in the upper half of its healthcare peer group.
Worth knowing
- Cheaper doors into the same sector exist: VHT at 0.09%, FHLC and XLV at 0.08%. The wider Russell 1000 basket is what you pay up for.
- This is one slice of the market. Drug pricing rules, patent expirations and policy headlines move the whole basket together.
- The index applies diversification caps, trimming the largest names instead of letting them run, so weights can drift from a plain market-cap healthcare basket.
IYH Holdings
- Stocks
- 104
- 59%
- LLY
Sectors
- Pharmaceuticals36.7%
- Biotechnology23.8%
- Health Care Equipment14.5%
- Life Sciences Tools & Services10.7%
- Managed Health Care8.1%
- Health Care Services2.5%
- Health Care Facilities2.1%
- Health Care Supplies0.8%
- Health Care Technology0.7%
- Health Care Distributors0.1%
Geography
- United States97.11%
- Ireland2.27%
- United Kingdom0.28%
- Denmark0.19%
- Netherlands0.15%
IYH Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
IYH$12,267
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 | IYH |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +12.4% |
| 1 month | +4.0% |
| 3 months | +7.2% |
| 1 year | +22.7% |
| 3 years | +11.6% |
| 5 years | +7.2% |
| 10 years | +11.0% |
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 | IYH |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +12.4% | |
| 2025 | +13.2% | |
| 2024 | +3.0% | |
| 2023 | +2.2% | |
| 2022 | −4.5% | |
| 2021 | +23.4% | |
| 2020 | +15.6% |
IYH in the news
IYH Dividends
- 1.10%
- $0.80
- $0.19 per share
- Quarterly
Distribution history
IYH Risk
- 13.9%
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.
- 0.51
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.
- −17.9%
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.
- 0.57
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
IYH Cost
0.37%
IYH0.37%
- The middle half of Health Care (Broad) funds
- Median 0.50%
6 of the 25 Health Care (Broad) funds charge less.
Other funds in Health Care (Broad)
- AVHTVanguard Health Care ETFExpense ratio 0.09%1 year return +23.1%
- AXHSState Street SPDR S&P Health Care Services ETFExpense ratio 0.35%1 year return +37.8%
- BIXJiShares Global Healthcare ETFExpense ratio 0.38%1 year return +15.9%
- 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%