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Launched · SEC filings

VanEck Steel ETF

SLXNYSE ArcaVanEckD

$99.17−0.46 (−0.46%)

As of Nov 10, 2026, 10:57 AM ET

D34/ 100

Rank 13 of 14 in Materials (Broad)

D34/100Rank 13 of 14inMaterials (Broad)
Intraday session: down, 17 prints from 99.63 to 99.17. Range 98.41 to 100.06. Use the arrow keys to read each point.98.5098.75100.0010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.55%*
Fund size
$146M
1Y total return
+29.6%
Yield · Last 12 months
1.32%
Holdings
42
Avg volume · 30D
17.7K sh
52W range
low $75.35high $114.00
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

*After a fee waiver that ends May 1, 2027. Without it: 0.64%.

The ETF.net SLX Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

D

Score 34 out of 100

Category
Materials (Broad)⁠
Rank
13 of 14
Six-pillar profile for SLX. Scores out of 100: Cost 16, Risk 52, Mission not scored, Tradability 30, Holdings 61, Durability 44. Strongest: Holdings (61). Weakest: Cost (16). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

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.
    F16 out of 100
    Rank 12 of 14

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    Not scored

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    C52 out of 100
    Rank 8 of 14

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    D30 out of 100
    Rank 12 of 14

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    B61 out of 100
    Rank 6 of 14

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    C44 out of 100
    Rank 10 of 14

Our read on SLX

ETF.net Research

In short

DMost materials funds hand you chemicals, paint and packaging. SLX skips all that for steel alone: roughly 40 mills and miners worldwide, tracked by index since 2006.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the MarketVector Global Steel Index, representing companies involved in the global steel segment.

Why people hold it

  • Pure steel, not diluted. It tracks the MarketVector Global Steel Index, roughly 40 companies in the steel segment, instead of a broad materials basket.vaneck.com
  • Global by design: the index reaches steel companies listed outside the US, so exposure is not tied to one country's mills.vaneck.com
  • Launched in 2006 and run as a passive index fund, it has carried the same single-industry mandate through multiple steel cycles.

Worth knowing

  • The specialty focus comes at a specialty price: 0.55% a year, versus 0.08% for XLB and 0.09% for VAW on the broad materials side.
  • One industry, about 40 names. Results ride on the global steel segment rather than the wider materials sector, and holdings are spread across foreign markets.
  • Cash comes back once or twice a year, not monthly, and the fund sits on the smaller, moderately traded end of its category.

SLX Performance

Launched Oct 10, 2006

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

SLX$12,965
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,339
Nov 7, 2025 to Nov 9, 2026. SLX $12,965. SPY $11,339. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$12,000$14,000Nov 2025May 2026Nov 2026

Nov 7, 2025 – Nov 9, 2026

Returns run to the Nov 9, 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 SLX. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodSLX
Year to date+17.4%
1 month−4.0%
3 months−9.4%
1 year+29.6%
3 yearsper year+18.6%
5 yearsper year+16.8%
10 yearsper year+14.0%

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 SLX
YearReturn barSLX
2026 YTD+17.4%
2025+47.4%
2024−17.9%
2023+31.2%
2022+14.3%
2021+28.0%
2020+20.6%

SLX in the news

SLX 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 Nov 9, 2026.
1.32%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$1.32Last 12 months
Last payment
$1.32 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Annual

Distribution history

2017–2026

One bar per payment. 10 payments from 2017 to 2026 YTD. Dec 18, 2017 $1.09; Dec 27, 2017 $0.03; Dec 20, 2018 $2.18; Dec 30, 2019 $0.07; Dec 21, 2020 $0.83; Dec 20, 2021 $3.76; Dec 19, 2022 $2.88; Dec 18, 2023 $2.07; Dec 23, 2024 $2.08; Dec 22, 2025 $1.32. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2017201820192020202120222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Dec 22, 2025Dec 26, 2025$1.32
Dec 23, 2024Dec 24, 2024$2.08
Dec 18, 2023Dec 22, 2023$2.07
Dec 19, 2022Dec 23, 2022$2.88
Dec 20, 2021Dec 27, 2021$3.76
Dec 21, 2020Dec 28, 2020$0.83
Dec 30, 2019Dec 30, 2019$0.07
Dec 20, 2018Dec 27, 2018$2.18
Dec 27, 2017Jan 3, 2018$0.03
Dec 18, 2017Dec 22, 2017$1.09
Dec 19, 2016Dec 23, 2016$0.40
Dec 21, 2015Dec 28, 2015$1.04

See all 20 payments⁠

$10,000 in SLX 10 years ago paid $4,500 in dividends.⁠

SLX Risk

Risk pillarC52 out of 100Rank 8 of 14 in Materials (Broad)
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
23.0%
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.
0.71
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.
−33.6%
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.
1.27
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.

SLX Cost

Compare SLX and XLB

Overpaying vs XLB, cheapest in Materials (Broad)

$9,215

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

  • SLX 0.55%

    $10,904

  • XLB 0.08% Cheapest

    $1,689

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • SLX 0.55%
  • XLB 0.08%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2.5K$5K$7.5K$10K$12.5K051015202530SLX $10,904XLB $1,689

Year by year

YearSLXXLBOverpaying
10$988$147$841
20$3,790$575$3,215
30$10,904$1,689$9,215
How the 0.55% is worked out

Full fee 0.64%− waiver 0.09%= you pay 0.55%

The waiver ends May 1, 2027. After that the fee is 0.64% unless VanEck renews it. Source: prospectus, Apr 2026.

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