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Fund RadarFirst-Year Review

MFS Blended Research International Equity ETF turns one ahead of its index

Nearly all of the 4.35 percentage point lead over the MSCI All Country World ex-US net-dividend index was in place by the end of 2025, and in 2026 the fund has run roughly level with the index.

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Key takeaways

  • MFS Blended Research International Equity ETF led by 4.35 points, nearly all before this year.
  • In 2026 the fund has run roughly level with the index after that early lead.
  • About $462 million of the asset increase was new investment, on a rough count.
  • The fund is priced within two basis points of the passive fund tracking that index.
  • A lead built in the first ten weeks is not the tracking-error test MFS set.

The MFS Blended Research International Equity ETF BRIE turns one today 4.35 percentage points ahead of the MSCI All Country World ex-US net-dividend index, on returns through September 30, 2026. From its October 22, 2025 listing through that date, the total return at net asset value was 22.40%, with distributions reinvested, against 18.05% for the index, MFS's third-quarter fact sheet shows.

The lead was built before this year

The same fact sheet puts the 2026 total return at net asset value at 14.48%, against 14.22% for the index. The lead was built in the ten weeks between the listing and December 31. For this year the fund has run close to the index.

The since-launch lead and the calendar year start on different days, so the fund can trail for 2026 and still be ahead since it listed. MFS's second-quarter fact sheet showed a 21.41% total return at net asset value against 17.50% for the index through June 30, a difference of 3.91 percentage points. For the year, the same sheet put the fund at 13.56% against 13.68%, 0.12 percentage points behind.

The shareholder report for the period ended February 28, 2026 put the total return at net asset value at 18.37%, against 15.04% for the index. The since-launch lead that day was 3.33 percentage points.

January and February gave some of the early lead back. From then to June 30 the fund ran ahead of the index, which widened the since-launch lead without quite closing the gap for the year.

Most of the increase was new investment

Net assets were $146.1 million on February 28, 2026, the shareholder report showed, and $612.6 million on September 30, the third-quarter fact sheet shows. Grown at the fund's own return, the February figure would have been about $151 million. About $462 million of the increase was new investment, on a rough count.

By Wednesday, October 21, 2026, assets were $672.74 million, MFS reported. The shares closed that day at $30.05, below the $30.32 close on September 30. Assets rose while the share price fell.

An active portfolio, priced near the index fund

On September 30, active share was 69.20%, MFS reported. Active share measures how far the portfolio's weights sit from the index.

MFS lists a 0.34% expense ratio for BRIE. BlackRock's iShares MSCI ACWI ex U.S. ETF ACWX tracks the same index and lists a 0.32% expense ratio. The active fund is priced within 2 basis points of the passive fund that tracks the same index.

Tracking error is the typical gap between the fund's returns and the index's.

MFS said at the launch that the goal was to outperform the index "with a targeted tracking error of approximately two percent over a full market cycle."

A lead built in the first ten weeks, with the fund close to the index after that, is not that test.

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ETFs in this story

BBRIEMFS Blended Research International Equity ETF67/100BACWXiShares MSCI ACWI ex U.S. ETF59/100

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