DVYA vs IGRO

DVYACiShares Asia/Pacific Dividend ETF

IGROAiShares International Dividend Growth ETF

In short

DVYA Most international dividend funds sprinkle across the whole developed world. This one stays in developed Asia/Pacific and holds about 50 of the region's higher-yielding names, tracking a Dow Jones index since 2012.

IGRO Dividend growth, not dividend yield, taken overseas. IGRO tracks a Morningstar index of non-US companies with a habit of raising their payouts, spread across roughly 500 names, for a fee that undercuts most of the international dividend shelf.

Stated mandate

DVYA The Fund seeks to track an index of relatively high-dividend-paying equities in developed Asia/Pacific markets.

IGRO The fund seeks to track an index of international stocks with a history of growing dividends, providing dividend-focused international equity exposure for income and long-term growth.

Why people hold it

• DVYA A pure developed Asia/Pacific dividend sleeve: roughly 50 higher-yielding names from the Dow Jones Asia/Pacific Select Dividend 50 Index, not a global fund where the region is a footnote.
• The 0.49% expense ratio sits just under the typical fee in its international dividend-screen peer group.
• The index screens for relatively high current payers rather than dividend growers, and the fund distributes quarterly.
• Running since 2012 under the iShares roof, so the strategy has a long live record through several market cycles.

• IGRO Costs 0.15% a year, well under the typical fee for an international dividend screen.
• Does what the label says: it follows the Morningstar Global ex-US Dividend Growth Index closely, one of the tightest index-to-portfolio matches in its peer group.
• Roughly 500 non-US payers, so no single dividend carries the fund. Cash goes out quarterly.

Worth knowing

• DVYA Thinly traded with a modest asset base, so bid-ask spreads can run wider than at the broad international dividend heavyweights.
• That 0.49% is several times what broad international dividend funds charge (VYMI 0.07%, SCHY 0.08%, DIVI 0.09%). The regional focus is what you pay up for.
• About 50 holdings inside one region: single-stock and single-country swings land harder, and unhedged foreign currency moves add to the ride.

• IGRO It trades thin next to heavyweights like VYMI, so limit orders and calmer mid-session trading matter more here.
• The screen targets payout growth, not the fattest yields, so income tends to run lighter than yield-first international funds.
• Cheaper neighbors exist: VIGI at 0.07% and SCHY at 0.08%, though each tracks a different index with a different holdings list.

Full DVYA profile⁠

Full IGRO profile⁠