IEO vs PXE

IEOBiShares U.S. Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF

PXEDInvesco Energy Exploration & Production ETF

In short

IEO One of the original ways to own U.S. upstream energy: since 2006 this iShares fund has tracked a single index of about 50 American oil and gas exploration and production stocks. Pure upstream, pure U.S.

PXE The quant twist on US drillers. Rather than rank every exploration and production name by size, PXE's Intellidex index scores them on momentum, earnings momentum, quality, management action and value, then holds about 30. Trading since 2005.

Stated mandate

IEO The Fund seeks to track an index of U.S. equities in the oil and gas exploration and production sector. It uses a sampling-based indexing approach and normally invests at least 80% of net assets in components of the Underlying Index.

PXE The fund is based on the Dynamic Energy Exploration & Production Intellidex Index, which covers 30 U.S. companies engaged in exploring for and producing natural resources used to generate energy.

Why people hold it

• IEO Tight mandate: at least 80% of net assets sit in components of the Dow Jones U.S. Select Oil Exploration & Production Index. Upstream U.S. energy, not a mixed energy basket.ishares.com
• About 50 holdings: concentrated enough to move with drilling economics, broad enough that one blown-up producer is not the whole story.
• Trading since 2006, so its index record spans multiple oil cycles, with the iShares platform running the plumbing.
• Producer dividends are passed along on a quarterly schedule.

• PXE The index screens US exploration and production companies on price momentum, earnings momentum, quality, management action and value, then holds about 30. Not a size-ranked roster.invesco.com
• Listed in 2005, it predates most of the E&P shelf and has traded through multiple oil booms and busts with the same rules-based approach.
• Portfolio makeup is the fund's strongest suit in this peer group: roughly 30 US energy names, spread across the field instead of anchored to one or two giants.
• Physical stock ownership, at least 90% of assets in index constituents, and cash gets passed along quarterly.invesco.com

Worth knowing

• IEO The 0.37% fee sits right at the middle of the E&P shelf: XOP and OIH charge 0.35%, PBOG 0.13%.
• One country, one sector, about 50 stocks. Crude and gas price swings pass straight through to the portfolio.
• Moderately traded rather than the busiest ticker in the category, which can matter on larger orders.

• PXE The screen costs: 0.63% net of a waiver through August 31, 2028 (0.67% gross), above the category median. XOP charges 0.35%, IEO 0.37%, PBOG 0.13%.
• Thinly traded next to the category's heavyweights, so the gap between bid and ask can be wider at the moment you buy or sell.
• About 30 stocks in one slice of one sector. Drilling economics swing with the oil price, and each holding carries real weight.

Full IEO profile⁠

Full PXE profile⁠