The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB) underperformed all other non-leveraged, non-inverse exchange traded products in the U.S. today on a percentage basis, producing a -0.94% one-day return and trailing the wider markets by a total of 0.68 percentage points.

Behind The Losses

IBB closed on Monday at $270.85 per share, down $2.57 (-0.94%). Putting this move in context, the S&P 500 index — largely considered the most popular and useful benchmark for equity performance — closed down $-0.59 (-0.26%) on the day.

IBB’s trading volume today was a total of 1,144,840 shares, which was a decrease of 34% versus its average daily trading volume of 1,741,339. Rising trading volume generally an indicator of increased demand for a particular security, and is typically associated with a specific news event or trend that draws investors into or out of specific asset classes, or sectors or subsectors within those classes.

Including any dividends as well as today’s losses, IBB has now fallen a total of -2.06% year-to-date, versus a +1.17% gain in the S&P 500 during the same timeframe.

A Look Under The Hood

iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund is a Equity-focused product issued by BlackRock. Its expense ratio of 0.47% makes it the #19 cheapest ETF among 35 total funds in the Health & Biotech ETFs category.

IBB currently boasts $7.90B in assets under management (AUM), placing it #2 of 35 ETFs in its category, and #71 of 1922 total ETFs in the U.S. exchange traded universe. This massive fund has plenty of investor interest, despite its relative underperformance.

The investment objective of the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of biotechnology and pharmaceutical equities listed on the NASDAQ. Top holdings include Amgen (8.49%), Gilead (7.72%), Celgene (7.62%), Biogen (7.58%), and Regeneron (6.57%). These companies have struggled mightily amid fears of rising drug price regulation.

IBB SMART Grade

IBB currently has an ETF Daily News SMART Grade of B (Buy), and is ranked #13 of 36 funds in the Health & Biotech ETFs category.

For more information about this ETF, including full ratings, news, data, and more, please visit IBB’s ticker page.

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