iShares MSCI USA Equal Weighted ETF

The iShares MSCI USA Equal Weighted ETF (EUSA) is a BlackRock index fund that tracks the MSCI USA Equal Weighted Index. That index gives each large- and mid-sized U.S. company in it about the same weight at every quarterly rebalance. As of August 31, 2026, the fund held 526 stocks, and its 10 largest made up only 3.3% of assets. Its 0.09% expense ratio is well below the 0.23% average of similar funds.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, EUSA returned +12.3%, 6th of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +7.4% and its 10-year +11.7%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 39.2% and regained its old high 7.6 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-17.1%); its best was 2013 (+32.0%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 39.2% (Feb 20, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020), recovered by Nov 9, 2020.

As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 526 securities; the ten largest made up 3.3% of assets, and 2.21% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

By sector

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors added a net $127.2M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +1.66%, +0.13%, +2.36%.

EUSA follows the MSCI USA Equal Weighted Index, run by index provider MSCI Inc. It starts from the same large- and mid-sized U.S. companies as MSCI's standard MSCI USA Index. That parent index is weighted by market capitalization, meaning a company's total stock market value, so the biggest firms take up the most room. The equal-weighted version gives every company the same slice instead. At each quarterly rebalance, all weights reset to equal. Between rebalances, weights drift as prices move.

BlackRock Fund Advisors uses "representative sampling." Instead of owning every stock in the index, it may hold a sample built to match the index's size, industry mix, yield and other traits. The fund generally keeps at least 80% of assets in index stocks. It may put up to 20% in futures, options, swaps, cash and other securities that help it track the index. As of August 31, 2026, it held 526 stocks, about 2.2% cash and small stock-index futures positions.

Resetting to equal weights means trimming stocks that rose and adding to ones that fell. The prospectus reports portfolio turnover of 31%. The fund may lend securities worth up to one-third of its total assets to earn extra income. It does not try to beat the index or move to cash when markets fall.

• EUSA charges 0.09% a year, versus an average of 0.23% for the similar funds below (2nd of 9, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $9 in the first year and $115 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It spreads money across 526 large- and mid-sized U.S. stocks for a 0.09% expense ratio, so it can provide broad U.S. stock exposure that leans less on the biggest companies.

EUSA is a stock fund, and it falls like one. It launched in 2010, so it has no record from the 2008 crisis. In the 2020 COVID crash it lost 39.2% in about a month. It got back to its old peak on November 9, 2020, about 7.6 months later. In the 2022 bear market it fell 24.6% and took 16.8 months to recover, reaching its old peak on February 23, 2024. Its worst calendar year was 2022, at −17.03%. Anyone who had to sell during those stretches would have locked in losses. That is one reason some retirees keep cash or bonds to spend from in bad years. Income is modest: the trailing yield was 1.39% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. In the SEC's standard example, costs come to about $115 over 10 years on $10,000. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.