At a glance
ISVL charges 0.31% a year, below the 0.32% average of the 4 funds most like it (the 2nd cheapest of 5). It has $312.4M in assets, the 5th largest of that group; it paid 3.06% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, semiannual. Over the past year it returned +18.0% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%), 3rd of those 5 funds; over three years it returned +26.5% a year. At its worst it fell 29.1% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 15 months after the low. Its ten largest positions make up 9.8% of the fund, out of 526 in all.
The short version
iShares International Developed Small Cap Value Factor ETF (ISVL) tracks a FTSE index of smaller, low-priced companies in developed markets outside the US and Korea. Before it ranks stocks on value, the index removes the most volatile, most indebted and least-traded companies. Its expense ratio is 0.31% a year, lower than similar Avantis and Dimensional funds. It is also much smaller, with about $312 million in assets as of June 30, 2026.
Price history
The interactive chart needs JavaScript.
ISVL +18.0% over the year to Oct 27, 2026, total return with distributions reinvested.
How it has behaved
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | Since start | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ISVL official prospectus, to Dec 31, 2025 | — | +43.10% | — | — | — | +10.76% |
| FTSE All World ex US Index index, same period | — | +31.95% | — | — | — | +7.57% |
| FTSE Developed ex US ex Korea Small Cap Focused Value Index index, same period | — | +42.60% | — | — | — | +10.86% |
| ISVL price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +12.9% | +18.0% | +26.5% | +11.1% | — | +11.3% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, ISVL returned +18.0%, 3rd of 5 among similar funds.
- Its 5-year annualized return was +11.1%.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-13.7%); its best was 2025 (+42.8%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 30.4% (Sep 3, 2021 to Sep 27, 2022), recovered by Mar 7, 2024.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data | Prospectus (official) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +12.9% | — |
| 2025 | +42.8% | +43.10% |
| 2024 | +4.6% | +5.11% |
| 2023 | +17.6% | +17.02% |
| 2022 | -13.7% | -14.07% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Before this security existed |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 28.1% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 29.1%, back to its old high 15 months after the low |
Dividends and income
Show as a table
| Year | Per share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | $1.0100 | |
| 2025 | $1.2800 | -4.5% |
| 2024 | $1.3400 | +3.1% |
| 2023 | $1.3000 | +27.5% |
| 2022 | $1.0200 |
What's inside
As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 526 securities; the ten largest made up 9.8% of assets.
| Holding | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| IG GROUP HOLDINGS PLC | 1.11% | |
| Subsea 7 S.A. | 1.10% | |
| Nordnet AB (publ) | 1.07% | |
| Aurubis AG | 0.97% | |
| AEDIFICA NV | 0.96% | |
| ONEX CORPORATION | 0.95% | |
| NEXANS SA | 0.95% | |
| SAIPEM S.P.A. | 0.92% | |
| Granite Real Estate Investment Trust Other | 0.91% | |
| CANADIAN APARTMENT PROPERTIES REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST Other | 0.85% | |
| Konecranes Oyj | 0.85% | |
| ABERDEEN GROUP PLC | 0.81% | |
| Technip Energies N.V. | 0.81% | |
| voestalpine AG | 0.80% | |
| GLANBIA PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY | 0.79% |
By country
Japan 30.39%United Kingdom 14.43%Canada 7.47%Switzerland 6.59%Australia 4.65%By asset type
Stocks 93.8%Other 5.97%What changed recently
- Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $0.00 (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +6.99%, +2.37%, -2.32%.
How it works
ISVL tracks the FTSE Developed ex US ex Korea Small Cap Focused Value Index. FTSE builds it from a broader index of small companies in developed markets outside the US and Korea. First, FTSE drops three groups from that parent index: the 20% least traded, the 20% most volatile over the past 12 months, and the 20% with the most debt relative to assets. Next, it removes companies whose earnings estimates have more downgrades than upgrades and whose share price has fallen over the past year. Finally, it ranks the rest on price-to-book, price-to-earnings and price-to-cash-flow. Those are three ways of asking how cheap a stock is. The index keeps about a quarter as many stocks as the parent.
Stocks are weighted by float-adjusted market value, meaning the value of shares actually available to trade. Each country's weight must stay within 10 percentage points of its weight in the parent index. FTSE reviews the index every month but rebalances only if its value score drops below 90% of a fresh target portfolio's score, or if the stock count falls under 20% of the parent's. That means it can go months without changing. It had 499 stocks as of March 31, 2026.
BlackRock uses representative sampling, so the fund may not own every stock in the index. It can use futures and lend out up to one-third of its assets. Portfolio turnover was 139%, which adds trading costs.
What it really costs
- ISVL charges 0.31% a year, versus an average of 0.32% for the similar funds below (2nd of 5, cheapest first).
- Of that, 0.3% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
- Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $32 in the first year and $393 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).
| Cost of $10,000 (SEC example) | 1 yr | 3 yrs | 5 yrs | 10 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ISVL | $32 | $100 | $174 | $393 |
In a retirement portfolio
It adds smaller, cheaply priced foreign companies, mostly in Japan, the UK and Canada, which many US-focused portfolios hold little of.
ISVL could broaden a US-heavy portfolio. As of June 30, 2026, Japan made up about 30% of the fund and the UK about 14%. The fund launched in March 2021, so it has no record in the 2008 or 2020 crashes. In the 2022 bear market it fell 29.1% and took 15 months to recover. Its deepest drop was 30.4%, from September 2021 to September 2022, and it took about 17 months to recover. Anyone who had to sell shares during that stretch would have locked in losses. Its worst calendar year was 2022, at -14.07%. The trailing yield was 3.06% as of October 27, 2026, and the fund pays twice a year. The 0.31% expense ratio works out to $32 in the first year on $10,000. Past results don't predict future returns, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors seeking cheaply priced small foreign companies. Japan, the UK and Canada made up over half the fund as of June 30, 2026.
- Cost-conscious buyers of international small-cap value. ISVL charges 0.31% a year, compared with 0.36% for AVDV and 0.42% for DISV.
- Holders who want some income along with growth. The trailing yield was 3.06% as of October 27, 2026, paid twice a year.
Look elsewhere if
- Investors who want the cheapest broad foreign small-cap exposure. VSS charges 0.08% a year for a wider mix of smaller companies.
- Those who prefer large, heavily traded funds. ISVL had about $312 million in assets, the smallest of the five funds compared.
- Anyone uncomfortable with a 30.4% peak-to-bottom drop, or with 139% annual turnover, which adds trading costs inside the fund.
Close alternatives
Matched by closest holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports (no similar fund shares 20% or more of its holdings).
| Fund | Overlap | Cost | Net assets | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ISVL this fund | — | 0.31% | $312.4M | +18.0% | +26.5% |
| DISV Dimensional International Small Cap Value E… | 26% | 0.42% | $4.94B | +20.9% | +27.2% |
| AVDV Avantis International Small Cap Value ETF | 25% | 0.36% | $20.50B | +22.1% | +27.1% |
| VSS Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US Small-Cap ETF | 12% | 0.08% | $13.55B | +7.2% | +18.0% |
| SCZ iShares MSCI EAFE Small-Cap ETF | 9% | 0.4% | $13.20B | +13.1% | +18.3% |
Questions investors ask
Does ISVL pay dividends?
Yes. ISVL pays dividends twice a year. Its trailing 12-month yield was 3.06% as of October 27, 2026, which works out to about $1.61 per share over that period. The payouts come from dividends paid by the roughly 500 small foreign companies the fund holds. The amount can change from one payment to the next with company profits and currency moves, because the fund converts foreign dividends into US dollars.
What's the difference between ISVL and AVDV?
Both funds hold small, cheaply priced companies in developed markets outside the US. Only about a quarter of their holdings overlap. ISVL costs 0.31% a year and AVDV costs 0.36%. AVDV is far larger, with about $20.5 billion in assets as of August 31, 2026, compared with ISVL's $312 million as of June 30, 2026. Over the year to late October 2026, AVDV's price return was 21.2% and ISVL's was 18%.
What is the ISVL expense ratio?
ISVL's expense ratio is 0.31% a year, according to the prospectus filed July 27, 2026. On $10,000 earning 5% a year, that comes to about $32 after one year, $174 after five years and $393 after ten. That is close to the 0.32% average of the similar funds compared here. It is cheaper than DISV and AVDV but well above VSS's 0.08%.
How did ISVL do in 2022?
ISVL lost 14.07% in 2022, its worst calendar year so far, according to its prospectus. During the 2022 bear market, its price fell 29.1% from January 12 to September 27, 2022, and it took 15 months to get back to its earlier high. It then gained 17.02% in 2023, 5.11% in 2024 and 43.1% in 2025.
Why does ISVL hold so much Japan?
Japan made up 30.39% of ISVL as of June 30, 2026, followed by the UK at 14.43%. The fund's index keeps each country's weight within 10 percentage points of its weight in the broader FTSE small-cap index it starts from. So if Japan has a large share of developed-market small companies outside the US, the fund will too. Changes in the yen can therefore have a big effect on returns.