iShares U.S. Consumer Staples ETF

iShares U.S. Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) is a BlackRock index fund. It tracks the Russell 1000 Consumer Staples RIC 22.5/45 Capped Index, which holds large and mid-sized U.S. companies that sell everyday goods, such as Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble and Philip Morris International. It also holds drug retailers and distributors like CVS Health and McKesson. Its 0.37% expense ratio is more than four times what FSTA, VDC or XLP charge.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, IYK returned +13.3%, 2nd of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +7.2% and its 10-year +10.0%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 33.2% and regained its old high 4.1 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2008 (-27.1%); its best was 2020 (+32.6%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 43.6% (Dec 10, 2007 to Mar 9, 2009), recovered by Dec 16, 2010.

As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 53 securities; the ten largest made up 66.24% of assets.

By sector

• Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors withdrew a net $21.7M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: -1.00%, +2.83%, +2.77%.

The fund tracks the Russell 1000 Consumer Staples RIC 22.5/45 Capped Index from FTSE Russell, which is part of the London Stock Exchange Group. The index starts with the Russell 1000, roughly the 1,000 largest U.S. companies. It keeps the ones Russell classifies as consumer staples: companies that make or sell food, drinks and household goods, drug retailers, and agriculture and milling firms. Sales at these businesses tend to hold up when the economy slows. Larger companies get bigger weights, based on the value of shares available to the public.

A few giants dominate this sector, so the index limits their size at each quarterly rebalance. No single company can be more than 22.5%. Companies above 4.5% can make up no more than 45% combined. Weights can drift past these limits between rebalances. As of July 31, 2026, the largest holdings were Coca-Cola (13.0%), Procter & Gamble (12.8%) and Philip Morris International (11.4%), and the top 10 made up about 66% of assets.

BlackRock Fund Advisors uses "representative sampling." That means it holds a group of stocks chosen to behave like the index, which may not include every index member. At least 80% of net assets must be in index stocks. The fund may use derivatives, though its position was tiny as of July 31, 2026. It may also lend up to one-third of its assets to other investors for a fee. Portfolio turnover was 8%, so it trades little.

• IYK charges 0.37% a year, versus an average of 0.36% for the similar funds below (4th of 9, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $38 in the first year and $468 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It holds companies whose sales tend to hold up in recessions, but it is a single-sector fund that can still fall sharply.

People keep buying staples in a recession, so IYK may soften losses, but it doesn't avoid them. In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 33.2% and recovered in about four months. In 2022 it gained 3.54% for the calendar year, yet it dropped 15% between April and October and didn't regain its peak until May 2024. The 2008 crisis hit harder: a 43.6% drop that took about 21 months to recover, including a 27.1% loss in 2008 alone. Anyone selling shares for income in a year like that would have sold at low prices.

The fund yielded 2.49% as of October 27, 2026, with dividends paid quarterly. Its 0.37% expense ratio works out to $38 in the first year on $10,000 under the SEC's standard example, more than four times the cost of VDC or XLP. 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.