At a glance
LRND charges 0.14% a year, below the 0.46% average of the 8 funds most like it (the 2nd cheapest of 9). It has $398.5M in assets, the 6th largest of that group; it paid 0.32% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, quarterly. Over the past year it returned +14.0% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%), the best of those 9 funds; over three years it returned +26.0% a year. Its ten largest positions make up 70.2% of the fund, out of 107 in all.
The short version
NYLI U.S. Large Cap R&D Leaders ETF (LRND) is a New York Life index fund. It holds about 100 large U.S. companies that spend heavily and efficiently on research and development. Its expense ratio, the yearly cost, is 0.14%, well below the 0.46% average for similar funds. The trade-off is concentration: as of July 31, 2026, NVIDIA, Alphabet and Apple made up about 39% of assets.
Price history
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LRND +14.0% 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LRND official prospectus, to Dec 31, 2025 | — | +20.36% | — | — | — | +14.84% |
| LRND price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +15.3% | +14.0% | +26.0% | — | — | +25.1% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, LRND returned +14.0%, 1st of 9 among similar funds.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2025 (+20.3%); its best was 2023 (+44.1%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 21.1% (Feb 19, 2025 to Apr 8, 2025), recovered by Jun 26, 2025.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data | Prospectus (official) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +15.3% | — |
| 2025 | +20.3% | +20.36% |
| 2024 | +21.7% | +21.59% |
| 2023 | +44.1% | +44.05% |
| 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 | Before this security existed |
Dividends and income
Show as a table
| Year | Per share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | $0.1300 | |
| 2025 | $0.2700 | -18.2% |
| 2024 | $0.3300 | -2.9% |
| 2023 | $0.3400 |
What's inside
As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 107 securities; the ten largest made up 70.21% of assets.
| Holding | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA CORP | 15.85% | |
| ALPHABET INC | 13.76% | |
| APPLE INC | 8.93% | |
| BROADCOM INC | 7.30% | |
| MICROSOFT CORP | 5.27% | |
| AMAZON.COM INC | 5.18% | |
| ELI LILLY & COMPANY | 4.23% | |
| META PLATFORMS INC | 4.14% | |
| ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES INC | 3.50% | |
| CISCO SYSTEMS INC | 2.06% | |
| APPLIED MATERIALS INC | 1.82% | |
| LAM RESEARCH CORP | 1.65% | |
| PALANTIR TECHNOLOGIES INC | 1.27% | |
| AMGEN INC | 1.18% | |
| PEPSICO INC | 1.08% |
By country
United States 98.56%Ireland 0.65%Switzerland 0.32%Cayman Islands 0.3%By asset type
Stocks 99.83%By sector
Sectors of the companies held, for the 91% of the fund in companies that have a stock page here; other holdings and cash aren't classified. Source: N-PORT holdings report as of Jul 31, 2026. Cash, money-market funds and derivatives are shown separately from the securities list.What changed recently
- Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors added a net $91.4M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +8.33%, -3.54%, +1.87%.
How it works
LRND is an index fund. It aims to match the NYLIM U.S. Large Cap R&D Leaders Index, which is built by the fund's own advisor at New York Life. The starting pool is the stocks in the Russell 1000 Index of large U.S. companies. First, the index drops sectors where research and development (R&D) has historically mattered less to a company's results. Then it ranks the remaining companies on two measures. One is R&D spending as a share of sales, compared within each sector. The other is return on invested capital, which shows how efficiently a company turns money into profit. The 100 highest-ranked companies make the cut.
Bigger companies get bigger weights, based on their market-value rank. At each rebalance, no single stock can exceed the greater of 5% or its weight in the Russell 1000 Growth Index plus 2 percentage points. No sector can exceed the greater of 20% or its weight in that growth index plus 5 points. Any excess is spread among the other holdings. These caps are tied to a growth index that is itself dominated by a few giants, so large positions still occur. As of July 31, 2026, NVIDIA was 15.9% of assets and technology was 55.9%.
The index is reconstituted and rebalanced every quarter. The fund generally holds every stock in the index at its index weight. The prospectus lists portfolio turnover of 46%, which is fairly high for an index fund.
What it really costs
- LRND charges 0.14% a year, versus an average of 0.46% for the similar funds below (2nd of 9, cheapest first).
- The fee includes a 0.01% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
- Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $14 in the first year and $179 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).
| Cost of $10,000 (SEC example) | 1 yr | 3 yrs | 5 yrs | 10 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LRND | $14 | $45 | $79 | $179 |
In a retirement portfolio
Its heavy tilt toward a few technology giants and its 1.29 beta make it a higher-risk addition to a broad core fund rather than a replacement for one.
LRND could add a concentrated bet on large, research-heavy companies alongside broader funds. Its record is short. It launched on February 8, 2022, so it missed the 2008 crisis and the 2020 COVID crash. Its price history starts October 18, 2022, after the 2022 bear market hit bottom. Every full calendar year since has been positive. The weakest was 2025, up about 20%. Its deepest drop, 21.1%, ran from February 19 to April 8, 2025, and was recovered by June 26, 2025, about 2.6 months later. A longer slump in tech stocks could force a retiree to sell shares at low prices. Income is small: the yield was 0.32% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. Costs are low, about $14 in the first year on $10,000 in the SEC's standard example. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors who want large U.S. growth stocks screened for R&D spending and efficiency, at 0.14% a year versus a 0.46% peer average.
- Holders of a broad index fund who want a smaller, tech-heavy add-on led by NVIDIA, Alphabet, Apple and Broadcom.
- Long-horizon investors who can ride out swings. Its beta was 1.29, and it fell 21.1% in early 2025.
Look elsewhere if
- Investors seeking income. The yield was just 0.32% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly.
- Investors wary of concentration. As of July 31, 2026, the top 10 holdings were 70.2% of assets and technology was 55.9%.
- Investors wanting a long track record. Its price history starts October 2022, so it shows no record through the 2008, 2020 or 2022 downturns.
Close alternatives
Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.
| Fund | Overlap | Cost | Net assets | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LRND this fund | — | 0.14% | $398.5M | +14.0% | +26.0% |
| RND First Trust Bloomberg R&D Leaders ETF | 62% | 0.6% | $4.8M | +7.8% | — |
| TGRW T. Rowe Price Growth Stock ETF | 60% | 0.52% | $1.03B | -0.6% | +21.4% |
| VUG Vanguard Growth ETF | 60% | 0.04% | $379.29B | +3.8% | +25.1% |
| PJFG PGIM Jennison Focused Growth ETF | 59% | 0.75% | $140.3M | +3.6% | +25.2% |
| PGRO Putnam Focused Large Cap Growth ETF | 59% | 0.56% | $212.1M | +3.1% | +24.6% |
| FBCG Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF | 58% | 0.59% | $6.92B | +9.9% | +29.8% |
| FLCG Federated Hermes MDT Large Cap Growth ETF | 57% | 0.39% | $617.3M | +4.1% | — |
Questions investors ask
What does LRND invest in?
LRND holds about 100 large U.S. companies. They are picked by the NYLIM U.S. Large Cap R&D Leaders Index for spending heavily and efficiently on research and development. As of July 31, 2026, the largest positions were NVIDIA (15.9%), Alphabet (13.8%), Apple (8.9%), Broadcom (7.3%), Microsoft (5.3%) and Amazon (5.2%). Technology made up 55.9% of assets and communication services 18.3%. That makes it similar to a large-cap growth fund.
What's the difference between LRND and RND?
Both funds target U.S. companies that lead in research and development spending, but they come from different issuers and cost very different amounts. LRND is from New York Life and charges 0.14% a year. First Trust Bloomberg R&D Leaders ETF (RND) charges 0.60%. About 62% of their holdings overlap. LRND had about $398 million in net assets as of July 31, 2026. RND had about $4.8 million as of June 30, 2026. In the year to October 27, 2026, LRND returned 14% and RND 7.8%.
Does LRND pay dividends?
Yes. LRND pays dividends every quarter, but the amounts are small. In the 12 months to October 27, 2026, it paid about $0.15 per share, a yield of 0.32%. The low payout reflects what it owns. Fast-growing technology and communication companies such as NVIDIA and Alphabet usually reinvest most of their profits rather than pay large dividends. Investors who rely on portfolio income would get little from this fund.
What is LRND's expense ratio?
LRND's expense ratio is 0.14% a year, according to its prospectus filed August 26, 2026. In the SEC's standard example, $10,000 earning 5% a year would cost about $14 over one year, $45 over three, $79 over five and $179 over ten. It is the second-cheapest of 9 similar funds, which average 0.46%. Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) costs less at 0.04%, and iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF) charges 0.19%.
How has LRND performed since launch?
LRND has gained in every full calendar year so far, according to its prospectus: 44.05% in 2023, 21.59% in 2024 and 20.36% in 2025. Its average annual return from its February 2022 launch through December 31, 2025, was 14.84%. Based on price, it returned about 26% a year over the three years to October 27, 2026. That period favored large technology stocks, and the fund's short history includes no full bear market.