ETF Evaluator: iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF (EWZS) Follow This ETF

iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF Overview

iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF (EWZS) is a passively managed International Equity Focused Region exchange-traded fund (ETF). iShares launched the ETF in 2010.

The investment seeks to track the investment results of the MSCI Brazil Small Cap Index composed of small-capitalization Brazilian equities. The fund generally will invest at least 80% of its assets in the component securities of the underlying index and in investments that have economic characteristics that are substantially identical to the component securities of the underlying index. The index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted index designed to measure primarily the performance of equity securities of small capitalization companies listed on stock exchanges in Brazil.

About iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF (EWZS)

There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 4.31 years: Jennifer Hsui (2012), Peter Sietsema (2025), Matt Waldron (2025) and Steven White (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: MSCI EM NR USD index with a weighting of 100% and MSCI Brazil Small NR USD index with a weighting of 100%. iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF has 82 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 36.3% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.

iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the International Equity ETF group. iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF has 97.5% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 1.2% There is 97.5% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF has 1.3% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $234 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Focused Region category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.

EWZS Performance and Fees

The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Focused Region category. iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF has an expense ratio of 0.59%, which is 14% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.

High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 82%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 26% for the Focused Region category.

Recently, in the month of June 2026, iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF returned -6.1%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Focused Region category had an average return of -2.1%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.

iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF has a trailing yield of 3.91%, which is below the 5.65% category average. The fund normally distributes its income semi-annually and its capital gains annually.

It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.

iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 1.3%, 7.8 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned 2.6% over the past year (grade of F), -1.1% over the past three years (grade of F) and -4.5% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 6.1% per year over the past 10 years (grade of D).

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