ETF Evaluator: iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF (HEWJ) Follow This ETF

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF Overview

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF (HEWJ) is a passively managed International Equity Japan Stock exchange-traded fund (ETF). iShares launched the ETF in 2014.

The investment seeks to track the investment results of the MSCI Japan 100% Hedged to USD Index. The fund generally will invest at least 80% of its assets in the component securities and other instruments of its underlying index and in investments that have economic characteristics that are substantially identical to the component securities of the underlying index. The index is designed to measure the performance of the large- and mid-capitalization segments of the Japanese equity market with the currency risk inherent in the securities included in the underlying index hedged to the U.S. dollar on a monthly basis.

About iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF (HEWJ)

There are 2 members of the management team with an average tenure of 6.33 years: Orlando Montalvo (2014) and Franzel Medina (2026). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: MSCI ACWI Ex USA NR USD index with a weighting of 100% and MSCI Japan 100% hedged to USD NR USD index with a weighting of 100%. iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF has 40 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 99.9% 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 Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the International Equity ETF group. iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF has 99.3% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0% There is 99.3% 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 Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF has 0.7% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $725 million in total assets, which is below the $2 billion average for the Japan Stock 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.

HEWJ 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 Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Japan Stock category. iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF has an expense ratio of 0.49%, which is 3% lower 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 Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 15%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 35% for the Japan Stock category.

Recently, in the month of June 2026, iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF returned 3.2%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Japan Stock category had an average return of -0.4%. 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 Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF has a trailing yield of 3.71%, which is above the 2.68% 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 Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 22.4%, 5.8 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 51.5% over the past year (grade of A), 28.1% over the past three years (grade of B) and 22.1% per year over the past five years (grade of B) and 17.3% per year over the past 10 years (grade of B).

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