ETF Evaluator: Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF () Follow This ETF

Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF Overview

Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF (ESG) is a passively managed U.S. Equity Large Blend exchange-traded fund (ETF). Northern Trust launched the ETF in 2016.

The investment seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the STOXX® USA ESG Select KPIs IndexSM. The index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, score better with respect to a set of ESG KPIs relative to the U.S. companies in the STOXX® Global 1800 Index, a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of companies incorporated in the U.S. and in developed international markets. The fund will invest at least 80% of its total assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) in the securities of the index.

About Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF (ESG)

There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 6.99 years: Michael Gleeman (2025), Robert Anstine (2016), Brendan Sullivan (2016) and Steven Santiccoli (2021). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: Russell 1000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and STOXX USA ESG Select KPIs TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF has 252 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 41.9% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.

Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity ETF group. Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF has 0.5% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 98.8% There is 0.5% 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). Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF has 0.7% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $136 million in total assets, which is below the $13 billion average for the Large Blend 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.

ESG 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 Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Large Blend category. Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF has an expense ratio of 0.32%, which is 23% 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. Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 25%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 151% for the Large Blend category.

Recently, in the month of October 2026, Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF returned 1.8%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Large Blend 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.

Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF has a trailing yield of 0.82%, which is below the 1.41% category average. The fund normally distributes its income quarterly.

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.

Northern Trust STOXX US ESG Select ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 16.1%, 5.5 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 17.6% over the past year (grade of A), 22.4% over the past three years (grade of C) and 11.4% per year over the past five years (grade of C) and 15.4% per year over the past 10 years (grade of B).

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