ETF Evaluator: iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF (HEFA) Follow This ETF

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF Overview

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF (HEFA) is a passively managed International Equity Foreign Large Blend exchange-traded fund (ETF). iShares launched the ETF in 2014.

The investment seeks to track the investment results of the MSCI EAFE® 100% Hedged to USD Index. The fund generally will invest at least 80% of its assets in the component securities (including indirect investments through the underlying fund) and other instruments 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 composed of large- and mid-capitalization equities in Europe, Australasia, and the Far East while mitigating exposure to fluctuations between the value of the component currencies and the U.S. dollar.

About iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF (HEFA)

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 EAFE 100% Hedged NR USD index with a weighting of 100%. iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF has 268 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 100.3% 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 Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the International Equity ETF group. iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF has 98.1% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 1.3% There is 98.1% 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 EAFE ETF has 0.5% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $7 billion in total assets, which is below the $9 billion average for the Foreign 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.

HEFA 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 EAFE ETF expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Foreign Large Blend category. iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF has an expense ratio of 0.35%, which is 11% 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 EAFE ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 14%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 39% for the Foreign Large Blend category.

Recently, in the month of June 2026, iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF returned 3.1%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Foreign Large Blend category had an average return of -0.1%. 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 Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF has a trailing yield of 2.95%, which is above the 2.63% 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 EAFE ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 13.5%, 2.6 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of B. The fund has returned 28.1% over the past year (grade of B), 18.6% over the past three years (grade of B) and 13.9% per year over the past five years (grade of A) and 12.7% per year over the past 10 years (grade of A).

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