Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
HDEF vs HEDJ: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, HDEF returned +17.8% to HEDJ's +8.6%; 7% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $2.3bn on Oct 27, 2026 for Xtrackers MSCI EAFE High Dividend Yield Equity ETF, and $1.8bn on Jun 30, 2026 for WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Fund.
Pair scorecard
HDEF costs 0.49 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 9.2 points.
| Measure | HDEF | HEDJ |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +17.8% | +8.6% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.3%, high on Aug 14, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI EAFE High Dividend Yield Index | WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.58% |
| Net assets, HDEF as of Oct 27, 2026 and HEDJ as of Jun 30, 2026 | $2.3bn | $1.8bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 7% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 41.1% | 41.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated May 29, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Aug 28, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 582 weekly returnsHEDJ returned more: +169.3% to +147.6%. HDEF swung slightly less: 16.2% to 17.3%. HEDJ fell slightly less at its worst: −34.5% to −35.4%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | HDEF | HEDJ | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +147.6% | +169.3% | HEDJ | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +8.4% | +9.3% | HEDJ (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +44.7% | +89.7% | HEDJ | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 16.2% | 17.3% | HDEF (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 11.5% | 12.4% | HDEF (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −35.4% | −34.5% | HEDJ (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.44 | 0.47 | HEDJ (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.62 | 0.65 | HEDJ (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.24 | 0.27 | HEDJ | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 582 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, HDEF and HEDJ hold 7% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated May 29, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026.
half
7% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
HDEF and HEDJ on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
HDEF and HEDJ are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. HDEF follows MSCI EAFE High Dividend Yield Index and HEDJ follows WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Index.
- Holdings in common. 7% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated May 29, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 HDEF returned +17.8% and HEDJ +8.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 9.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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HDEF
HDEF tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +17.8% with distributions reinvested, against +12.1% for its benchmark, the MSCI EAFE Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings filed for May 29, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 114 positions, with the top ten at 41.1%.
HEDJ
HEDJ tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +8.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.58% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 130 positions, with the top ten at 41.1%. It sat 4.3% below its high of Aug 14, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, HDEF or HEDJ?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HDEF returned +17.8% and HEDJ +8.6%.
- Which is cheaper, HDEF or HEDJ?
- HDEF is cheaper, by 0.49 percentage points a year. That is about $49 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, HDEF against HEDJ, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hdef-vs-hedj
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