Do GCAD and IDEF hold the same stocks?

By their latest filings, 31% of their books are the same securities at the same weight. Overlap is the sum of the smaller weight of every security they share.

Which is more different from the S&P 500, GCAD or IDEF?

GCAD has 40% of its weight in S&P 500 names and IDEF has 40%, so GCAD differs more from the index.

Which is cheaper, GCAD or IDEF?

GCAD charges 0.10% a year and IDEF charges 0.55%, so GCAD is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Thematic ETFs

GCAD vs IDEF: Holdings Overlap & Returns

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, GCAD returned +9.4% to IDEF's −5.8%; 31% of their weight is in the same names.

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Net assets: $44m on Jun 30, 2026 for Gabelli Commercial Aerospace and Defense ETF, and $3.6bn on Nov 4, 2026 for iShares Defense Industrials and Tech Active ETF.

GCAD on its own →IDEF on its own →

At a glance

40.1%

GCAD in the S&P 500

40.1%

IDEF in the S&P 500

+9.4%

GCAD total return, 1 year

−5.8%

IDEF total return, 1 year

GCAD · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 60% of its weight is outside the S&P 500

40% of GCAD's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 60% is outside the index. Holdings as of Jun 30, 2026.

IDEF · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 60% of its weight is outside the S&P 500

40% of IDEF's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 60% is outside the index. Holdings as of Nov 3, 2026.

Pair scorecard

GCAD costs 0.45 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 15.2 points.

GCAD vs IDEF: Holdings Overlap & Returns
Measure	GCAD	IDEF
Return
Measure	GCAD	IDEF
Total return, 1 year	+9.4%	−5.8%
Drawdown
Measure	GCAD	IDEF
Below its all-time high	15.6%, high on Aug 14, 2026	19.2%, high on Mar 2, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	GCAD	IDEF
What it tracks	Defense	Defense
Cost and size
Measure	GCAD	IDEF
Expense ratio	0.10%	0.55%
Net assets, GCAD as of Jun 30, 2026 and IDEF as of Nov 4, 2026	$44m	$3.6bn
Holdings
Measure	GCAD	IDEF
Holdings in common	31%

Method

What they share

31%

By the books each fund has filed, GCAD and IDEF hold 31% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Nov 3, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

31% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first GCAD IDEF

RTX CORP 4.14% 7.41%

LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP 3.97% 5.42%

NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP 3.48% 3.93%

GENERAL DYNAMICS CORP 2.39% 4.39%

AAR CORP 1.67% 1.61%

BOEING COMPANY (THE) 5.20% 1.30%

TRANSDIGM GROUP INC 2.03% 1.12%

HOWMET AEROSPACE INC 2.60% 0.86%

L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES INC 4.01% 0.75%

CAE INC 1.04% 0.72%

HONEYWELL AEROSPACE INC 1.98% 0.60%

GE AEROSPACE 1.55% 0.59%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in GCAD

ASTRONICS CORP 2.29%

HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC 2.01%

ECHOSTAR CORP 1.30%

INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS AND SUPPORT INC 1.16%

STANDARDAERO INC 0.94%

FIREFLY AEROSPACE INC 0.79%

SENIOR PLC 0.64%

YORK SPACE SYSTEMS INC 0.42%

Only in IDEF

THALES SA 3.76%

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES COR 2.77%

ROLLS-ROYCE HOLDINGS PLC 2.27%

SAAB CLASS B 1.95%

PALO ALTO NETWORKS 1.74%

LEONARDO FINMECCANICA SPA 1.63%

CROWDSTRIKE HOLDINGS CLASS A 1.62%

MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES 1.51%

Check overlap with more funds →

Window by window

Window by window: GCAD vs IDEF: Holdings Overlap & Returns
	Total return
Window	GCAD	IDEF
3 months	−14.0%	−14.0%
6 months	−7.1%	−12.4%
1 year	+9.4%	−5.8%
3 years	+105.6%	–
Since launchNot the same days: GCAD Jan 2023 · IDEF May 2025	+117.4%	+18.8%

– means no data for this window. Open this comparison in the app →

Side by side

GCAD Gabelli Commercial Aerospace and Defense ETF · Holds 51 stocks in defense, 40% of its weight in S&P 500 companies IDEF iShares Defense Industrials and Tech Active ETF · Holds 162 stocks in defense, 40% of its weight in S&P 500 companies

Issuer Gabelli iShares

Theme Defense Defense

In the S&P 500 40.1% 40.1%

Active share vs the S&P 500 97.2% 92.6%

In the Nasdaq-100 4.4% 11.2%

Holdings 51 162

Top ten, share of the fund 47.5% 36.3%

Expense ratio 0.10% 0.55%

Fee for the differing part 0.10% 0.59%

Total return, 1 year +9.4% −5.8%

vs its benchmark not measured not measured

Below its high −15.6% −19.2%

Net assets, GCAD as of Jun 30, 2026 and IDEF as of Nov 4, 2026 $44m $3.6bn

As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

31% of the two portfolios are the same securities at the same weight.

Alert

About each fund

GCAD

By weight, 40% of GCAD's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 97%. The top ten holdings are 48% of the fund across 51 positions, as filed for Jun 30, 2026. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026 the fund returned +9.4% with distributions reinvested. It sits 15.6% below its all-time high of Aug 14, 2026.

IDEF

By weight, 40% of IDEF's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 93%. The top ten holdings are 36% of the fund across 162 positions, as published by its issuer for Nov 3, 2026. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026 the fund returned −5.8% with distributions reinvested. It sits 19.2% below its all-time high of Mar 2, 2026.

Questions people ask

Do GCAD and IDEF hold the same stocks?: By their latest filings, 31% of their books are the same securities at the same weight. Overlap is the sum of the smaller weight of every security they share.
Which is more different from the S&P 500, GCAD or IDEF?: GCAD has 40% of its weight in S&P 500 names and IDEF has 40%, so GCAD differs more from the index.
Which is cheaper, GCAD or IDEF?: GCAD charges 0.10% a year and IDEF charges 0.55%, so GCAD is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

GCAD vs ITA GCAD vs NATO GCAD vs XAR GCAD vs SHLD IDEF vs WDEF IDEF vs NATO IDEF vs KDEF IDEF vs MISL

Where to next

All thematic ETFs ranked by the S&P 500 Difference Score →How the scores are computed →GCAD on its own →IDEF on its own →GCAD dividend history →GCAD holdings →IDEF dividend history →IDEF holdings →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

GCAD filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

GCAD prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Gabelli website ↗

IDEF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

IDEF prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for IDEF ↗

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.

Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, GCAD against IDEF, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/gcad-vs-idef

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