IBB vs SHLD: which is really different?
IBB and SHLD hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and IBB returned +36.1% over the year. iShares Biotechnology ETF and Global X Defense Tech ETF.
IBB costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 50.1 points; IBB is 1.6 times larger.
| IBB | SHLD | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.44% | 0.50% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 8, 2026 | $10.3bn | $6.3bn |
| Total return, 1 year | +36.1% | −14.0% |
| What it tracks | Biotech | Defense |
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| S&P 500, total return, 1 year | +17.3% | |
| Against the S&P 500, 1 year | ahead by 18.8 pts | behind by 31.3 pts |
| Below its all-time high | 23.0%, high on Mar 9, 2026 | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 8, 2026.
40% of IBB's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 61% is outside the index. Holdings as of Oct 8, 2026.
40% of SHLD's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 60% is outside the index. Holdings as of Oct 8, 2026.
A percentile among the 391 thematic ETFs with a holdings filing. All thematic ETFs ranked by it → How it is computed →
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, IBB and SHLD hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Oct 8, 2026.
half
0% in common
0% of the two portfolios are the same securities at the same weight.
Performance, window by window
| Total return | vs the S&P 500 | vs the Nasdaq-100 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | IBB | SHLD | IBB | SHLD | IBB | SHLD |
| 3 months | +7.5% | −2.2% | +4.1 pts | −5.5 pts | +3.9 pts | −5.8 pts |
| 6 months | +21.9% | −17.4% | +6.8 pts | −32.5 pts | −1.3 pts | −40.6 pts |
| 1 year | +36.1% | −14.0% | +18.8 pts | −31.3 pts | +12.5 pts | −37.6 pts |
| 3 years | +69.1% | +139.1% | −16.7 pts | +53.4 pts | −38.2 pts | +31.9 pts |
| Since launch IBB Feb 2001 · SHLD Sep 2023 | +525.3% | +146.1% | −299.7 pts | +64.7 pts | −936.3 pts | +41.7 pts |
Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →
On the same fields
As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
IBB in plain words
By weight, 40% of IBB's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 50% of the fund across 245 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 8, 2026. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 the fund returned +36.1% with distributions reinvested against +17.3% for the S&P 500, so a holder was ahead by 18.8 pts.
SHLD in plain words
By weight, 40% of SHLD's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 65% of the fund across 50 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 8, 2026. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 the fund returned −14.0% with distributions reinvested against +17.3% for the S&P 500, so a holder was behind by 31.3 pts. It sits 23.0% below its all-time high of Mar 9, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Do IBB and SHLD hold the same stocks?
- By their latest filings, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight, which is mostly different names. Overlap is the sum of the smaller weight of every security they share.
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure; a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation.
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed.
Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
ETFIQ, IBB against SHLD, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ibb-vs-shld
ETFIQ. (Oct 9, 2026). IBB against SHLD. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ibb-vs-shld
[IBB against SHLD (ETFIQ, Oct 9, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ibb-vs-shld)
Free to use with attribution for figures ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.