EIS: ISHARES MSCI ISRAEL ETF
ETF Education Report: iShares MSCI Israel ETF (EIS)
What this ETF is trying to do
The iShares MSCI Israel ETF (ticker: EIS) is an exchange-traded fund designed to provide exposure to companies based in Israel. It holds a variety of different stocks within its portfolio.
What the numbers show
When looking at an ETF, it is important to understand two different types of returns: price return and total return.
• Price Return: This measures only the change in the share price.
• Total Return: This includes both the change in share price and any cash distributions (dividends) paid out to investors.
For EIS, the numbers show growth over different time periods:
• Year-to-Date (YTD): The price return is approximately 15.96%, while the total return is approximately 16.67%.
• One Year: The price return was approximately 33.90%, and the total return was approximately 36.07%.
• Three Years: The price return was approximately 136.13%, and the total return was approximately 146.18%.
To visualize this, the estimated price from roughly one year ago was $95.29. The current price is $127.60.
Income and distribution explanation
Some investors look for ETFs that pay out cash, known as distributions. The distribution yield for EIS is approximately 1.46%. This means the cash distributed is about 1.46% of the ETF's price. Over the last 12 months, there were two distributions. It is important to remember that a distribution yield is not the same as total return, and receiving cash does not guarantee your original investment will stay the same value.
NAV erosion explanation
"NAV erosion" refers to a situation where the value of the underlying assets in the fund decreases significantly. StockValueFinder uses an "erosion-risk score" to help monitor this. For EIS, the erosion score is 100, and the label indicates "No price erosion detected." There is no severe erosion-risk flag for this ETF.
Top Holdings
The following are the top holdings in this portfolio (note that this is a partial list):
• Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd ADR: 8.98%
• Bank Leumi Le-Israel BM: 8.59%
• Bank Hapoalim BM: 7.62%
• Tower Semiconductor Ltd: 6.76%
• Elbit Systems Ltd: 5.33%
• Nova Ltd: 3.36%
Pros
• The ETF has shown positive price returns and total returns over the one-year and three-year periods.
• The erosion-risk measurement is rated as "good."
Cons
• The distribution frequency is described as irregular or less frequent.
• Holdings can change over time, meaning the companies you own today may be different in the future.
Beginner takeaway
EIS tracks a group of Israeli companies. While it has shown significant price and total returns recently, investors should always distinguish between share-price growth and the cash income provided by distributions.
Top Holdings
Structured portfolio holdings supplied by the ETF data provider. These figures are not generated by the AI article.
| # | Holding | Ticker | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TEVA PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES LTD ADR | TEVA | 8.98% |
| 2 | BANK LEUMI LE-ISRAEL BM | n/a | 8.59% |
| 3 | BANK HAPOALIM BM | n/a | 7.62% |
| 4 | TOWER SEMICONDUCTOR LTD | n/a | 6.76% |
| 5 | ELBIT SYSTEMS LTD | n/a | 5.33% |
| 6 | NOVA LTD | NVMI | 3.36% |
| 7 | PHOENIX FINANCIAL LTD | n/a | 3.21% |
| 8 | ISRAEL DISCOUNT BANK LTD CLASS A | ISDAF | 3.15% |
| 9 | ENLIGHT RENEWABLE ENERGY LTD | n/a | 3.04% |
| 10 | MIZRAHI TEFAHOT BANK LTD | n/a | 2.89% |