iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF (HEWJ)

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The chart shows the growth of an initial investment of $10,000 in iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF, comparing it to the performance of the S&P 500 index or another benchmark. All prices have been adjusted for splits and dividends.

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF (HEWJ) has returned 6.80% so far this year and 41.35% over the past 12 months. Looking at the last ten years, HEWJ has achieved an annualized return of 15.11%, outperforming the S&P 500 Index benchmark, which averaged 12.16% per year.

Based on dividend-adjusted daily data since Feb 5, 2014, HEWJ's average daily return is +0.06%, while the average monthly return is +1.14%. At this rate, your investment would double in approximately 5.1 years.

Historically, 67% of months were positive and 33% were negative. The best month was Nov 2020 with a return of +10.3%, while the worst month was Feb 2016 at -11.8%. The longest winning streak lasted 12 consecutive months, and the longest losing streak was 3 months.

On a daily basis, HEWJ closed higher 53% of trading days. The best single day was Apr 9, 2025 with a return of +9.1%, while the worst single day was Mar 12, 2020 at -10.4%.

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF has an annualized alpha of 4.18%, beta of 0.86, and R² of 0.52 versus S&P 500 Index. Calculated based on daily prices since February 06, 2014.

• This ETF participates in less of S&P 500 Index's moves in both directions, but captures a larger share of gains (78.93%) than losses (62.24%) — typical of diversified or defensive assets.
• This ETF generated an annualized alpha of 4.18% versus S&P 500 Index — delivering returns beyond what market exposure alone would predict.
• With beta of 0.86 and R² of 0.52, this ETF moves broadly in line with S&P 500 Index — much of its variation is explained by market exposure rather than independent behavior.

HEWJ has an expense ratio of 0.49%, placing it in the medium range.

HEWJ ranks 88 for risk / return — in the top 88% of ETFs on our site. This means strong returns relative to risk — exactly what professional investors look for. Well-suited for investors who want to maximize return per unit of risk.

The table below present risk-adjusted performance metrics for iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF (HEWJ) and compare them to a chosen benchmark (S&P 500 Index).

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF provided a 4.78% dividend yield over the last twelve months, with an annual payout of $2.69 per share. The fund has been increasing its distributions for 2 consecutive years.

The table displays the monthly dividend distributions for iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF. The dividends shown in the table have been adjusted to account for any splits that may have occurred.

The Drawdowns chart displays portfolio losses from any high point along the way. Drawdowns are calculated considering price movements and all distributions paid, if any.

The table below displays the maximum drawdowns of the iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF. A maximum drawdown is a measure of risk, indicating the largest reduction in portfolio value due to a series of losing trades.

The maximum drawdown for the iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF was 31.53%, occurring on Mar 16, 2020. Recovery took 166 trading sessions.

The current iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF drawdown is 7.04%.

The chart below shows the rolling one-month volatility.