Designed to provide broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth category of the market, the Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF (NULG) is a smart beta exchange traded fund launched on 12/13/2016.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.

Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.

On the other hand, some investors who believe that it is possible to beat the market by superior stock selection opt to invest in another class of funds that track non-cap weighted strategies--popularly known as smart beta.

By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.

Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.

Fund Sponsor & Index

The fund is sponsored by Nuveen. It has amassed assets over $2.65 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. NULG, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the TIAA ESG USA Large-Cap Growth Index.

The Nuveen ESG USA Large-Cap Growth Index composes of equity securities issued by large capitalization companies listed on U.S. exchanges.

Cost & Other Expenses

Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long-term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins, other things remaining the same.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.26% for NULG, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.10%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.

For NULG, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 48.4% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Industrials round out the top three.

Taking into account individual holdings, Nvidia Corp (NVDA) accounts for about 15.2% of the fund's total assets, followed by Broadcom Inc (AVGO) and Eli Lilly And Company (LLY).

NULG's top 10 holdings account for about 44.9% of its total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF has added about 13.44% so far, and it's up approximately 13.36% over the last 12 months (as of 07/29/2026). NULG has traded between $87.55 $117.06 in this past 52-week period.

The fund has a beta of 1.21 and standard deviation of 19.19% for the trailing three-year period. With about 71 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .

Alternatives

Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

Vanguard ESG U.S. Stock ETF Shares (ESGV) tracks FTSE US ALL CAP CHOICE INDEX and the iShares ESG Aware MSCI USA ETF (ESGU) tracks MSCI USA ESG Focus Index. Vanguard ESG U.S. Stock ETF Shares has $13.03 billion in assets, iShares ESG Aware MSCI USA ETF has $17.78 billion. ESGV has an expense ratio of 0.09% and ESGU changes 0.15%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Large Cap Growth

Bottom Line

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit

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Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF (NULG): ETF Research Reports

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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