iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (IWR) Expected Move
Expected move estimates the probable price range for a given period based on at-the-money options pricing. It reflects the market consensus for volatility over the selected timeframe.
iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (IWR) operates in the Financial Services sector, specifically the Asset Management - Global industry, with a market capitalization near $55.33B, listed on AMEX, carrying a beta of 1.02 to the broader market. The iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of mid-capitalization U. public since 2001-08-27.
Snapshot as of Jun 30, 2026.
- Spot Price
- $110.38
- Expected Move
- 5.1%
- Implied High
- $116.04
- Implied Low
- $104.72
- Front DTE
- 17 days
As of Jun 30, 2026, iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (IWR) has an expected move of 5.13%, a one-standard-deviation implied price range of roughly $104.72 to $116.04 from the current $110.38. Expected move is derived from at-the-money straddle pricing and represents the market's pricing of a ±1σ move. Roughly 68% of outcomes should fall within this range under lognormal assumptions, though empirical markets have fatter tails.
IWR Strategy Sizing to the Expected Move
With iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF pricing an expected move of 5.13% from $110.38, risk-defined strategies sized to the implied range structurally target the modal outcome distribution. Iron condors with wings at the ±1σ expected move boundaries collect premium against the ~68% probability that spot stays inside the range under lognormal assumptions; strangles set wider at ±1.5σ or ±2σ target the tails but pay smaller per-trade premium. Long-vol structures (long straddles, ratio backspreads) profit when realized move exceeds the implied move, the inverse trade: they bet against the lognormal assumption itself, capitalizing on the empirically fatter equity-return tails.
How to read the IWR implied-range chart
The shaded range above shows the one-standard-deviation implied price band at each listed expiration, derived from ATM implied volatility scaled to days-to-expiration. The front-tenor expected move is 5.13%, anchoring an implied range of approximately $104.72 to $116.04. Under lognormal assumptions, roughly 68% of outcomes fall inside that band; 95% fall inside ±2σ; 99.7% inside ±3σ. The empirical equity-return distribution has fatter tails than lognormal, so true tail-outcome frequency is moderately higher than these closed-form numbers suggest.
IWR expected move and event pricing
Expected move widens with √time: a 5% 30-day move corresponds to roughly a 2.5% 7.5-day move and a 10% 120-day move. IWR term-structure is in backwardation (slope -0.008), so near-dated tenors price in disproportionate vol - usually because of a known event in the front-month window. With IV rank at 2.1%, the implied move is at the low end of the typical IWR range - cheap optionality for buyers, thin premium for sellers.
Sizing IWR structures to the expected move
Iron condors with wings at ±1σ collect the modal-outcome premium; ±1.5σ widens probability of inside-range to ~87% but cuts collected premium roughly in half. Strangles do the inverse trade - they pay against the same lognormal distribution, profiting when realized exceeds implied. Calendar spreads bet on the slope of the term structure rather than the level. IWR put/call volume ratio currently at 0.00 indicates speculative call flow dominates - look for upside-skewed sentiment. The expected move is the inputs the chain is pricing, not a forecast - realized moves above or below are normal under any distribution.
Learn how expected move is reported and how to read the data →
Per-expiration expected move for IWR derived from ATM implied volatility at each listed expiration. Implied high/low bounds are computed as $110.38 × (1 ± expected move %). One standard-deviation range under lognormal assumptions, roughly 68% of outcomes fall inside.
| Expiration | DTE | ATM IV | Expected Move | Implied High | Implied Low |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 17, 2026 | 17 | 17.9% | 3.9% | $114.64 | $106.12 |
| Aug 21, 2026 | 52 | 17.1% | 6.5% | $117.50 | $103.26 |
| Nov 20, 2026 | 143 | 18.2% | 11.4% | $122.95 | $97.81 |
| Feb 19, 2027 | 234 | 17.9% | 14.3% | $126.20 | $94.56 |
Frequently asked IWR expected move questions
- What is the current IWR expected move?
- As of Jun 30, 2026, iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (IWR) has an expected move of 5.13% over the next 17 days, implying a one-standard-deviation price range of $104.72 to $116.04 from the current $110.38. The expected move is derived from at-the-money straddle pricing and represents the market consensus for a ±1σ price move.
- What does the IWR expected move mean for traders?
- Roughly 68% of outcomes should fall within ±1 expected move and 95% within ±2 under lognormal assumptions, though equity returns have empirically fatter tails than log-normal predicts. Strategies sized to the expected move (iron condors at ±1σ, strangles at ±1.5σ) target the typical outcome distribution; strategies that profit from tail moves (long-vol structures, ratio backspreads) target the tails the lognormal model under-prices.
- How is IWR expected move calculated?
- The expected move displayed here is derived from at-the-money implied volatility scaled to the chosen tenor: expected move % is approximately ATM IV times sqrt(T / 365), where T is days to expiration. An equivalent straddle-based form: the ATM straddle (call + put at the same strike) is roughly sqrt(2/pi) times spot times IV times sqrt(T/365), so the implied one-standard-deviation move is approximately 1.25 times ATM straddle divided by spot. The two formulations agree once the sqrt(2/pi) constant is reconciled.