U.S. real estate exchange-traded funds recorded $2.56 billion in net inflows during the third quarter of 2018, bringing total assets under management to $50.75 billion.

Vanguard Group Inc.'s Vanguard Real Estate ETF collected the largest inflows during the three-month span, at $882.4 million. BlackRock Inc.'s iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF followed closely, with $703 million of net inflows, while the iShares Cohen & Steers REIT ETF logged the largest net outflows among the group, at $56.1 million.

All U.S. real estate-focused ETFs underperformed the S&P 500 during the third quarter. Among the analyzed ETFs with more than $100 million in assets under management, BlackRock's iShares Core U.S. REIT ETF posted the highest three-month total return, at 1.1%. Meanwhile, Invesco Capital Management LLC's Invesco KBW Premium Yield Equity REIT ETF logged the largest decline during the past three months, with a total return of negative 3.7%.

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