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Is SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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A smart beta exchange traded fund, the SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN - Free Report) debuted on 01/26/2011, and offers broad exposure to the Industrials ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well 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.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by State Street Global Advisors, and has been able to amass over $605.31 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Industrials ETFs. Before fees and expenses, XTN seeks to match the performance of the S&P Transportation Select Industry Index.
The S&P Transportation Select Industry Index represents the transportation segment of the S&P Total Market Index.
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.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.65%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Genco Shipping & Trading Ltd (GNK - Free Report) accounts for about 3% of total assets, followed by Matson Inc. (MATX - Free Report) and Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 25.52% of XTN's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -18.40% so far this year and is down about -13.97% in the last one year (as of 05/27/2022). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $73.25 and $98.74.
The fund has a beta of 1.27 and standard deviation of 31.17% for the trailing three-year period, which makes XTN a high risk choice in this particular space. With about 51 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
SPDR S&P Transportation ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
IShares U.S. Transportation ETF (IYT - Free Report) tracks Dow Jones Transportation Average Index and the U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS - Free Report) tracks U.S. Global Jets Index. IShares U.S. Transportation ETF has $1.09 billion in assets, U.S. Global Jets ETF has $3.08 billion. IYT has an expense ratio of 0.41% and JETS charges 0.60%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Industrials ETFs.
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 Zacks ETF Center.
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Is SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN) a Strong ETF Right Now?
A smart beta exchange traded fund, the SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN - Free Report) debuted on 01/26/2011, and offers broad exposure to the Industrials ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well 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.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by State Street Global Advisors, and has been able to amass over $605.31 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Industrials ETFs. Before fees and expenses, XTN seeks to match the performance of the S&P Transportation Select Industry Index.
The S&P Transportation Select Industry Index represents the transportation segment of the S&P Total Market Index.
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.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.65%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Genco Shipping & Trading Ltd (GNK - Free Report) accounts for about 3% of total assets, followed by Matson Inc. (MATX - Free Report) and Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 25.52% of XTN's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -18.40% so far this year and is down about -13.97% in the last one year (as of 05/27/2022). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $73.25 and $98.74.
The fund has a beta of 1.27 and standard deviation of 31.17% for the trailing three-year period, which makes XTN a high risk choice in this particular space. With about 51 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
SPDR S&P Transportation ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
IShares U.S. Transportation ETF (IYT - Free Report) tracks Dow Jones Transportation Average Index and the U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS - Free Report) tracks U.S. Global Jets Index. IShares U.S. Transportation ETF has $1.09 billion in assets, U.S. Global Jets ETF has $3.08 billion. IYT has an expense ratio of 0.41% and JETS charges 0.60%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Industrials ETFs.
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 Zacks ETF Center.