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Is SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Making its debut on 01/31/2006, smart beta exchange traded fund SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Technology ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.
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
Because the fund has amassed over $1.18 billion, this makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Technology ETFs. XSD is managed by State Street Global Advisors. XSD, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P Semiconductor Select Industry Index.
The S&P Semiconductor Select Industry Index represents the Semiconductor sub-industry portion of the S&P Total Markets Index. The S&P TMI tracks all the U.S. common stocks listed on the NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ National Market and NASDAQ Small Cap exchanges. The Semiconductor Index is a modified equal weight index.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.35% for this ETF, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.38%.
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 Information Technology sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Taking into account individual holdings, Rambus Inc. (RMBS - Free Report) accounts for about 4.13% of the fund's total assets, followed by Lattice Semiconductor Corporation (LSCC - Free Report) and Impinj Inc. (PI - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 33.59% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, XSD has gained about 15.80%, and is down about -3.90% in the last one year (as of 01/25/2023). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $143.14 and $219.75.
The ETF has a beta of 1.37 and standard deviation of 42.12% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 40 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Technology ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
IShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX - Free Report) tracks PHLX SOX Semiconductor Sector Index and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH - Free Report) tracks MVIS US Listed Semiconductor 25 Index. IShares Semiconductor ETF has $6.87 billion in assets, VanEck Semiconductor ETF has $7.17 billion. SOXX has an expense ratio of 0.35% and SMH charges 0.35%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Technology 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 Semiconductor ETF (XSD) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Making its debut on 01/31/2006, smart beta exchange traded fund SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Technology ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Products that are based on market cap weighted indexes, which are strategies designed to reflect a specific market segment or the market as a whole, have traditionally dominated the ETF industry.
Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
Based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such, these indexes attempt to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance.
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
Because the fund has amassed over $1.18 billion, this makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Technology ETFs. XSD is managed by State Street Global Advisors. XSD, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P Semiconductor Select Industry Index.
The S&P Semiconductor Select Industry Index represents the Semiconductor sub-industry portion of the S&P Total Markets Index. The S&P TMI tracks all the U.S. common stocks listed on the NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ National Market and NASDAQ Small Cap exchanges. The Semiconductor Index is a modified equal weight index.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.35% for this ETF, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.38%.
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 Information Technology sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Taking into account individual holdings, Rambus Inc. (RMBS - Free Report) accounts for about 4.13% of the fund's total assets, followed by Lattice Semiconductor Corporation (LSCC - Free Report) and Impinj Inc. (PI - Free Report) .
The top 10 holdings account for about 33.59% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, XSD has gained about 15.80%, and is down about -3.90% in the last one year (as of 01/25/2023). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $143.14 and $219.75.
The ETF has a beta of 1.37 and standard deviation of 42.12% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 40 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Technology ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.
IShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX - Free Report) tracks PHLX SOX Semiconductor Sector Index and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH - Free Report) tracks MVIS US Listed Semiconductor 25 Index. IShares Semiconductor ETF has $6.87 billion in assets, VanEck Semiconductor ETF has $7.17 billion. SOXX has an expense ratio of 0.35% and SMH charges 0.35%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Technology 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.