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Is SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF (SPYD) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF (SPYD - Free Report) was launched on 10/21/2015, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.

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.

There are some investors, though, who think it's possible to beat the market with great stock selection; this group likely invests in another class of funds known as smart beta, which track non-cap weighted strategies.

Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.

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. SPYD has been able to amass assets over $6.85 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the S&P 500 High Dividend Index before fees and expenses.

The S&P 500 High Dividend Index is designed to measure the performance of the top 80 dividend-paying securities listed on the S&P 500 Index, based on dividend yield.

Cost & Other Expenses

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.

Annual operating expenses for SPYD are 0.07%, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 4.52%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector - about 18.80% of the portfolio. Utilities and Real Estate round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD - Free Report) accounts for about 1.82% of total assets, followed by Principal Financial Group Inc. (PFG - Free Report) and Cardinal Health Inc. (CAH - Free Report) .

Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 14.29% of SPYD's total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

Year-to-date, the SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF has lost about -3.04% so far, and is down about -10.61% over the last 12 months (as of 04/11/2023). SPYD has traded between $35.47 and $45.45 in this past 52-week period.

SPYD has a beta of 0.98 and standard deviation of 22.72% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 82 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

IShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (IWD - Free Report) tracks Russell 1000 Value Index and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Value Index. IShares Russell 1000 Value ETF has $50.72 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $101.73 billion. IWD has an expense ratio of 0.18% and VTV charges 0.04%.

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 Value.

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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