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Is State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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The State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI - Free Report) was launched on 01/31/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Health Care ETFs 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.
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.
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.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by State Street Investment Management. It has amassed assets over $7.38 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Health Care ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P Biotechnology Select Industry Index.
The S&P Biotechnology Select Industry Index represents the biotechnology 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 Biotech Index is a modified equal weight index.
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 this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.37%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Healthcare sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Taking into account individual holdings, Moderna Inc (MRNA) accounts for about 2.35% of the fund's total assets, followed by Roivant Sciences Ltd (ROIV) and Arcellx Inc (ACLX).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 16.33% of XBI's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -1.96% and it's up approximately 35.09% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 03/25/2026), respectively. XBI has traded between $69.80 and $131.57 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 0.88 and standard deviation of 26.46% for the trailing three-year period, which makes XBI a high risk choice in this particular space. With about 153 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Health Care ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
First Trust NYSE Arca Biotechnology ETF (FBT) tracks NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index and the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) tracks Nasdaq Biotechnology Index. First Trust NYSE Arca Biotechnology ETF has $2.19 billion in assets, iShares Biotechnology ETF has $7.83 billion. FBT has an expense ratio of 0.54% and IBB changes 0.44%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Health Care 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 State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI - Free Report) was launched on 01/31/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Health Care ETFs 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.
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.
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.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is sponsored by State Street Investment Management. It has amassed assets over $7.38 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Health Care ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P Biotechnology Select Industry Index.
The S&P Biotechnology Select Industry Index represents the biotechnology 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 Biotech Index is a modified equal weight index.
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 this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.37%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Healthcare sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Taking into account individual holdings, Moderna Inc (MRNA) accounts for about 2.35% of the fund's total assets, followed by Roivant Sciences Ltd (ROIV) and Arcellx Inc (ACLX).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 16.33% of XBI's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -1.96% and it's up approximately 35.09% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 03/25/2026), respectively. XBI has traded between $69.80 and $131.57 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 0.88 and standard deviation of 26.46% for the trailing three-year period, which makes XBI a high risk choice in this particular space. With about 153 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Health Care ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
First Trust NYSE Arca Biotechnology ETF (FBT) tracks NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index and the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) tracks Nasdaq Biotechnology Index. First Trust NYSE Arca Biotechnology ETF has $2.19 billion in assets, iShares Biotechnology ETF has $7.83 billion. FBT has an expense ratio of 0.54% and IBB changes 0.44%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Health Care 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.