We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience.
This includes personalizing content and advertising.
By pressing "Accept All" or closing out of this banner, you consent to the use of all cookies and similar technologies and the sharing of information they collect with third parties.
You can reject marketing cookies by pressing "Deny Optional," but we still use essential, performance, and functional cookies.
In addition, whether you "Accept All," Deny Optional," click the X or otherwise continue to use the site, you accept our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, revised from time to time.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Should You Invest in the State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE)?
Read MoreHide Full Article
Launched on November 8, 2005, the State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Financials - Banking segment of the equity market.
While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.
Sector ETFs are also funds of convenience, offering many ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Financials - Banking is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 4, placing it in top 25%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by State Street Investment Management. It has amassed assets over $1.51 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Financials - Banking segment of the equity market. KBE seeks to match the performance of the S&P Banks Select Industry Index before fees and expenses.
The S&P Banks Select Industry Index is a modified equal-weighted index that seeks to reflect the performance of publicly traded companies that do business as banks or thrifts. The Bank Index is currently comprised of common stocks of national money centers and leading regional banks or thrifts listed on the NYSE or another U.S. national securities exchange, or NASDAQ/National Market System.
Costs
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 counterparts, 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 has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.31%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector -- about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Citigroup Inc (C) accounts for about 1.07% of total assets, followed by Popular Inc (BPOP) and Flagstar Bank Na (FLG).
The top 10 holdings account for about 10.53% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 6.09% and it's up approximately 23.86% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 05/11/2026), respectively. KBE has traded between $52.39 and $67.41 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 0.92 and standard deviation of 25.78% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, KBE is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Financials ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
Portfolio Building Block European Banks Index ETF (PBEU) tracks BITA EUROPEAN BANKS INDEX and the Invesco KBW Bank ETF (KBWB) tracks KBW Nasdaq Bank index. Portfolio Building Block European Banks Index ETF has $519.19 million in assets, Invesco KBW Bank ETF has $5.35 billion. PBEU has an expense ratio of 0.13%, and KBWB charges 0.35%.
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.
Zacks' 7 Best Strong Buy Stocks (New Research Report)
Valued at $99, click below to receive our just-released report
predicting the 7 stocks that will soar highest in the coming month.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Should You Invest in the State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE)?
Launched on November 8, 2005, the State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Financials - Banking segment of the equity market.
While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.
Sector ETFs are also funds of convenience, offering many ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Financials - Banking is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 4, placing it in top 25%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by State Street Investment Management. It has amassed assets over $1.51 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Financials - Banking segment of the equity market. KBE seeks to match the performance of the S&P Banks Select Industry Index before fees and expenses.
The S&P Banks Select Industry Index is a modified equal-weighted index that seeks to reflect the performance of publicly traded companies that do business as banks or thrifts. The Bank Index is currently comprised of common stocks of national money centers and leading regional banks or thrifts listed on the NYSE or another U.S. national securities exchange, or NASDAQ/National Market System.
Costs
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 counterparts, 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 has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.31%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector -- about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Citigroup Inc (C) accounts for about 1.07% of total assets, followed by Popular Inc (BPOP) and Flagstar Bank Na (FLG).The top 10 holdings account for about 10.53% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has gained about 6.09% and it's up approximately 23.86% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 05/11/2026), respectively. KBE has traded between $52.39 and $67.41 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 0.92 and standard deviation of 25.78% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, KBE is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Financials ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.
Portfolio Building Block European Banks Index ETF (PBEU) tracks BITA EUROPEAN BANKS INDEX and the Invesco KBW Bank ETF (KBWB) tracks KBW Nasdaq Bank index. Portfolio Building Block European Banks Index ETF has $519.19 million in assets, Invesco KBW Bank ETF has $5.35 billion. PBEU has an expense ratio of 0.13%, and KBWB charges 0.35%.
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.