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Is State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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The State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN - Free Report) made its debut on 01/26/2011, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Industrials ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.
A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
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.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
XTN is managed by State Street Investment Management, and this fund has amassed over $203.21 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Industrials ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, 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
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.
With one of the least expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.35%.
XTN's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.73%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
For XTN, it has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector --about 100% of the portfolio.
When you look at individual holdings, Avis Budget Group Inc (CAR) accounts for about 5.96% of the fund's total assets, followed by Rxo Inc (RXO) and Arcbest Corp (ARCB).
XTN's top 10 holdings account for about 30.08% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF has added about 10.22% so far, and is up roughly 28.52% over the last 12 months (as of 05/20/2026). XTN has traded between $75.27 $117.59 in this past 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.36 and standard deviation of 25.92% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 46 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF (FTXR) tracks Nasdaq US Smart Transportation Index and the iShares U.S. Transportation ETF (IYT) tracks Dow Jones Transportation Average Index. First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF has $984.34 million in assets, iShares U.S. Transportation ETF has $2.15 billion. FTXR has an expense ratio of 0.60% and IYT changes 0.38%.
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 State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN - Free Report) made its debut on 01/26/2011, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Industrials ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.
A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
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.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
XTN is managed by State Street Investment Management, and this fund has amassed over $203.21 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Industrials ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, 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
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.
With one of the least expensive products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.35%.
XTN's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.73%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
For XTN, it has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector --about 100% of the portfolio.
When you look at individual holdings, Avis Budget Group Inc (CAR) accounts for about 5.96% of the fund's total assets, followed by Rxo Inc (RXO) and Arcbest Corp (ARCB).
XTN's top 10 holdings account for about 30.08% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF has added about 10.22% so far, and is up roughly 28.52% over the last 12 months (as of 05/20/2026). XTN has traded between $75.27 $117.59 in this past 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.36 and standard deviation of 25.92% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 46 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF (FTXR) tracks Nasdaq US Smart Transportation Index and the iShares U.S. Transportation ETF (IYT) tracks Dow Jones Transportation Average Index. First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF has $984.34 million in assets, iShares U.S. Transportation ETF has $2.15 billion. FTXR has an expense ratio of 0.60% and IYT changes 0.38%.
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.