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 Pharmaceuticals ETF (XPH)?
Read MoreHide Full Article
Launched on June 19, 2006, the State Street SPDR S&P Pharmaceuticals ETF (XPH - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market.
An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.
Investor-friendly, sector ETFs provide many options to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Healthcare - Pharma is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 8, placing it in top 50%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by State Street Investment Management. It has amassed assets over $337.59 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market. XPH seeks to match the performance of the S&P Pharmaceuticals Select Industry Index before fees and expenses.
The S&P Pharmaceuticals Select Industry Index represents the pharmaceuticals 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 Pharmaceuticals Index is a modified equal weight index.
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 0.67%.
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 Healthcare sector -- about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Enliven Therapeutics Inc (ELVN) accounts for about 2.61% of total assets, followed by Corcept Therapeutics Inc (CORT) and Amylyx Pharmaceuticals Inc (AMLX).
The top 10 holdings account for about 21.37% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, XPH has lost about 0.44%, and it's up approximately 36.73% in the last one year (as of 06/03/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $40.58 and $60.7.
The ETF has a beta of 0.61 and standard deviation of 19.79% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 60 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Pharmaceuticals ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, XPH is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF (IHE) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Select Pharmaceuticals Index and the VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (PPH) tracks MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index. iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF has $886.99 million in assets, VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF has $911.23 million. IHE has an expense ratio of 0.38%, and PPH charges 0.36%.
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 Pharmaceuticals ETF (XPH)?
Launched on June 19, 2006, the State Street SPDR S&P Pharmaceuticals ETF (XPH - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market.
An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.
Investor-friendly, sector ETFs provide many options to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Healthcare - Pharma is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 8, placing it in top 50%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by State Street Investment Management. It has amassed assets over $337.59 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Pharma segment of the equity market. XPH seeks to match the performance of the S&P Pharmaceuticals Select Industry Index before fees and expenses.
The S&P Pharmaceuticals Select Industry Index represents the pharmaceuticals 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 Pharmaceuticals Index is a modified equal weight index.
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 0.67%.
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 Healthcare sector -- about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Enliven Therapeutics Inc (ELVN) accounts for about 2.61% of total assets, followed by Corcept Therapeutics Inc (CORT) and Amylyx Pharmaceuticals Inc (AMLX).The top 10 holdings account for about 21.37% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, XPH has lost about 0.44%, and it's up approximately 36.73% in the last one year (as of 06/03/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $40.58 and $60.7.
The ETF has a beta of 0.61 and standard deviation of 19.79% for the trailing three-year period, making it a high risk choice in the space. With about 60 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.
Alternatives
State Street SPDR S&P Pharmaceuticals ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, XPH is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF (IHE) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Select Pharmaceuticals Index and the VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (PPH) tracks MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index. iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF has $886.99 million in assets, VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF has $911.23 million. IHE has an expense ratio of 0.38%, and PPH charges 0.36%.
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.