Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Should You Invest in the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP)?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Launched on 12/16/1998, the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Consumer Staples - Broad segment of the equity market.

Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are excellent vehicles for long term investors.

Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Consumer Staples - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 5, placing it in top 31%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by State Street Global Advisors. It has amassed assets over $16.84 billion, making it the largest ETF attempting to match the performance of the Consumer Staples - Broad segment of the equity market. XLP seeks to match the performance of the Consumer Staples Select Sector Index before fees and expenses.

The Consumer Staples Select Sector Index seeks to provide an effective representation of the consumer staples sector of the S&P 500 Index.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.10%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.44%.

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 Consumer Staples sector--about 100% of the portfolio.

Looking at individual holdings, Procter & Gamble Company (PG - Free Report) accounts for about 15.01% of total assets, followed by Coca-Cola Company (KO - Free Report) and Pepsico Inc. (PEP - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 69.98% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -1.44% so far this year and was up about 5.79% in the last one year (as of 11/21/2022). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $66.50 and $80.57.

The ETF has a beta of 0.60 and standard deviation of 19.90% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 35 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.

Alternatives

Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, XLP is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Consumer Staples ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

IShares U.S. Consumer Staples ETF (IYK - Free Report) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Consumer Goods Index and the Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC - Free Report) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Consumer Staples 25/50 Index. IShares U.S. Consumer Staples ETF has $1.72 billion in assets, Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF has $6.68 billion. IYK has an expense ratio of 0.39% and VDC charges 0.10%.

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.

Published in