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Should SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF (SPLG) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Looking for broad exposure to the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market? You should consider the SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF (SPLG - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 11/08/2005.

The fund is sponsored by State Street Global Advisors. It has amassed assets over $39.16 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Blend

Companies that find themselves in the large cap category typically have a market capitalization above $10 billion. They tend to be stable companies with predictable cash flows and are usually less volatile than mid and small cap companies.

Typically holding a combination of both growth and value stocks, blend ETFs also demonstrate qualities seen in value and growth investments.

Costs

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.02%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.28%.

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 to the Information Technology sector--about 28.50% of the portfolio. Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Microsoft Corp (MSFT - Free Report) accounts for about 7.15% of total assets, followed by Apple Inc (AAPL - Free Report) and Nvidia Corp (NVDA - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 32.56% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

SPLG seeks to match the performance of the Russell 1000 Index before fees and expenses. The S&P 500 Index is designed to measure the performance of the large-capitalization segment of the U.S. equity market.

The ETF return is roughly 15.76% so far this year and is up about 25.93% in the last one year (as of 06/19/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $48.29 and $64.51.

The ETF has a beta of 1 and standard deviation of 17.13% for the trailing three-year period. With about 506 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 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, SPLG is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Blend segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV - Free Report) and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Core S&P 500 ETF has $478.46 billion in assets, SPDR S&P 500 ETF has $540.58 billion. IVV has an expense ratio of 0.03% and SPY charges 0.09%.

Bottom-Line

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.

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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