The State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN) 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?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.
There are some investors, though, who think it's possible to beat the market with great stock selection; this group likely invests in another class of funds known as smart beta, which track non-cap weighted strategies.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by State Street Investment Management, and has been able to amass over $409.87 million, which makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Industrials ETFs. This particular fund seeks to match the performance of the S&P Transportation Select Industry Index before fees and expenses.
The S&P Transportation Select Industry Index represents the transportation segment of the S&P Total Market Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for XTN are 0.35%, which makes it one of the least expensive products in the space.
XTN's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.64%.
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.
Representing 100% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector.
Looking at individual holdings, Rxo Inc (RXO) accounts for about 4.56% of total assets, followed by Avis Budget Group Inc (CAR) and Arcbest Corp (ARCB).
The top 10 holdings account for about 32.76% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF has gained about 26.74% so far, and it's up approximately 36.46% over the last 12 months (as of 07/21/2026). XTN has traded between $79.20 $117.71 in this past 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 1.36 and standard deviation of 26.06% for the trailing three-year period, which makes XTN a high risk choice in this particular 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 $1.07 billion in assets, iShares U.S. Transportation ETF has $2.33 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.Boost Your Portfolio with Our Top ETF Insights
Zacks' exclusive Fund Newsletter delivers actionable information, top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, straight to your inbox every week.
Don’t miss out on this valuable resource. It’s free!
Get it now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
State Street SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN): ETF Research Reports
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).