Is SPDR NYSE Technology ETF (XNTK) a strong ETF right now?

The SPDR NYSE Technology ETF (XNTK) made its debut on 09/25/2000, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund that provides broad exposure to the Technology ETFs category of the market.

What are smart beta ETFs?

For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.

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.

On the other hand, some investors who believe that it is possible to beat the market by superior stock selection opt to invest in another class of funds that track non-cap weighted strategies--popularly known as smart beta.

This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.

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 and index

The fund is managed by State Street Investment Management. XNTK has been able to amass assets over $1.4 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs in the Technology ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the NYSE Technology Index.

The NYSE Technology Index is composed of 35 leading U.S.-listed technology-related companies.

Cost and 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 this ETF are 0.35%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.24%.

Sector exposure and top holdings

It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

For XNTK, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 71% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Telecom round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Palantir Technologies Inc A (PLTR) accounts for about 5.29% of total assets, followed by Applovin Corp Class A (APP) and Alibaba Group Holding Sp Adr (BABA).

Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 38.52% of XNTK's total assets under management.

Performance and risk

The ETF return is roughly 37.56% so far this year and is up about 42.53% in the last one year (as of 10/02/2025). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $164.46 and $277.13

XNTK has a beta of 1.31 and standard deviation of 25.73% for the trailing three-year period. With about 36 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .

Alternatives

SPDR NYSE Technology ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Technology ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) tracks Technology Select Sector Index and the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Information Technology 25/50 Index. Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF has $90.65 billion in assets, Vanguard Information Technology ETF has $108.42 billion. XLK has an expense ratio of 0.08% and VGT changes 0.09%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Technology ETFs.

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