ETF Spotlight: Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF)

All News:

• Platinum and Palladium ETFs are Long-Term Bets
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• Bank ETFs Hit Again on Economy, Capital Levels

ETF Spotlight on Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEArca: XLF), part of a weekly series.

Assets: $7.4 billion

Holdings: Top holdings include: JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) & Co. 9.2%, Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) 8.0%, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-B) 7.3%, Citigroup (NYSE: C) 6.4% and Bank of America Corp  (NYSE: BAC) 6.4%.

Objective: The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund tries to reflect the performance of the Financial Select Sector Index.

What You Should Know

• The fund has an expense ratio of 0.20%.
• The fund has 82 holdings.
• Industry allocations include: Diversified Financial Services 25.01%, Insurance 24.77%, Commercial Banks 17.62%, Capital Markets 15.60%, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) 10.56%, Consumer Finance 5.40%, Thrifts & Mortgage Finance 0.52% and Real Estate Management & Development 0.41%.

The Latest News

• The stock markets, led by the financial sector, took a turn for the worst as economic data revealed lower-than-expected private-sector job growth and a drop in the PMI.
• The low employment figures also could translate to lower consumer lending, greater default rates on mortgages and higher delinquencies on credit cards.
• However, analysts believe that the sector is supported by stronger balance sheets as compared to 2007.

For past ETF Spotlights, visit our ETF Spotlight category.

Max Chen contributed to this article.