Technology stocks have stabilized this week after a brief sell-off, with the tech-heavy QQQ (PowerShares QQQ Trust, Expense Ratio 0.20%) bouncing off of its 50 day moving average on extremely heavy trading volume.
Interestingly, even though the equity markets as a whole have been significantly more volatile this week from a day to day standpoint than they have been (VIX peaked at $21.34 on Wednesday), the top weighted component of the Nasdaq 100 Index (AAPL currently 12.36% weighting), and Nasdaq Composite respectively, AAPL has traded in a very tight range for at least the past seven sessions and has not been a major driver nor participant in recent overall equity volatility.
AAPL’s biggest weightings in Technology oriented ETFs lie in IYW (iShares U.S. Technology, Expense Ratio 0.48%) at approximately 15%, followed by VGT (Vanguard Information Technology, Expense Ratio 0.14%) at approximately 14% and XLK (SPDR Technology Select Sector, Expense Ratio 0.18%) at > 12%.
As we noticed in the marketplace last year, being a widely held stock via ETFs as well as a standalone in the portfolios of institutional investment managers as well as retail or high net worth advisors, individual short or long term tax consequences that these holders may have in AAPL and/or related ETFs may invite an increase in “tax swap” activity heading into the final months of 2013.
Other “tax situation sensitive Techs” that have heavier exposure in Tech ETFs include MSFT (7.81% of QQQ for instance, 10.51% of IYW, 8.68% in XLK, etc.) and GOOG (9.94% of FDN (First Trust DJ Internet Index, Expense Ratio 0.60%) and 9.59% of IYW.