The SPDR Portfolio Europe ETF (SPEU) tracks an index of European stocks, and does it for an extremely competitive price. The fund owns more than a thousand securities, making it a well-diversified option for long-term investors building a balanced portfolio. Its portfolio is dominated by the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, and Germany. Like all of State Street’s SPDR Portfolio ETFs, SPEU’s management fee was set low enough to compete with ultra-low-cost rivals like the iShares Core MSCI Europe ETF (IEUR) and the Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF (VGK). SPEU also has competition from newer low-cost rivals like the JPMorgan BetaBuilders Europe ETF (BBEU).
The SPDR Portfolio Europe ETF (SPEU) tracks an index of European stocks, and does it for an extremely competitive price. The fund owns more than a thousand securities, making it a well-diversified option for long-term investors building a balanced portfolio. Its portfolio is dominated by the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, and Germany. Like all of State Street’s SPDR Portfolio ETFs, SPEU’s management fee was set low enough to compete with ultra-low-cost rivals like the iShares Core MSCI Europe ETF (IEUR) and the Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF (VGK). SPEU also has competition from newer low-cost rivals like the JPMorgan BetaBuilders Europe ETF (BBEU).
State Street launched its ultra-low-cost SPDR Portfolio lineup in October 2017 after years of losing market share to cheaper rivals at BlackRock, Schwab, and Vanguard. This was a humiliating setback since State Street essentially founded the modern ETF market in 1993 with the launch of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY). State Street was late to the ultra-low-cost space — BlackRock launched its low-cost iShares Core series five years earlier — but has pushed hard to make up ground. Many of its SPDR Portfolio funds, including SPEU, have been renamed and repriced for this purpose. Prior to September 23, 2019, SPEU traded under the name SPDR STOXX Europe 50 ETF, an index of mega-cap stocks, and traded under the ticker FEU.