The SPDR Portfolio Short Term Treasury ETF (SPTS) tracks an index of short-term U.S. Treasuries. The ETF invests in Treasuries with a remaining maturity of one to three years. The ETF provides minimal credit risk and low interest-rate risk. By investing in shorter-term securities, SPTS reduces duration, a measure of bond price sensitivity to interest rate changes. Typically bond prices fall when rates rise. Like most SPDR “Portfolio” ETFs, SPTS is priced competitively with ultra-low-cost rivals like the Vanguard Short-Term Treasury ETF (VGSH) and the Schwab Short-Term U.S. Treasury ETF (SCHO).
For those willing to take on more credit risk, ultra-short debt ETFs are another popular option for investors looking for a relatively safe way to eke out more yield than brokerage sweep accounts or long-term Treasuries. There are several competitors, such as the JPMorgan Ultra-Short Income ETF (JPST), the iShares Ultra Short-Term Bond ETF (ICSH), and the Goldman Sachs Access Ultra Short Bond ETF (GSST).
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 essentilly 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 were renamed and repriced for this purpose. Prior to October 2017, SPTS traded under the name SPDR Bloomberg Barclays Short Term Treasury ETF and the ticker SST.
This section compares how balanced and deep this ETF is relative to its peers.
| SPTS | ETF Database Category Average | FactSet Segment Average | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Holdings | 91 | 55 | 63 |
| % of Assets in Top 10 | 18.29% | 65.84% | 48.96% |
| % of Assets in Top 15 | 26.97% | 73.91% | 56.98% |
| % of Assets in Top 50 | 71.47% | 92.88% | 86.72% |
| SPTS | ETF Database Category Average | FactSet Segment Average | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Large (>12.9B) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Mid (>2.7B) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Small (>600M) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Micro (<600M) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
This section compares the P/E ratio of this ETF to its peers.
This section compares the dividend yield of this ETF to its peers.
| SPTS | ETF Database Category Average | FactSet Segment Average | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend | $ 0.01 | $ 0.07 | $ 0.01 |
| Dividend Date | 2021-10-01 | N/A | N/A |
| Annual Dividend Rate | $ 0.07 | $ 0.69 | $ 0.25 |
| Annual Dividend Yield | 0.22% | 0.91% | 0.50% |
View charts featuring ETF fund flow data.
5 Day Net Flows: 0 1 Month Net Flows: 42.87 M 3 Month Net Flows: 33.66 M 6 Month Net Flows: 554.87 M 1 Year Net Flows: 422.94 M 3 Year Net Flows: 2.88 B 5 Year Net Flows: 3.29 B 10 Year Net Flows: 3.45 BView charts that break down the influence that fund flows and price had on overall assets.
The adjacent table gives investors an individual Realtime Rating for SPTS on several different metrics, including liquidity, expenses, performance, volatility, dividend, concentration of holdings in addition to an overall rating. The "A+ Metric Rated ETF" field, available to ETF Database Pro members, shows the ETF in the Government Bonds with the highest Metric Realtime Rating for each individual field. To view all of this data, sign up for a free 14-day trial for ETF Database Pro. To view information on how the ETF Database Realtime Ratings work, click here.
This section compares the cost efficiency of this ETF to its peers.
| Max ST Capital Gains Rate | 39.60% |
| Max LT Capital Gains Rate | 20.00% |
| Tax On Distributions | Ordinary income |
| Distributes K1 | No |
This section shows how this ETF has performed relative to its peers.
| SPTS |
ETF Database
Category Average |
Factset Segment
Average |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Month Return | -0.29% | -1.46% | -0.26% |
| 3 Month Return | -0.38% | -1.73% | -0.31% |
| YTD Return | -0.43% | -3.08% | -0.33% |
| 1 Year Return | -0.25% | -3.16% | -0.24% |
| 3 Year Return | 7.86% | 8.91% | 5.09% |
| 5 Year Return | 7.06% | 6.07% | 5.03% |
The following charts reflect the geographic spread of SPTS's underlying holdings.
The following charts reflect the allocation of SPTS's underlying holdings.
| Asset | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Sovereign | 100.0% |
| Open-ended Fund | 0.04% |
| Bond Sector | Percentage |
|---|
| Maturity | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Less Than 1 Year | 0.0% |
| 1-3 Years | 0.0% |
| 3-5 Years | 0.0% |
| 5-7 Years | 0.0% |
| 7-10 Years | 0.0% |
| 10-15 Years | 0.0% |
| 15-20 Years | 0.0% |
| 20-30 Years | 0.0% |
| 30+ Years | 0.0% |
| Asset | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Sovereign | 100.0% |
| Open-ended Fund | 0.04% |
This section shows how the volatility of this ETF compares to the peer group ETF Database Category.
ETF Database's Financial Advisor Reports are designed as an easy handout for clients to explain the key information on a fund. Includes new analyst insights and classification data.
Fact sheets are issued by the ETF provider and framed by ETF Database. Information contained within the fact sheet is not guaranteed to be timely or accurate.
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