The SPDR Portfolio Long Term Treasury ETF (SPTL) tracks an index that offers exposure to U.S. Treasuries with a remaining maturity of 10 years or more. SPTL delivers minimal credit risk, but a significant amount of interest-rate risk. SPTL might be useful for investors who crave safety and are willing to take on longer duration, a measure of bond price sensitivity to interest rate changes. Typically bond prices fall when rates rise.
The SPDR Portfolio Long Term Treasury ETF (SPTL) tracks an index that offers exposure to U.S. Treasuries with a remaining maturity of 10 years or more. SPTL delivers minimal credit risk, but a significant amount of interest-rate risk. SPTL might be useful for investors who crave safety and are willing to take on longer duration, a measure of bond price sensitivity to interest rate changes. Typically bond prices fall when rates rise.
Like most SPDR “Portfolio” ETFs, SPTL is priced competitively with ultra-low-cost rivals like the Vanguard Long-Term Treasury ETF (VGLT) and the Schwab Long-Term U.S. Treasury ETF (SCHQ). SPTL also has good daily liquidity, making the fund a solid contender for investors looking for exposure to long-term U.S. Treasuries.
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 were renamed and repriced for this purpose. Prior to October 2017, SPTL traded under the name SPDR Bloomberg Barclays Long Term Treasury ETF with the ticker TLO.