Should You Invest in the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF ETF (XLV)?

Core Insights - The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) is a passively managed ETF launched on December 16, 1998, providing broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market [1] - XLV is the largest ETF in its category, with assets exceeding $40.99 billion, and aims to match the performance of the Health Care Select Sector Index [3] Fund Details - The ETF has an annual operating expense ratio of 0.08%, making it the least expensive option in the healthcare ETF space, with a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.56% [5] - The fund is fully allocated to the healthcare sector, with top holdings including Eli Lilly + Co (12.97%), Johnson + Johnson, and Abbvie Inc, which together account for approximately 57.14% of total assets [6][7] Performance Metrics - As of December 16, 2025, XLV has returned approximately 14.79% year-to-date and 12.45% over the past year, with a trading range between $128.77 and $158.77 in the last 52 weeks [8] - The ETF has a beta of 0.61 and a standard deviation of 13.38% over the trailing three-year period, indicating a medium risk profile [8] Alternatives - Other healthcare ETFs include iShares Global Healthcare ETF (IXJ) with $4.52 billion in assets and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) with $17.53 billion, each with different expense ratios [11]