XLC — State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF

XLC Price Performance — Growth of $10,000

Value of a $10,000 investment in XLC over time, compared with SPY. Both lines are rebased to $10,000 on the first shared date. Based on total returns — prices are adjusted for dividends and splits, so this assumes distributions were reinvested. Hover or tap the chart for exact values.

XLC Drawdown

The "underwater" chart: XLC's decline from its highest prior value at each point in time. It shows how deep past losses ran and how long the fund took to recover to break-even.

Overview

The State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLC) is a Communication Services sector fund managed by State Street Investment Management. With assets under management totaling $22.3 billion and a current share price of $109.67, the fund represents a significant position within its category, which ETFValuer tracks as containing four ETFs. The fund holds an overall rank of #306 out of 458 tracked ETFs across all categories, receiving an ETFValuer grade of C with a score of 56.6 out of 100. Investors can access the fund with an expense ratio of 0.08% while receiving a dividend yield of 1.33%. The substantial asset size and low cost structure suggest broad investor adoption despite the fund's mid-tier ranking relative to the broader universe. This combination of metrics places the XLC as a large-cap, cost-efficient vehicle within a concentrated four-fund category.

Recent performance data shows a sharp one-day gain of +1.87% following a slight weekly decline of -0.33%. Over the past month, the fund posted a return of +3.29%, contrasting with negative returns of -5.06% over three months and -6.34% over six months. Year-to-date performance stands at -5.64%, while the one-year return has recovered to +3.19%. The three-year horizon demonstrates a significantly different trend with a cumulative return of +68.28%. This pattern indicates a divergence where short-term and medium-term periods have been negative, while the longer three-year timeframe reflects substantial growth.

The fund carries a Low volatility label and a beta of 0.85, suggesting price movements that are generally less pronounced than the broader market. Despite this lower volatility, the Sharpe ratio is recorded at -0.13, indicating that risk-adjusted returns have been negative over the measured period. The maximum drawdown of -17.97% highlights the potential for significant temporary losses during market downturns. This combination of low beta and negative Sharpe ratio implies that while the fund may not swing as wildly as higher-beta peers, it has struggled to generate sufficient returns to compensate for the risks taken. The -17.97% drawdown further illustrates the downside exposure the fund has experienced despite its classification as low volatility.

AI-generated summary based on the data on this page.

XLC Top Holdings

Holdings as of 2026-03-31 per the fund's most recent SEC N-PORT-P filing. Top 10 holdings make up 71.7% of net assets — a rough gauge of concentration risk (the higher this figure, the more the fund's return depends on a handful of names). To see how XLC's holdings overlap with other ETFs you own or are considering, check the Stock Overlap tool.

Which Funds Overlap With XLC

Holding two funds that own the same companies adds cost and complexity without adding much diversification. These tracked ETFs share the most names with XLC's top 10 — VOX overlaps most, holding 8 of the same companies as XLC's top 10 (66.9% of XLC's assets).

Compares the top 10 reported holdings of each fund, so it's a floor on true overlap — two S&P 500 trackers overlap ~100% even when only 10 names are listed. Use the Stock Overlap tool to search by individual company.

Market Backdrop

10-Year Treasury Yield: 4.65% (as of 2026-07-27) — The yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds — the standard "risk-free rate" benchmark used to contextualize this fund’s Sharpe ratio and returns.

CBOE Volatility Index (VIX): 18.67 (as of 2026-07-27) — A real-time gauge of expected S&P 500 volatility over the next 30 days — useful context for this fund’s own volatility label.

Federal Funds Rate: 3.63% (as of 2026-06-01) — The Federal Reserve’s target policy rate, which anchors short-term borrowing costs across the economy.

XLC Liquidity, Domicile & Tax Treatment

Liquidity: Quoted bid/ask spread is — and average daily volume is 6.4M/day. Tighter spreads and higher volume mean lower round-trip trading costs; this is a live-market snapshot and can widen during volatile sessions. AUM of $22.3B provides ample scale, supporting tight spreads and issuer commitment to keep the fund open.

Domicile & tax treatment: XLC is a US-domiciled, SEC-registered ('40 Act) exchange-traded fund. Dividends and capital gains distributions are reported to US investors on Form 1099-DIV, and the fund is not subject to the PFIC reporting or UCITS-specific rules that apply to Irish- or Luxembourg-domiciled funds. Non-US investors should note that US-domiciled ETFs are generally subject to 30% US withholding tax on dividends (unless reduced by treaty) and to US estate tax exposure on the position — Irish-domiciled UCITS ETFs tracking the same index often avoid both, which is why non-US residents frequently prefer the UCITS equivalent where one exists. This is general information, not tax advice — consult a tax professional for your situation.

XLC Performance History

How XLC Compares to Other Communication Services ETFs