SPDR S&P Bank ETF

SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE), from State Street, tracks the S&P Banks Select Industry Index. The index holds 103 U.S. banks, mortgage lenders and mortgage insurers, weighted roughly equally. Because each company gets about the same weight, no holding was much above 1% of assets as of June 30, 2026, so smaller regional banks count as much as larger ones. Its 0.35% expense ratio is below the 0.47% average of similar funds.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, KBE returned +17.1%, 4th of 7 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +6.7% and its 10-year +9.3%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 49.3% and regained its old high 9.5 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2008 (-47.4%); its best was 2013 (+41.4%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 83.2% (Feb 20, 2007 to Mar 6, 2009), recovered by Dec 4, 2017.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 103 securities; the ten largest made up 10.46% of assets.

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $6.5M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +7.84%, -1.09%, +7.96%.

KBE aims to match the total return of the S&P Banks Select Industry Index, before fees. S&P Dow Jones Indices runs the index. It starts with the banks segment of the S&P Total Market Index, a measure of the broad U.S. stock market. From that segment it keeps U.S.-based companies in five groups: diversified banks, regional banks, asset management and custody banks, diversified financial services, and commercial and residential mortgage finance. To join, a company needs a float-adjusted market value above $2 billion and enough trading volume. Float-adjusted market value counts only the shares available to trade. A member is removed if its value falls below $1 billion or its trading thins. The index had 103 stocks as of July 31, 2026.

The index is "modified equal weighted." Each company gets roughly the same share, so the biggest banks don't dominate. The index rebalances every quarter, on the third Friday of the last month of the quarter, and reweights again near quarter-end. As of June 30, 2026, the largest positions were Rocket Cos, Nicolet Bankshares and The Bancorp, each just over 1%. The top 10 made up 10.46% of assets.

State Street's adviser may hold only a sample of the index stocks. Even so, at least 80% of net assets must be in index securities. The fund may use futures contracts to manage cash, but it held none as of June 30, 2026. Portfolio turnover was 26%.

• KBE charges 0.35% a year, versus an average of 0.47% for the similar funds below (2nd of 7, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $36 in the first year and $443 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

KBE holds a single industry and has lost more than 80% of its value in a crisis, so it fits better as a small add-on than as a foundation.

KBE adds focused exposure to U.S. banks and their dividends, but its history includes deep losses that took years to heal. In the 2008 financial crisis it fell 81.9% and took about 95 months to recover, which it did in February 2017. Its deepest drop overall, 83.2%, took 105 months to recover. It lost 49.3% in the 2020 COVID crash but recovered in about 10 months. In 2022 it fell 28.7% and took 28 months to recover. Its worst calendar year was 2008, when it lost 47.4%. Anyone forced to sell shares in years like those would lock in large losses. The trailing 12-month yield was 2.24% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. The expense ratio is 0.35%. Past results don't predict future ones, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.