SPDR Portfolio S&P 600 Small Cap ETF

SPDR Portfolio S&P 600 Small Cap ETF (SPSM) is a State Street index fund that tracks the S&P SmallCap 600, a basket of about 600 smaller US companies that must have positive earnings to be included. According to its October 26, 2026 prospectus, its yearly expense ratio is 0.03%. That is half the 0.06% charged by the much larger iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR), which holds nearly the same stocks.

• Over the year to Nov 2, 2026, SPSM returned +21.7%, 1st of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +5.9%.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-16.1%); its best was 2021 (+26.7%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 28% (Nov 25, 2024 to Apr 8, 2025), recovered by Dec 11, 2025.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 606 securities; the ten largest made up 5.87% of assets. It also reported 5.98% in a money-market fund, most likely cash collateral from lending out shares rather than uninvested money.

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $353.0M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +10.40%, +1.05%, +7.28%.

SPSM tries to match the S&P SmallCap 600. S&P Dow Jones Indices, which is not affiliated with State Street, builds the index. A company qualifies only if it meets all of these tests: it is listed on a major US exchange; its market capitalization (total stock market value) is between $1.2 billion and $8 billion when it is added; at least $600 million of its shares are freely available to trade; at least 10% of its shares are publicly held; its shares trade often enough; and it has made money over the latest four quarters and the latest single quarter. The index provider also checks that the index's sector weights stay balanced. As of July 31, 2026, the index held 602 stocks.

Holdings are weighted by float-adjusted market capitalization. Bigger companies get more weight, but only shares available to the public are counted. The index is rebalanced every quarter, in March, June, September and December, and stocks can be added or removed in between. Holdings are spread thinly. As of June 30, 2026, the top 10 made up only 5.87% of the fund, led by FormFactor, Viasat and Molina Healthcare at under 0.7% each.

The adviser, SSGA Funds Management, may hold only a sample of the index's stocks. As of June 30, 2026, though, the fund owned 606 stocks. At least 80% of its assets must be in index securities. It may use futures contracts (agreements to buy or sell at a set price later) to manage cash.

• SPSM charges 0.03% a year, versus an average of 0.13% for the similar funds below (1st of 9, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $3 in the first year and $39 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It adds hundreds of smaller US companies, at very low cost, to a portfolio that is usually built mostly on large stocks.

SPSM can add broad small-company exposure for 0.03% a year. Under the SEC's standard example, that comes to about $39 over 10 years on a $10,000 investment. Its trailing 12-month yield was 1.5% as of October 29, 2026, paid quarterly, so income is a side benefit, not the main reason to own it.

Small-company stocks can drop sharply. The fund's worst quarter was a 32.74% loss in early 2020. In the 2022 bear market it fell 24.6% and took about 21.6 months to recover. Its worst calendar year was 2022, at -16.11%. Its deepest drop in the price data available here was 28%, from November 2024 to April 2025, and it recovered in about eight months. That data does not go back to 2008. Someone who has to sell shares during a drop like these would lock in losses. 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.