Daily ETF Watch: A New Take On Sectors

Everyone knows about the Select Sector SPDRs. They were the first sector ETFs offering different slices of the S&P 500. But what if you were more concerned with excluding a particular sector rather than targeting one?

ProShares may have just filed for a perfect solution for you. The firm recently put into registration nine funds that track the S&P 500 but exclude just one of its sectors. They are as follows:

• S&P 500 ex-Consumer Discretionary ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Consumer Staples ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Energy ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Financials ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Health Care ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Industrials ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Materials ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Technology ETF
• S&P 500 ex-Utilities ETF

The big difference is that the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK | A-90) covers both technology and telecommunications, and although there is no ex-telecommunications fund in the filing, the description of the ex-technology fund does not mention that it also excludes telecommunications. Telecommunication services alone represent more than 10 percent of XLK’s portfolio.

In any case, the family of funds will provide investors with the ability to easily exclude individual sectors that make them feel uneasy.

The filing did not include expense ratios or tickers.