SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, commonly known by its ticker symbol SPY (NYSE Arca: SPY), is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that seeks to track, before expenses, the price and yield performance of the S&P 500 by holding, as far as practicable, a portfolio of common stocks included in the index, with portfolio weights that substantially correspond to the index.[1]
Launched on January 22, 1993, SPY was the first exchange-traded fund listed in the United States.[2] It is part of the SPDR family of funds. The trust's trustee is State Street Global Advisors Trust Company, its sponsor is PDR Services LLC, and its distributor is ALPS Distributors, Inc.[1][2] The fund's gross expense ratio is 0.0945%; its CUSIP is 78462F103 and its ISIN is US78462F1030.[2]
Name
[edit]SPDR originated as an acronym for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts, the name under which the product first traded.[3] The acronym is commonly pronounced "spider".[4] The trust was known as SPDR Trust Series 1 before January 27, 2010, as SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust before January 26, 2026, and as State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust thereafter.[1][5] SPDR, SPDRs, and Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and are licensed for use by S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and sublicensed for use by State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors LLC.[1]
History
[edit]The fund originated from a collaboration between the American Stock Exchange and State Street to create an exchange-traded security tracking the S&P 500. Nathan Most, senior vice president for product development at the American Stock Exchange, and Steven Bloom, its vice president of product development, assembled a team from the exchange, State Street Bank, Spear, Leeds & Kellogg, and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe to develop the product.[3]
The trust commenced operations on January 22, 1993, with an initial issuance of 150,000 units, and its units first traded on the American Stock Exchange on January 29, 1993, under the ticker symbol SPY.[1][3] It was the first ETF in the United States.[6]
In February 2024, SPY became the first ETF to reach $500 billion in assets under management.[7] In October 2024, it became the first ETF to surpass $600 billion in assets.[8] In February 2025, Vanguard's S&P 500 ETF (NYSE Arca: VOO) overtook SPY as the world's largest ETF by assets.[9]
Structure and expiration
[edit]SPY is structured as a unit investment trust (UIT), an investment company that does not have a portfolio manager or board of directors.[10] The trustee of the trust is State Street Global Advisors Trust Company and the sponsor is PDR Services LLC, a subsidiary of Intercontinental Exchange.[11]
As a result of being structured as an UIT, it cannot exist in perpetuity and must have an expiry date. According to the trust's legal structure, there are 11 millennials living in the United States upon whose lives the life of the trust is pegged. Eight of the 11 individuals chosen had some connection to the employees of the American Stock Exchange who first founded the ETF.[12] SPY will cease to exist on January 22, 2118, or 20 years after the last of the 11 individuals die, whichever comes first.[12]
Performance
[edit] | Parts of this article (those related to FY 2024) need to be updated. (June 2025) |
| Year | Average annual return | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 5 years | 10 years | |
| 1993 | 9.78% | ||
| 1994 | 1.15% | ||
| 1995 | 37.23% | ||
| 1996 | 22.67% | ||
| 1997 [a] | 29.38% | ||
| 1998 | 8.82% | ||
| 1999 | 27.54% | ||
| 2000 | 13.16% | ||
| 2001 | −26.60% | ||
| 2002 | −20.46% | ||
| 2003 | 24.13% | ||
| 2004 | 13.62% | ||
| 2005 | 12.11% | ||
| 2006 | 10.64% | ||
| 2007 | 16.31% | 15.29% | 6.45% |
| 2008 | −21.84% | 5.10% | 2.98% |
| 2009 | −6.90% | 0.98% | −0.21% |
| 2010 | 10.08% | 3.03% | −4.79% |
| 2011 | 1.01% | −1.22% | 2.74% |
| 2012 | 29.96% | 1.00% | 7.91% |
| 2013 | 19.09% | 9.87% | 7.46% |
| 2014 | 19.57% | 15.52% | 8.00% |
| 2015 | −0.64% | 13.18% | 6.70% |
| 2016 | 15.30% | 16.21% | 7.14% |
| 2017 | 18.44% | 14.07% | 7.33% |
| 2018 | 17.72% | 13.80% | 11.82% |
| 2019 | 4.11% | 10.70% | 13.09% |
| 2020 | 14.98% | 13.99% | 13.60% |
| 2021 | 29.79% | 16.72% | 16.48% |
| 2022 | −15.53% | 9.09% | 11.56% |
| 2023 | 21.45% | 9.77% | 11.77% |
| 2024 | 24.35% | - | - |
Returns of SPY by fiscal year per SEC EDGAR filings. Effective September 30, 1997, the end of the trust's fiscal year changed from December 31 to September 30. The 5-year and 10-year average annual return results in the table include reinvestment of distributions (typically dividends) from the trust.[citation needed]
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ↑ 9-month period ending September 30, 1997, due to fiscal year change
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 "State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust prospectus". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. January 26, 2026. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "SPY: State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust". State Street Investment Management. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "SPY: The Idea That Spawned An Industry". SEC.gov. State Street Global Advisors. January 25, 2013. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts (SPDR) Trust". Investor.gov. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ↑ "NYSE and PDR Services LLC Announce Name Change for Three Exchange-Traded Funds" (Press release). Intercontinental Exchange. January 13, 2026. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Funds". Federal Register. November 15, 2001. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ↑ Brewster, Lucy (February 23, 2024). "SPY First ETF to Reach $500B in Assets". ETF.com. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ↑ Shaw, DJ (October 18, 2024). "SPY Becomes First ETF to Surpass $600B in Assets". ETF.com. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ↑ McGee, Suzanne (February 19, 2025). "State Street relinquishes title of biggest ETF to Vanguard". Reuters. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ↑ "SPY: The Idea That Spawned An Industry". State Street Corporation. January 25, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2024 – via SEC.gov.
- ↑ SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust Semi-Annual Report (Report). State Street Global Advisors Trust Company. March 31, 2024. Retrieved September 26, 2024 – via SEC.gov.
- 1 2 Evans, Rachel; Hajric, Vildana; Alloway, Tracy (August 9, 2019). "The Longevity of the World's Largest ETF Rests on the Lives of 11 U.S. Millennials". Los Angeles Times. Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2026.