State Street’s XLV offers lower fees and higher dividends than iShares’ IHE, targeting broad healthcare exposure versus IHE’s pharma focus.
The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) undercuts the iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF (IHE) with a 0.08% expense ratio, compared to IHE’s 0.38%. XLV also delivers a higher trailing-12-month dividend yield of 1.60%, versus IHE’s 1.48%.
XLV, launched in 1998, holds 60 stocks across the healthcare sector, with top holdings including Eli Lilly (16.5%), Johnson & Johnson (10.6%), and AbbVie (7.7%). IHE, established in 2006, concentrates on 56 pharmaceutical stocks, led by Johnson & Johnson (22.4%) and Eli Lilly (22.3%).
The funds diverge in risk and performance, with XLV offering broader diversification while IHE provides targeted exposure to drugmakers.