State Street Global Advisors Announces ETF Share Splits

BOSTON--()--State Street Global Advisors (SSGA), the asset management business of State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT), today announced share splits on 10 SPDR ETFs that offer exposure to companies in specific US industries. With a share split, the aggregate market value of shares outstanding is not impacted. The splits lower the funds’ share prices and increase the number of outstanding shares. The Record Date for the share split will be 9/8/2015 and the Pay Date will be 9/10/2015.

The SPDR ETFs with share splits include:

Ticker     Fund Name     Split Ratio
XAR     SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF     2:1
XBI     SPDR S&P Biotech ETF     3:1
XHE     SPDR S&P Health Care Equipment ETF     2:1
XHS     SPDR S&P Health Care Services ETF     2:1
XPH     SPDR S&P Pharmaceuticals ETF     2:1
XRT     SPDR S&P Retail ETF     2:1
XSD     SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF     2:1
XSW     SPDR S&P Software & Services ETF     2:1
XTN     SPDR S&P Transportation ETF     2:1
MTK     SPDR Morgan Stanley Technology ETF    

2:1

       

“With more than $3 billion of inflows into our entire industry lineup over the last year, we are continuing to see investors gravitate towards sector and industry investing as a means to play actionable market themes,” said James Ross, executive vice president and global head of SPDR Exchange Traded Funds at State Street Global Advisors. “The success of our market leading sector and industry suite has not changed our continuous commitment to adding value to investors whenever possible. These share splits will make the 10 SPDR ETFs more affordable for investors through lower trading costs and provide greater efficiency in the creation and redemption process, which leads to the potential for increased liquidity.”

With more than $6.7 billion of combined assets under management, these 10 funds are a part of SSGA’s leading suite of sector and industry SPDR ETFs, which features 28 funds in total with $104.4 billion in assets.1 Our entire industry suite – which encompasses segments of the US market from banks to telecom – is equally weighted, offering investors comprehensive market cap and specific industry coverage at an attractive cost of 0.35 percent.

About SPDR Exchange Traded Funds

SPDR ETFs are a comprehensive family spanning an array of international and domestic asset classes. SPDR ETFs are managed by SSgA Funds Management, Inc., a registered investment adviser and wholly owned subsidiary of State Street Bank and Trust Company. The funds provide investors with the flexibility to select investments that are precisely aligned to their investment strategy. Recognized as an industry pioneer, State Street created the first US listed ETF in 1993 (SPDR S&P 500® – Ticker SPY) and has remained on the forefront of responsible innovation, as evidenced by the introduction of many ground-breaking products, including first-to-market launches with gold, international real estate, international fixed income, and sector ETFs. For more information, visit www.spdrs.com.

About State Street Global Advisors

For nearly four decades, State Street Global Advisors has been committed to helping our clients, and those who rely on them, achieve financial security. We partner with many of the world’s largest, most sophisticated investors and financial intermediaries to help them reach their goals through a rigorous, research-driven investment process spanning both indexing and active disciplines. With trillions* in assets, our scale and global reach offer clients unrivaled access to markets, geographies and asset classes, and allow us to deliver thoughtful insights and innovative solutions.

State Street Global Advisors is the investment management arm of State Street Corporation.

*Assets under management were $2.4 trillion as of June 30, 2015. Assets under management include approximately $26,7 billion as of June 30, 2015), for which State Street Global Markets, LLC, an affiliate of SSgA, serves as the distribution agent.

ETFs trade like stocks, are subject to investment risk, fluctuate in market value and may trade at prices above or below the ETFs net asset value. Brokerage commissions and ETF expenses will reduce returns.

Frequent trading of ETFs could significantly increase commissions and other costs such that they may offset any savings from low fees or costs.

Because of their narrow focus, sector funds tend to be more volatile than funds that diversify across many sectors and companies.

Passively managed funds invest by sampling the index, holding a range of securities that, in the aggregate, approximates the full Index in terms of key risk factors and other characteristics. This may cause the fund to experience tracking errors relative to performance of the index.

Distributor: State Street Global Markets, LLC, member FINRA, SIPC, a wholly owned subsidiary of State Street Corporation. References to State Street may include State Street Corporation and its affiliates. Certain State Street affiliates provide services and receive fees from the SPDR ETFs. ALPS Distributors, Inc., a registered broker-dealer, is distributor for SPDR? S&P® 500, SPDR® S&P® MidCap 400 and SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average, and all unit investment trusts. ALPS Portfolio Solutions Distributor, Inc. is distributor for Select Sector SPDRs. ALPS Distributors, Inc. and ALPS Portfolio Solutions Distributor, Inc. are not affiliated with State Street Global Markets, LLC

Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. To obtain a prospectus or summary prospectus which contains this and other information, call 1-866-787-2257 or visit www.spdrs.com. Read it carefully.

CORP-1572

1 Source: SSGA, Bloomberg; as of 08/28/2015

Contacts

State Street Corporation
Brendan Paul, +1 617-662-2903
Bpaul2@statestreet.com

Contacts

State Street Corporation
Brendan Paul, +1 617-662-2903
Bpaul2@statestreet.com