ETF Evaluator:
Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF ()
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(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Preferred Stock Over the Last Year
| 9.0% | Global X SuperIncome™ Preferred ETF (SPFF) |
| 7.3% | VanEck Pref Secs ex Fincls ETF (PFXF) |
| 6.5% | Cohen & Steers Pref & Inc Opps Act ETF (CSPF) |
| 6.1% | First Trust Instl Pref Secs and Inc ETF (FPEI) |
| 5.9% | Virtus InfraCap US Preferred Stock ETF (PFFA) |
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Risk
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ETF Details
Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF Overview
Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF (PSK) is a passively managed Taxable Bond Preferred Stock exchange-traded fund (ETF). State Street Investment Management launched the ETF in 2009.
The investment seeks to provide investment results that, before fees and expenses, correspond generally to the total return performance of the ICE Exchange-Listed Fixed & Adjustable Rate Preferred Securities Index.
In seeking to track the performance of the index, the adviser employs a sampling strategy. It generally invests substantially all, but at least 80%, of its total assets in the securities comprising the index. The index is designed to measure the performance of non-convertible preferred stock and securities that are functionally equivalent to preferred stock, including, but not limited to, senior and subordinated debt.
About Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF (PSK)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 8.50 years: Amy Scofield (2017), Michael Finocchi (2022) and Karl Schneider (2014). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100% and ICE Ex-Listed Fx & Adj Rt Pfd Sec TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF has 161 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 15.9% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF is part of the Hybrid Securities global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond ETF group. Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF has 0.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0% There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 97.5% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF has 0.6% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $693 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Preferred Stock category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
PSK Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Preferred Stock category. Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF has an expense ratio of 0.45%, which is 23% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a A. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 11%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 38% for the Preferred Stock category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF returned -0.4%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Preferred Stock category had an average return of -0.0%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.
Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF has a trailing yield of 7.13%, which is above the 6.18% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income monthly.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Stt Strt® SPDR® ICE Preferred Secs ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned -1.4%, 2.6 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 0.1% over the past year (grade of F), 3.0% over the past three years (grade of F) and -1.2% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 1.7% per year over the past 10 years (grade of F).
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PSK Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| PSK Return (NAV) | -0.4% | -2.2% | 0.1% | 3.0% | -1.2% | 1.7% |
| PSK Return (Price) | -0.2% | -2.3% | 0.2% | 3.0% | -1.2% | 1.6% |
| NAV +/- Price Return | -0.166% | 0.102% | -0.139% | 0.019% | -0.012% | 0.033% |
| Preferred Stock Avg | -0.0% | -0.3% | 4.3% | 6.9% | 1.5% | 3.0% |
| PSK Grade (NAV) | D | F | F | F | F | F |
| +/- Category (NAV) | -0.4% | -2.0% | -4.2% | -3.9% | -2.7% | -1.3% |
| PSK Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.7% | 2.5% | 2.4% | 2.3% |
PSK Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| PSK Return (NAV) | -1.4% | 2.6% | 5.2% | 9.0% | -18.9% | 1.6% | 6.5% | 17.4% | -4.6% | 10.5% | -0.5% |
| PSK Return (Price) | -1.1% | 2.7% | 4.8% | 8.9% | -18.9% | 1.6% | 6.4% | 17.6% | -4.5% | 10.5% | -0.7% |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | -0.198% | 0.027% | -0.082% | -0.012% | -0.005% | -0.031% | -0.015% | 1.3% | -1.0% | 0.1% | 41.7% |
| Preferred Stock Avg | 1.3% | 6.2% | 9.3% | 9.7% | -16.0% | 5.8% | 5.6% | 18.4% | -4.7% | 9.0% | 3.2% |
| PSK Grade (NAV) | F | F | F | C | D | F | D | D | C | B | F |
| +/- Category | -2.6% | -3.6% | -4.1% | -0.7% | -3.0% | -4.2% | 0.9% | -1.0% | 0.1% | 1.5% | -3.7% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | 1.05 |
| R-Squared: | 44% |
| Standard Deviation: | 8.9% |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.24 |
| Category Risk Rating: | Above Average |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.73 |
| Total Risk Rating: | Below Average |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 7.1% |
| Total Assets: | $ 693 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 693 Mil |
| Turnover: | 11.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.45% |
| Index Fund: | Yes |
| Index Tracked: | S&P 500 (TR) (1970) |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Monthly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 11.8 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 8.5 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Schneider Karl (2014), Scofield Amy (2017), Finocchi Michael (2022) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 161 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 15.9% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 0.0% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 97.5% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 1.9% |
| Cash: | 0.6% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | State Street Investment Management |
| Phone Number: | 866-787-2257 |
| Website: | www.spdrs.com |
| Inception Date: | September 16, 2009 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.45% (Rating: Avg) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.58% |