Fund Evaluator:
State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc (SSQSX)Best Performing in Small Blend Over the Last Year
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| 38.0% | North Star Small Cap Value Investor (WSCVX) |
Fund Details
State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc Overview
State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc (SSQSX) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Small Blend fund. State Street Investment Management launched the fund in 2005.
The investment seeks long-term growth of capital. The fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) under normal circumstances in equity securities of small-cap companies, such as common and preferred stocks. It defines a small-cap company as one with a market capitalization that, at the time of initial investment, falls between (a) the market capitalization of the smallest company in the Russell 2000® Index and (b) either the larger of the market capitalization of the largest company in the Russell 2000® Index or $3.0 billion.
About State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc (SSQSX)
There are 10 members of the management team with an average tenure of 10.00 years: Richard Lee (2024), Marc Shapiro (2012), Phillip Cook (2021), Frank Latuda (2010), McAfee Burke (2022), Shawn McKay (2019), Fares Altaher (2022), Scott Brayman (2008), Dennison Veru (2000), William Muggia (2024). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: Russell 2000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc has 281 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 19.3% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity fund group. State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc has 0.3% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 92.4%. There is 0.3% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% 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). State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc has 7.3% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $1 million in total assets, which is below the $685 million average for the Small Blend 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.
SSQSX 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 State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Small Blend category. State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc has an expense ratio of 1.00%, which is 4% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. 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. State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc has a portfolio turnover rate of 45%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 66% for the Small Blend category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc returned -0.9%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Small Blend category had an average return of -2.8%. 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 funds in that category.
State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc has a trailing yield of 0.19%, which is below the 0.42% category average. The fund normally distributes its income annually and its capital gains annually.
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.
State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Svc Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 14.4%, 3.7 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 17.4% over the past year (grade of F), 8.6% over the past three years (grade of F) and 5.0% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 9.2% per year over the past 10 years (grade of D).
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SSQSX 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 |
|
| SSQSX Return (NAV) | -0.9% | 6.4% | 17.4% | 8.6% | 5.0% | 9.2% |
| SSQSX Grade | A | B | F | F | F | D |
| +/- Category | 1.9% | 1.2% | -10.9% | -4.9% | -2.6% | -1.1% |
| Small Blend Avg | -2.8% | 5.2% | 28.3% | 13.5% | 7.6% | 10.3% |
| SSQSX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 3.7% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 2.3% |
SSQSX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| SSQSX Return (NAV) | 14.4% | 0.3% | 10.6% | 13.9% | -15.3% | 20.6% | 14.9% | 26.4% | -9.9% | 12.8% | 23.9% |
| SSQSX Grade | F | F | C | D | B | D | C | B | B | D | B |
| +/- Category | -3.7% | -7.6% | -1.0% | -2.6% | 1.2% | -2.6% | 0.5% | 0.9% | 1.9% | -1.3% | 3.7% |
| Small Blend Avg | 18.2% | 7.9% | 11.6% | 16.5% | -16.5% | 23.2% | 14.4% | 25.5% | -11.8% | 14.1% | 20.2% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 17.6% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.43 - High |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.95 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | B (30% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.06 |
| R-Squared: | 61% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Small-Cap Blend |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 0.2% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $537 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 1 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | S |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 45% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 10 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 26.4 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 10.0 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Veru Dennison (2000), Brayman Scott (2008), Latuda Frank (2010), Shapiro Marc (2012), McKay Shawn (2019), Cook Phillip (2021), Burke McAfee (2022), Altaher Fares (2022), Lee Richard (2024), Muggia William (2024) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 281 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 19.3% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 0.3% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 92.4% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.3% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 7.3% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | State Street Investment Management |
| Phone Number: | 800-242-0134 |
| Website: | www.geam.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | September 30, 2005 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $10,000,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 0.25% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.00% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.05% |
| Share Class: | State Street Instl Small-Cap Equity Inv |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |