Information Technology

Information Technology Index Tracking — Briefing as of July 2026

The Information Technology sector is tracked by large, liquid funds from four major issuers, each tracking a distinct index with subtly different constituent universes and weighting methodologies. The four primary vehicles covered here are the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK), the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT), the Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF (FTEC), and the iShares U.S. Technology ETF (IYW). Together they cover the three main index families for U.S. technology and publish a range of expense ratios, from a low of 0.08% (XLK and FTEC) to a notably higher 0.38% for IYW.

XLK, issued by State Street Global Advisors, tracks the S&P Technology Select Sector Index. This index draws its constituents exclusively from the S&P 500, meaning it reflects large-cap, mega-cap-dominated technology exposure. As of the most recent available data point (etfdb.com, June 11, 2026), XLK traded at $183.64 per share. Its expense ratio of 0.08% is one of the two lowest published in this group. Because XLK's index is capped at S&P 500 constituents, it excludes mid- and small-cap technology names that appear in broader MSCI-based indices.

VGT, issued by Vanguard, tracks the MSCI US IMI 25/50 Information Technology index. The IMI (Investable Market Index) designation is significant: it captures large-, mid-, and small-cap U.S. technology companies, so VGT covers a broader set of companies than XLK. As of June 8, 2026, VGT traded at $110.87 per share, with an expense ratio of 0.09% — only one basis point above XLK and FTEC. The 25/50 diversification constraints in the MSCI methodology limit any single issuer to 25% of the index and all issuers above 5% to a combined 50%, which has historically moderated concentration risk relative to unconstrained market-cap-weighted approaches.

FTEC, issued by Fidelity, also tracks the MSCI USA IMI Information Technology 25/50 Index — making it the closest structural peer to VGT in this group. As of July 22, 2026, FTEC traded at $276.23 per share. Its expense ratio matches XLK at 0.08%. The higher nominal share price relative to VGT reflects differences in share creation history and any stock splits, not a difference in underlying portfolio value per unit of index exposure.

IYW, issued by BlackRock's iShares, tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Technology Index. As of July 22, 2026, IYW traded at $254.05 per share. IYW's expense ratio of 0.38% stands materially above the other three funds — approximately 4.75x the cost of XLK or FTEC on an annualized basis. The Dow Jones U.S. Technology Index has a different constituent selection and weighting methodology than either the S&P Technology Select Sector Index or the MSCI IMI variants, which means its constituents and weights differ from the other two index families.

Published Expense Ratios

The published expense ratios differ across this group. XLK (0.08%) and FTEC (0.08%) are the same; VGT (0.09%) is one basis point higher; and IYW (0.38%) is the highest in the group.

NAV Premium/Discount

The retrieved data provides traded market prices for all four ETFs but does not include separately published intraday or end-of-day NAV figures distinct from the quoted prices. ETF market prices and NAVs for highly liquid, large-cap domestic equity funds typically trade within a few basis points of each other during normal market hours. Without a separately disclosed NAV figure in the source data, a precise premium/discount calculation cannot be performed from the available inputs alone. This is noted transparently in the nav_fair_value section, where the market price is used as the best available proxy.

Data Recency Caveat

It is important to note that the analysis date is August 21, 2026, while the most recent price data available is from July 22, 2026 (FTEC and IYW), with XLK data from June 11, 2026 and VGT data from June 8, 2026. Prices quoted here are therefore stale by approximately one to two and a half months relative to the analysis date. No performance figures, drawdown statistics, or correlation data to the broad market are available in the retrieved dataset; those observations are noted as absent rather than estimated from unavailable inputs.