Xtrackers offers investors a range of 5 ETFs focusing on companies from the S&P 500 Index[1]. Whether physical or synthetic[2], with sustainability criteria or without, market capitalised or equally weighted, the Xtrackers' S&P 500 ETF product range is one of the broadest in Europe.
Today, more assets are invested in products based on the S&P Dow Jones indices (DJI) than any other index provider in the world[3]. According to S&P's annual survey, an estimated $15.6 trillion is indexed or linked to the S&P 500, with indexed assets accounting for approximately $7.1 trillion (as of 12/21[4]).
The S&P 500 ESG and S&P 500 Equal Weight ESG​ Indices: Increasing focus on sustainably managed US companies
The S&P 500 ESG Index and the S&P 500 Equal Weight ESG Index aim to track the performance of leading large-cap US equities representing all major US industries and which meet certain environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria[5]. The ESG assessment is among other elements based on S&P Global ESG Research’s Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA[6]), an annual ESG analysis of over 11,000 companies used to categorise financially material sustainability information.
The S&P 500 ESG is a broad-based index that monitors and tracks the performance of stocks that reflect the ESG criteria. The index seeks to target 75% of the float-adjusted market capitalization of each Global Industry Classification Standard Industry Group (GICS Industry Group) within the Parent Index. The weighting of the stocks included is similar to that of the S&P 500, apart from that the S&P 500 ESG Index also takes sustainability aspects in the stock selection into account.
Similarly, the S&P 500 Equal Weight ESG Index seeks to measure the equally weighted performance of securities meeting sustainability criteria while maintaining similar overall industry group weights and covering 60% of the number of constituents of each Global Industry Classification Standard Industry Group (GICS Industry Group) as the S&P 500 Equal Weight Index.
A unified approach for S&P 500 ESG and S&P 500 Equal Weight (EW) ESG[7]
Source: S&P Global; as of: 31.10.2022.
Please see S&P ESG Index and S&P 500 Equal Weight ESG for further details.
Investments with ESG criteria: Facts & figures
A global survey[8] conducted in 2021 found:
Investment opportunities with S&P ESG indices and Xtrackers ETFs
| Xtrackers (IE) Plc S&P 500 ESG UCITS ETF 1C | Xtrackers (IE) Plc S&P 500 ESG Equal Weight UCITS ETF 1C |
|---|---|
| ISIN: IE0007ULOZS8 | ISIN: IE0004MFRED4 |
| Fund currency: USD | Fund currency: USD |
| TER: 0.08% p.a. | TER: 0.17% p.a. |
| Distribution: Capitalizing | Distribution: Capitalizing |
| The fund aims to reflect the performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&P 500ESG Index which is designed to reflect the performance of the shares of large-capitalisation companies representing all major US industries and which meet certain, environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. | The fund aims to reflect the performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&P 500Equal Weight ESG Index which is designed to reflect the equal weighted performance of the shares of large capitalisation companies representing all major US industries and which meet certain environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. |
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Our alternative non-ESG Xtrackers S&P 500 ETFs
| Xtrackers ETF | ISIN | Ticker | Fund currency | TER p.a. | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xtrackers S&P 500 UCITS ETF 4C | IE000Z9SJA06 | XDPU | USD | 0.06% | Capitalizing |
| Xtrackers S&P 500 Equal Weight UCITS ETF 1C | IE00BLNMYC90 | XDEW | USD | 0.20% | Capitalizing |
| Xtrackers S&P 500 Swap UCITS ETF 1D | LU2009147757 | XSXD | USD | 0.07% | Distributing |
Opportunities & risks for investors
| Xtrackers S&P ESG ETFs offer investors the opportunity to ... | Investors need to be aware that ... | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Â |
...invest in the largest listed US companies |
 |
...Xtrackers ETFs are not capital protected - therefore investors should be prepared and able to take losses up to a total loss of the capital invested |
| Â |
...have access to the US equity market with a focus on companies from the S&P 500 Index |
 |
...significant fluctuations in the value of the investment are possible, even over short periods of time |
| Â |
...invest with sustainability criteria in a comprehensive range of ESG indices for different risk/return expectations |
 |
...exchange rate fluctuations can affect the value of the investment |
| Â | Â | Â |
...market movements in a single country may be adversely affected by political or economic developments, government action or natural events that do not affect a fund investing in broader markets |
FAQ: S&P 500 ESG Index Series
What are the S&P 500 ESG scores?
S&P DJI ESG Scores are environmental, social, and governance scores that robustly measure ESG risk and performance factors for corporations, with a focus on financial materiality. The scores contain a total company-level ESG score for a financial year, comprising individual environmental (E), social (S), and governance (G) dimension scores.
How is a company's ESG score calculated?
A company's overall ESG score is the weighted average of all criteria and their respective weightings within a given ESG dimension. The score ranges from 0 to 100, with 100 representing the best performance. The ESG score is calculated by the index provider.
Further information on the S&P DJI ESG scores can be found here[9]
Which companies are excluded?
Companies that are deemed non-compliant with the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) principles will not be included in the S&P 500 ESG Index and the S&P 500 Equal Weight ESG Index. Also excluded are companies that reach specified revenue thresholds in the following business activities[10]:
- Thermal coal
- Controversial Weapons
- Tobacco Products
- Oil Sands
- Small Arms
- Military Contracting
What improvements in sustainability criteria does the S&P 500 ESG show compared to S&P 500?
| ESG scores and CO2 emissions data | S&P 500 Index | S&P 500 ESG Index |
|---|---|---|
ESG Highlights |
(Based on S&P DJI ESG Data) |
|
| ESG Score | 68.5 | 77.1 |
| ESG Environmental Score | 69.4 | 76.2 |
| ESG Social Score | 68.5 | 77.1 |
| ESG Government Score | 73.0 | 81,6 |
Climate |
||
| Weighted Average Carbon Intensity (tCO2e/ mnUSD) | 205.4 | 174.8 |
| Carbon Emissions (Scopes 1+2) / EVIC | 35.6 | 28.7 |
| Carbon Emissions (Scopes 1+2+3) / EVIC | 243.1 | 247.0 |
Source: S&P Global | as of 31.12.2022
Further information
1. The S&P 500 Index is part of the S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI), the largest global source of index-based market concepts, data and research. The S&P 500 is a stock market index that tracks the performance of the 500 largest listed companies in the USA.
2. In physical (or direct) replication, the ETF invests in almost all components of the index with the same weighting. Synthetic (or indirect) replication, on the other hand, uses swaps. A swap is an agreement between two partners, in this case between an index fund and one or more banks. Learn more
3. Source: S&P Global; as of: 31.10.2022.
4. https://www.spglobal.com/spdji/en/documents/index-news-and-announcements/spdji-indexed-asset-survey-2021.pdf
5. ESG criteria are intended to help investors assess the sustainability profile of a company. The term stands for Environment, Social and Governance. The selection process takes into account both exclusion criteria (e.g. companies with links to weapons or human rights violations) and selection criteria (e.g. companies that can be perceived as being among the most sustainable in their field and according to such ESG criteria)
6. CSA stands for the evaluation of a company's sustainability performance. This results in an overall ESG score (0-100 points): a weighted average score derived from the industry-specific assessment across ±20-25 governance, economic, environmental and social criteria. The annual assessment CSA has resulted in one of the world's most comprehensive databases of financially material sustainability information, which serves as the basis for the assessments underlying S&P DJI's ESG indices.
7. The 75% of companies with the best ESG score are considered for the index.
8. Source: statista.com. The data is based on an online survey of 325 institutional investors from 43 countries conducted by PwC.
9. Source: S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC | as of 31.12.2021
10. Source: S&P Dow Jones Indices