SP Funds S&P 500 Sharia ETF

SPUS

Market cap $1.61B

SPUS is a leading Shariah-compliant U.S. equity comprised of roughly 200 S&P 500 Index stocks. Its expense ratio is 0.45%, and the ETF has $1.64B in assets under management. Despite the suggestion, SPUS is not a substitute for S&P 500 Index ETFs like SPY. In fact, it's heavily concentrated in tech, and consequently, it's much more risky and growth-oriented. Complementing SPUS with a lower P/E fund like HLAL is one solution, but I think readers should consider the ten stocks listed below, selected for their fundamental characteristics.

SPUS is comprised of 200+ Shariah-compliant S&P 500 Index stocks. Its expense ratio is 0.45% and the ETF has an impressive $1.36 billion in assets under management. SPUS excludes stocks in the Aerospace & Defense, Financial Exchanges & Data, and Transaction & Payment Processing Services sub-industries and also applies several sector-based screens. The ETF is market-cap-weighted, so the weights of these excluded stocks get redistributed to the top, resulting in nearly 53% allocated to the Magnificent Seven.

For investors seeking to align their financial decisions with their personal values, faith-based ETFs may present a unique opportunity. However, understanding the fee structures associated with these funds is necessary for making informed choices.

SPUS tracks the S&P 500 Shariah Industry Exclusions Index, selecting large-cap companies meeting specific screens related to how they derive net income. Fees are 0.45% and AUM is $575 million. SPUS also screens constituents for debt, and the fund ranks an impressive #18/57 on profitability among the large-cap growth ETFs I track. High quality is SPUS' best fundamental feature. The downside is SPUS is highly concentrated, with 47% allocated to Magnificent Seven stocks and two-thirds of assets in only 25 companies.

The Federal Reserve kept rates steady and maintained a hawkish stance toward inflation while acknowledging an outstanding economy and progress in vanquishing inflationary pressure. Expectations for rate cuts in March were dampened by a change in statement language and Powell's comments in the press conference.

SPUS tracks the S&P 500 Shariah Industry Exclusions Index. Fees are high at 0.45%, but it's been the top-performing ESG since its December 2019 launch. The primary reason is a screening and weighting process that favors high-valued Technology stocks. Debt is measured as a percentage of market capitalization, and securities are market-cap-weighted. This process allows semiconductor stocks like Nvidia and Broadcom, where competitors like HLAL, which measure debt as a percentage of total assets, exclude them.