Which returned more over the last year, GOVT or XLV?

In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GOVT returned −1.0% and XLV returned +20.4%, so XLV returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.

Which is cheaper, GOVT or XLV?

GOVT charges 0.05% a year and XLV charges 0.08%, so GOVT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.

ETFIQetfiq.com · independent ETF data

GOVT vs XLV: how they differ

GOVT and XLV hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and XLV returned more over the year.

iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF and State Street(R) Health Care Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF.

What they hold in common

By the books each fund has filed, GOVT and XLV hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.

Largest positions each one holds and the other does not
Only in GOVT	Only in XLV
US TREASURY N/B 0.60%	ELI LILLY + CO 14.87%
TREASURY NOTE (OTR) 0.55%	JOHNSON + JOHNSON 10.73%
TREASURY BOND (OLD) 0.42%	ABBVIE INC 7.54%
TREASURY NOTE (2OLD) 0.25%	MERCK + CO. INC. 5.98%
TREASURY BOND (OTR) 0.16%	UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC 5.90%
BLK CSH FND TREASURY SL AGENCY 0.11%	THERMO FISHER SCIENTIFIC INC 3.75%
TREASURY NOTE (OLD) 0.11%	AMGEN INC 3.46%
TREASURY BOND (2OLD) 0.08%	ABBOTT LABORATORIES 3.01%

Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Sep 10, 2026.

GOVT and XLV on the fields both publish, as of Sep 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
	GOVT iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF	XLV State Street(R) Health Care Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF
Where it sits	Core index fund	Core index fund
Issuer	iShares	State Street
What it is	U.S. Treasury Bond	Health care
Total return, 1 year	−1.0%	+20.4%
S&P 500 over the same days	+17.5%	+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500	−18.5 pts	+2.9 pts
Expense ratio	0.05%	0.08%
Holdings	216	63

GOVT in plain words

GOVT is a bond fund tracking the U.S. Treasury Bond. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned −1.0% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.05% a year. It sat 8.4% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Sep 11, 2026.

XLV in plain words

XLV is an index equity fund tracking the Health care. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +20.4% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings filed for Sep 10, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 63 positions, with the top ten at 60.9%. It sat 5.9% below its high of Aug 19, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GOVT or XLV?: In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GOVT returned −1.0% and XLV returned +20.4%, so XLV returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, GOVT or XLV?: GOVT charges 0.05% a year and XLV charges 0.08%, so GOVT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

Where to next

Where these figures came from

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.

GOVT against XLV, ETFIQ, data as of Sep 13, 2026. Every figure is arithmetic on a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page. ETFIQ, GOVT against XLV, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-xlv Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources