Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
SDY vs USMV: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SDY returned +16.5% to USMV's +10.8%; 26% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $21.9bn for State Street SPDR S&P Dividend ETF and $24.1bn for iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF.
Pair scorecard
USMV costs 0.20 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 5.7 points; USMV is 1.1 times larger.
| Measure | SDY | USMV |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +16.5% | +10.8% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | S&P High Yield Dividend Aristocrats Index | MSCI USA Minimum Volatility (USD) Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.15% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $21.9bn | $24.1bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 26% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 20.4% | 14.8% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 28, 2011 to Oct 23, 2026 · 782 weekly returnsUSMV returned slightly more: +423.5% to +387.8%. USMV swung less: 13.4% to 15.0%. USMV fell slightly less at its worst: −30.6% to −32.4%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | SDY | USMV | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +387.8% | +423.5% | USMV (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +11.1% | +11.6% | USMV (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +192.7% | +295.7% | USMV | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 15.0% | 13.4% | USMV | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 10.4% | 9.3% | USMV | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −32.4% | −30.6% | USMV (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.67 | 0.76 | USMV | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.96 | 1.09 | USMV | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.34 | 0.38 | USMV (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 782 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, SDY and USMV hold 26% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
26% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
SDY and USMV on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
SDY and USMV do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. SDY follows S&P High Yield Dividend Aristocrats Index and USMV follows MSCI USA Minimum Volatility (USD) Index.
- Holdings in common. 26% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 SDY returned +16.5% and USMV +10.8% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 5.7 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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SDY
SDY tracks the S&P Dividend. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +16.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.35% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 84% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 156 positions, with the top ten at 20.4%.
USMV
USMV tracks the MSCI USA Min Vol Factor. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +10.8% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 93% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 176 positions, with the top ten at 14.8%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SDY or USMV?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SDY returned +16.5% and USMV +10.8%.
- Which is cheaper, SDY or USMV?
- USMV is cheaper, by 0.20 percentage points a year. That is about $20 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown
ETFIQ, SDY against USMV, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/sdy-vs-usmv
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). SDY against USMV. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/sdy-vs-usmv
[SDY against USMV (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/sdy-vs-usmv)
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