Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
ITA vs XT: Holdings Overlap & Returns
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, ITA returned −4.3% to XT's +22.1%; 1% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $12.0bn for iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF and $4.1bn for iShares Future Exponential Technologies ETF.
81% of ITA's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 19% is outside the index. Holdings as of Oct 27, 2026.
66% of XT's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 35% is outside the index. Holdings as of Oct 27, 2026.
Pair scorecard
ITA costs 0.09 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 26.4 points; ITA is 2.9 times larger.
Points (pts) are percentage points.
| Measure | ITA | XT |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −4.3% | +22.1% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its all-time high | 17.9%, high on Aug 14, 2026 | |
| Against its benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Defense | Broad innovation and megatrends |
| Its benchmark, total return, 1 year | +13.4% | |
| Against its benchmark, 1 year | ahead by 8.7 pts | |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.37% | 0.46% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $12.0bn | $4.1bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 1% | |
How different its holdings are from the S&P 500, ranked against 112 thematic ETFs with at least half their money in S&P 500 companies. 100 is best. How it is computed
A percentile among the 112 thematic ETFs with at least half their money in S&P 500 companies. Weight not shared with the S&P 500 only; it says nothing about returns, fees or whether the theme pays off. All thematic ETFs ranked by it →
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Apr 2, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 603 weekly returnsXT returned slightly more: +292.0% to +266.6%. XT swung less: 19.0% to 24.0%. XT fell less at its worst: −34.3% to −49.3%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | ITA | XT | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +266.6% | +292.0% | XT (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +11.9% | +12.5% | XT (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +227.6% | +225.6% | Tie | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 24.0% | 19.0% | XT | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 16.6% | 13.2% | XT | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −49.3% | −34.3% | XT | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.50 | 0.60 | XT | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.72 | 0.87 | XT | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.24 | 0.36 | XT | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 603 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, ITA and XT hold 1% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
1% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Window by window
| Total return | vs its benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | ITA | XT | ITA | XT |
| 3 months | −12.0% | +10.2% | not measured | +5.8 pts vs ACWI |
| 6 months | −2.4% | +14.0% | not measured | +6.6 pts vs ACWI |
| 1 year | −4.3% | +22.1% | not measured | +8.7 pts vs ACWI |
| 3 years | +97.8% | +93.2% | not measured | +4.3 pts vs ACWI |
| Since launchNot the same days: ITA May 2006 · XT Mar 2015 | +892.2% | +297.8% | not measured | +71.7 pts vs ACWI |
Side by side
As of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
1% of the two portfolios are the same securities at the same weight.
ITA and XT are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- Theme. ITA covers Defense and XT covers Broad innovation and megatrends.
- Concentration. The top ten holdings are 76.1% of ITA and 36.6% of XT, a gap of 39.5 points.
- What each follows. ITA follows Defense and XT follows Broad innovation and megatrends.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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ITA
By weight, 81% of ITA's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 98%. The top ten holdings are 76% of the fund across 51 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned −4.3% with distributions reinvested. It sits 17.9% below its all-time high of Aug 14, 2026.
XT
By weight, 66% of XT's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 69%. The top ten holdings are 37% of the fund across 197 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +22.1% with distributions reinvested against +13.4% for its benchmark, the MSCI All Country World Index, so a holder was ahead by 8.7 pts.
Questions people ask
- Do ITA and XT hold the same stocks?
- By their latest filings, 1% of their books are the same securities at the same weight. Overlap is the sum of the smaller weight of every security they share.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
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ETFIQ, ITA against XT, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ita-vs-xt
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). ITA against XT. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ita-vs-xt
[ITA against XT (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ita-vs-xt)
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