Data as of .
NATO vs SHLD: which is really different?
NATO and SHLD hold 34% of their weight in the same names, and NATO returned more over the year.
ETFIQ Off-Index Score: SHLD scores higher
How much of it is not the index it is sold as an alternative to?
A percentile among the 379 thematic ETFs with a holdings filing. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All thematic ETFs ranked by it · How it is computed
34% of the two portfolios are the same securities at the same weight.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, NATO and SHLD hold 34% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | NATO | SHLD |
|---|---|---|
| RTX Corp | 7.61% | 9.10% |
| Lockheed Martin Corp | 5.19% | 8.29% |
| General Dynamics Corp | 3.63% | 8.54% |
| BAE Systems PLC | 3.38% | 4.72% |
| Northrop Grumman Corp | 3.37% | 7.88% |
| L3Harris Technologies Inc | 2.52% | 3.69% |
| Rheinmetall AG | 2.41% | 3.80% |
| Thales SA | 1.03% | 3.76% |
| Leonardo SpA | 0.99% | 3.56% |
| BWX Technologies Inc | 0.83% | 2.06% |
| Huntington Ingalls Industries | 0.49% | 1.64% |
| Kratos Defense & Security Solu | 0.42% | 1.35% |
| Only in NATO | Only in SHLD |
|---|---|
| General Electric Co 9.73% | PALANTIR TECHNOLOGIES INC-A 10.77% |
| Boeing Co/The 7.28% | HANWHA AEROSPACE CO LTD 3.86% |
| Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC 7.16% | SAAB AB-B 3.47% |
| Airbus SE 5.10% | ELBIT SYSTEMS LTD 3.15% |
| Safran SA 4.89% | LEIDOS HOLDINGS INC 2.44% |
| Howmet Aerospace Inc 4.85% | KONGSBERG GRUPPEN ASA 2.16% |
| TransDigm Group Inc 3.40% | MOOG INC-CLASS A 1.56% |
| Honeywell International Inc 3.15% | LIG DEFENSE&AEROSPACE CO LTD 1.01% |
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 Jun 30, 2026 and Sep 18, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | vs the S&P 500 | vs the Nasdaq-100 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NATO | SHLD | NATO | SHLD | NATO | SHLD | |
| 3 months | −6.6% | +0.9% | −8.9 pts | −1.3 pts | −4.1 pts | +3.4 pts |
| 6 months | −3.4% | −14.0% | −21.5 pts | −32.1 pts | −27.7 pts | −38.3 pts |
| 1 year | +0.6% | −5.1% | −16.0 pts | −21.7 pts | −21.2 pts | −26.9 pts |
| 3 years | not published | +156.1% | not published | +77.7 pts | not published | +57.9 pts |
| Since launch | +49.9% | +157.7% | +15.4 pts | +80.2 pts | +2.3 pts | +61.5 pts |
| NATO Themes Transatlantic Defense ETF Holds 84 stocks in defense, 58% of its weight in S&P 500 companies | SHLD Global X Defense Tech ETF Holds 59 stocks in defense, 40% of its weight in S&P 500 companies | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Themes | Global X |
| Theme | Defense | Defense |
| In the S&P 500 | 58.4% | 39.9% |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 97.6% | 99.1% |
| In the Nasdaq-100 | 5.1% | 0.0% |
| Holdings | 84 | 59 |
| Top ten, share of the fund | 58.8% | 64.4% |
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.50% |
| Fee for the differing part | 0.36% | 0.50% |
| Total return, 1 year | +0.6% | −5.1% |
| vs the S&P 500 | −16.0 pts | −21.7 pts |
| vs the Nasdaq-100 | −21.2 pts | −26.9 pts |
| Below its high | −14.4% | −19.4% |
| Net assets | $95m | $7.1bn |
NATO in plain words
By weight, 58% of NATO'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 59% of the fund across 84 positions, as filed for Jun 30, 2026. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026 the fund returned +0.6% with distributions reinvested against +16.6% for the S&P 500, so a holder was behind by 16.0 pts. It sits 14.4% below its all-time high of Mar 2, 2026.
SHLD in plain words
By weight, 40% of SHLD's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 64% of the fund across 59 positions, as published by its issuer for Sep 18, 2026. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026 the fund returned −5.1% with distributions reinvested against +16.6% for the S&P 500, so a holder was behind by 21.7 pts. It sits 19.4% below its all-time high of Mar 9, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Do NATO and SHLD hold the same stocks?
- By their latest filings, 34% of their books are the same securities at the same weight, which is a meaningful overlap. Overlap is the sum of the smaller weight of every security they share.
- Which is more different from the S&P 500, NATO or SHLD?
- NATO has 58% of its weight in S&P 500 names and SHLD has 40%, so SHLD differs more from the index.
- Which is cheaper, NATO or SHLD?
- NATO charges 0.35% a year and SHLD charges 0.50%, so NATO is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
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.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, NATO against SHLD, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/nato-vs-shld Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.