Data as of .
NATO vs XAR: which is really different?
NATO and XAR hold 39% of their weight in the same names, and XAR returned more over the year.
ETFIQ Off-Index Score: XAR 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
39% 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 XAR hold 39% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | NATO | XAR |
|---|---|---|
| Honeywell Aerospace Inc | 3.11% | 3.13% |
| Northrop Grumman Corp | 3.37% | 2.97% |
| Lockheed Martin Corp | 5.19% | 2.95% |
| General Dynamics Corp | 3.63% | 2.90% |
| Howmet Aerospace Inc | 4.85% | 2.86% |
| RTX Corp | 7.61% | 2.85% |
| General Electric Co | 9.73% | 2.80% |
| TransDigm Group Inc | 3.40% | 2.80% |
| Boeing Co/The | 7.28% | 2.78% |
| L3Harris Technologies Inc | 2.52% | 2.86% |
| Rocket Lab Corp | 2.51% | 2.97% |
| Axon Enterprise Inc | 1.91% | 2.65% |
| Only in NATO | Only in XAR |
|---|---|
| Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC 7.16% | WOODWARD INC 2.76% |
| Safran SA 4.89% | ATI INC 2.69% |
| BAE Systems PLC 3.38% | CARPENTER TECHNOLOGY 2.58% |
| Honeywell International Inc 3.15% | STANDARDAERO INC 2.53% |
| Rheinmetall AG 2.41% | VSE CORP 2.45% |
| Teledyne Technologies Inc 1.44% | V2X INC 1.31% |
| MTU Aero Engines AG 1.03% | ARXIS INC A 1.09% |
| Thales SA 1.03% | VOYAGER TECHNOLOGIES INC A 1.00% |
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 | XAR | NATO | XAR | NATO | XAR | |
| 3 months | −6.6% | −15.6% | −8.9 pts | −17.9 pts | −4.1 pts | −13.1 pts |
| 6 months | −3.4% | −7.3% | −21.5 pts | −25.3 pts | −27.7 pts | −31.5 pts |
| 1 year | +0.6% | +6.0% | −16.0 pts | −10.6 pts | −21.2 pts | −15.8 pts |
| 3 years | not published | +110.8% | not published | +32.4 pts | not published | +12.7 pts |
| Since launch | +49.9% | +1014.0% | +15.4 pts | +261.0 pts | +2.3 pts | −408.8 pts |
| NATO Themes Transatlantic Defense ETF Holds 84 stocks in defense, 58% of its weight in S&P 500 companies | XAR State Street(R) SPDR(R) S&P(R) Aerospace & Defense ETF Holds 49 stocks in defense, 35% of its weight in S&P 500 companies | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Themes | State Street |
| Theme | Defense | Defense |
| In the S&P 500 | 58.4% | 34.9% |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 97.6% | 97.9% |
| In the Nasdaq-100 | 5.1% | 3.1% |
| Holdings | 84 | 49 |
| Top ten, share of the fund | 58.8% | 30.8% |
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.35% |
| Fee for the differing part | 0.36% | 0.36% |
| Total return, 1 year | +0.6% | +6.0% |
| vs the S&P 500 | −16.0 pts | −10.6 pts |
| vs the Nasdaq-100 | −21.2 pts | −15.8 pts |
| Below its high | −14.4% | −19.2% |
| Net assets | $95m | $6.1bn |
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.
XAR in plain words
By weight, 35% of XAR'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 31% of the fund across 49 positions, as published by its issuer for Sep 18, 2026. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026 the fund returned +6.0% with distributions reinvested against +16.6% for the S&P 500, so a holder was behind by 10.6 pts. It sits 19.2% below its all-time high of Aug 14, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Do NATO and XAR hold the same stocks?
- By their latest filings, 39% 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 XAR?
- NATO has 58% of its weight in S&P 500 names and XAR has 35%, so XAR differs more from the index.
- Which is cheaper, NATO or XAR?
- NATO charges 0.35% a year and XAR charges 0.35%, 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 XAR, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/nato-vs-xar Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.