ETF SPY Average Dividend Yield

Dividend Yield of the SPY ETF

SPY is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust from State Street Global Advisors. Launched in 1993, it was the first U.S. exchange-traded fund and still tracks the S&P 500, an index of roughly 500 large-cap American companies. The calculator works out its dividend yield by dividing the annual dividend per share by the share price and multiplying by 100, following yield = (annual dividend per share ÷ share price) × 100 to return a percentage.

SPY holds dividend-paying blue chips, so its trailing yield usually lands near 1.1%. That stays modest because the fund leans toward growth. The expense ratio is 0.09%, a bit more than the newer VOO charges, and distributions go out quarterly. Enter the share price along with the sum of the last 12 months of distributions to gauge how much of your return comes from income.

Applications

The yield lets you measure SPY's income against bonds, savings or other ETFs. You can also estimate the annual cash flow on a position, or watch how a rising price squeezes the yield down. Income investors, and anyone reinvesting distributions, keep a close eye on this number.

FAQ

Is SPY's yield high? Not really. At around 1.1% it sits on the low side. People hold SPY for total return, the combination of price gains and dividends, rather than for income.

How often does SPY pay? Every quarter. Add up four quarters to get the annual figure you use here.

SPY or VOO? Both follow the S&P 500. VOO is cheaper at a 0.03% expense ratio, while SPY gives you deeper liquidity if you trade actively.