S&P Highlights Tech ETFs Post-Google/MMI Deal

Standard & Poor's Equity Research is out with a note on technology ETFs that investors may want to have a look following the announcement by Google GOOG of its $12.5 billion bid for Motorola Mobility MMI, the largest maker of mobile handsets that run on Google's Android operating platform. As S&P notes, this is one of the largest tech deals in history and the largest transaction announced over the past three years. That could shine the light on select tech ETFs with wireless sector exposure, but investors may want to focus their attention on more traditional ETFs rather than niche products. While the First Trust Nasdaq CEA Smartphone Index Fund FONE offers significant wireless exposure, S&P rates that ETF “underweight,” citing below average risk considerations and cost factors. S&P says FONE is lacking in terms of quality ranking and credit rating. S&P does have an overweight rating on the Vanguard Information Technology Index ETF VGT, which offers wireless exposure through top-10 holdings such as Apple AAPL and Qualcomm QCOM. VGT has an expense ratio of just 0.24%. The ratings firm also has an “overweight” rating on the Technology Select Sector SPDR XLK. With an expense ratio of 0.24%, XLK offers wireless exposure through top-10 holdings such as Apple, Google, Qualcomm and Dow components AT&T T and Verizon VZ. S&P says XLK has above average rankings in seven of its 10 primary ETF rankings metrics. As a small-cap play, S&P has an “overweight” rating on the Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth Index Fund VIOG. VIOG tracks almost 360 stocks with fees of 0.2%, but has just $17 million in assets under management.