ETFs For The iPad 3

Those not living in a cave knows that tech juggernaut Apple AAPL is unveiling a new product on March 7 and chances are it's going to be the iPad 3, the next generation of the wildly popular tablet device. Apple has sold 55 million iPads and the product has accounted for at least $34.5 billion in revenue for the California-based company. As we reported yesterday, the new iPad is expected to feature a high-definition display, an upgraded processor, and run on 4G networks. It may also be more expensive than its predecessors. There's likely to be plenty of innuendo and rumor regarding the new iPad over the next few days, but cast the rumors aside and focus on these ETFs that could benefit from the latest dominant Apple product. iShares Dow Jones U.S. Technology Sector Index Fund IYW It is often thought that among the well-known ETFs with decent liquidity, either the PowerShares QQQ QQQ or the Technology Select Sector SPDR XLK feature the largest allocations to Apple. Not bad guesses, but they're both wrong. The iShares Dow Jones U.S. Technology Sector Index Fund features an almost 20% allocation to Apple. That's a large weight to just one stock under any circumstances, but especially when considering IYW holds nearly 160 issues. IYW is trading at 11-year highs, but like the Nasdaq, that's still well below its 12-year high. Believe it or not, not long after IYW debuted in 2000, it surged over $135. The iPad 3 could help, but we're not convinced the ETF is going back to the $130 area just because of one new Apple product. iShares S&P Global Technology Index Fund IXN The iShares S&P Global Technology Index Fund is one of the better case studies in just how important Apple has become to the U.S. equity market. No one really discusses the ETF in those terms though. Two years ago, Apple represented 7.7% of IXN's weight. Today, that weight has jumped to over 15.3%. Taiwan Semiconductor TSM, supplies Apple with the A6 processor chips, while Samsung supplied the A4 and A5 chips. Both are in IXN's top-10 holdings, so there's a little more to the ETF's Apple story. Global X NASDAQ China Technology ETF QQQC If there is anything that could tarnish Apple's reputation beyond its egregious hoarding of cash that does nothing for investors, it is the controversy surrounding the labor practices at Foxconn, the Chinese company that actually puts the iPad together. Should one be looking to invest in Foxconn, the stock is the tenth-largest holding in the Global X NASDAQ China Technology ETF. Beyond the controversy, there are legitimate reasons to consider QQQC and its rival, the Guggenheim China Technology ETF CQQQ. SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF XSD The SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF doesn't hold Apple. What the ETF does hold is Apple suppliers. A fair amount of them in fact, making the ETF an interesting backdoor to iPad 3 mania. First Trust NASDAQ-100-Tech Index Fund QTEC Siri is believed to be a foregone conclusion on the iPad 3 and QTEC is just one of a few ETFs that can be considered Siri plays. Siri, can you make QTEC keep going up this year?