Compare/Updated Oct 26, 2026, refreshed every trading day
XLV vs VHT
State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF against Vanguard Health Care ETF: 4 years of returns, risk and today’s technical read, from Kavout’s own data.
VHT did slightly better over the 1,000-trading-day period: $1,000 invested on October 28, 2022 grew to $1,452, versus $1,442 for XLV, a 47.8% versus 44.2% total return. VHT also led over three years, while XLV performed better over the shorter one-, three-, and six-month, YTD, and one-year periods. The difference was modest: daily moves were 0.988 correlated, XLV beat VHT in 25 of the last 48 months, and the typical monthly gap was 0.30 points. VHT had slightly lower 12-month volatility at 15.7% versus XLV’s 16.3%, and a marginally smaller worst drawdown at -16.9% versus -17.1%. XLV has the lower expense ratio, 0.08% versus 0.09%, and larger fund assets.
- Price is above its 200-day average ($157); 50-day at $171.
- RSI 64, neutral. Supertrend says buy. ADX 23, so the trend is developing.
- Price is above its 200-day average ($294); 50-day at $320.
- RSI 62, neutral. Supertrend says buy. ADX 20, so the trend is weak.
Head to head
Which has returned more, XLV or VHT?
XLV beat VHT in 25 of the last 48 months; VHT won the other 23. The typical monthly gap was 0.30 points.
Total return by period
Which is riskier?
XLV: Sep 16, 2024 to May 14, 2025; VHT: Aug 30, 2024 to May 14, 2025
- 0.988
- correlation of daily moves, 4 years
- 0.99
- XLV move per 1% in VHT
- 0.988
- correlation, last 12 months
Month by month
Of the last 48 months. The typical gap was 0.30 points.
When did they diverge?
| Month | XLV | VHT | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 2026 | +6.5% | +5.2% | +1.24 pts |
| December 2023 | +4.3% | +5.5% | -1.13 pts |
| January 2023 | -1.8% | -0.8% | -1.04 pts |
| February 2025 | +1.4% | +0.4% | +1.00 pts |
Where the numbers come from. 1000 daily adjusted closes per fund from the Kavout market-data API, dividends included. Signals and indicators are Kavout’s own, refreshed nightly. Every figure is calculated from those adjusted closes.
Holdings and fees
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