FXG
Price
$63.30
Change
-$0.43 (-0.67%)
Updated
Jun 15, 04:59 PM (EDT)
Net Assets
229.62M
Intraday BUY SELL Signals
PBJ
Price
$48.13
Change
-$0.43 (-0.89%)
Updated
Jun 15, 01:40 PM (EDT)
Net Assets
91.8M
Intraday BUY SELL Signals
XLP
Price
$85.49
Change
-$0.33 (-0.38%)
Updated
Jun 15, 04:59 PM (EDT)
Net Assets
14.67B
Intraday BUY SELL Signals
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FXG or PBJ or XLP

Header iconFXG vs PBJ vs XLP Comparison
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Which ETF would AI Choose? First Trust Consumer Staples AlphaDEX® Fund (FXG) vs. Invesco Food & Beverage ETF (PBJ) vs. State Street® Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR® ETF (XLP)

Key Takeaways

  • XLP offers the lowest expense ratio at 0.08%, providing superior cost efficiency compared to FXG (0.63%) and PBJ (0.61%).
  • FXG and PBJ employ smart beta strategies—AlphaDEX and Intellidex, respectively—aiming for alpha generation through factor-based stock selection, while XLP is a traditional passive market-cap-weighted fund.
  • XLP holds 36–39 large-cap names with top 10 comprising ~63% of assets, contrasting FXG's 40 mid- and large-cap holdings (~40% in top 10) and PBJ's concentrated 31 holdings (~45–47% in top 10).
  • PBJ provides targeted exposure to food and beverage subsector, FXG tilts toward consumer staples alpha seekers, and XLP delivers broad staples diversification including retail and household products.
  • All three exhibit low volatility profiles typical of defensives, with XLP showing highest liquidity and stability due to its scale.
  • Recent market rotations into defensives amid economic uncertainty favor staples ETFs, highlighting their risk-adjusted positioning.

Introduction

FXG, PBJ, and XLP offer distinct approaches to the resilient consumer staples sector, making them timely for comparison amid ongoing economic uncertainty and sector rotations in 2026. XLP provides broad, low-cost exposure to S&P 500 consumer staples giants, while FXG uses a smart beta AlphaDEX methodology to select alpha-generating stocks from the Russell 1000 consumer staples universe. PBJ narrows focus to food and beverage companies via its Dynamic Intellidex index, employing multi-factor screening for growth and value. These ETFs compete in the defensive space but differ in strategy—passive benchmark tracking versus factor-tilted selection—and subsector emphasis, appealing to investors seeking stability, targeted themes, or enhanced returns potential without excessive risk.

First Trust Consumer Staples AlphaDEX® Fund (FXG) Overview

The First Trust Consumer Staples AlphaDEX® Fund (FXG) tracks the StrataQuant® Consumer Staples Index, a modified equal-dollar weighted benchmark that selects stocks from the Russell 1000® Index in the consumer staples sector using the proprietary AlphaDEX® selection system. This smart beta (factor-based investing approach) methodology aims to identify stocks with potential to generate positive alpha relative to traditional passive indices by screening on growth, value, and momentum factors, followed by tiered equal weighting.

FXG holds approximately 40 securities, with the top 10 accounting for about 40% of assets. Key holdings include CASY (Casey's General Stores, Inc., 4.62%), COKE (Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc., 4.37%), DAR (Darling Ingredients Inc., 4.24%), SEB (Seaboard Corporation, 4.11%), and INGR (Ingredion Incorporated, 4.05%). Sector allocation is dominated by consumer defensive at ~80%, with smaller exposures to healthcare (~8%), consumer cyclical (~8%), and industrials (~4%).

The expense ratio is 0.63%. As a non-diversified fund, it rebalances quarterly to maintain its factor tilts, emphasizing mid-cap opportunities alongside large caps for diversification depth.

Invesco Food & Beverage ETF (PBJ) Overview

The Invesco Food & Beverage ETF (PBJ) seeks to track the Dynamic Food & Beverage Intellidex℠ Index, which applies multi-factor criteria—including price momentum, earnings growth, quality, management efficiency, and value—to select and weight around 30 U.S. food and beverage companies involved in manufacturing, sales, distribution, or related technologies. This rules-based, tiered equal-weighted approach targets capital appreciation within the subsector.

PBJ maintains ~31 holdings, with top 10 comprising ~45% of assets. Leading positions feature ADM (Archer-Daniels-Midland Company, 5.51%), CTVA (Corteva, Inc., 5.23%), MDLZ (Mondelez International, Inc., 5.06%), KR (The Kroger Co., 4.91%), and PEP (PepsiCo, Inc., 4.70%). Allocation leans heavily consumer defensive (~86%), with minor consumer cyclical (~6%), basic materials (~5%), and industrials (~3%).

Expense ratio stands at 0.61%. The non-diversified fund rebalances quarterly (February, May, August, November), offering thematic purity in food-related staples.

State Street® Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR® ETF (XLP) Overview

The State Street® Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR® ETF (XLP) tracks the Consumer Staples Select Sector Index, a float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted benchmark representing the consumer staples portion of the S&P 500. It provides precise exposure to large-cap leaders in distribution & retail, beverages, food products, household products, tobacco, and personal care.

XLP holds 36 securities, with top 10 at ~63% of assets: WMT (Walmart Inc., 12.05%), COST (Costco Wholesale Corp., 9.44%), PG (Procter & Gamble Co., 7.17%), KO (Coca-Cola Co., 6.40%), and PM (Philip Morris International, 5.61%). Detailed sector breakdown: consumer staples distribution & retail (33.89%), beverages (19.64%), food products (16.76%), household products (15.89%), tobacco (10.22%), personal care products (3.61%).

With an ultra-low expense ratio of 0.08%, XLP is passively managed, highly liquid, and rebalanced with S&P 500 quarterly adjustments, prioritizing mega-cap stability.

Industry and Thematic Landscape

The consumer staples sector benefits from inelastic demand for essentials like food, beverages, and household goods, positioning it as a defensive haven amid macroeconomic volatility. In recent months of 2026, capital has rotated into staples ETFs amid uncertainty, with record inflows exceeding $3 billion in early-year weeks, driven by fiscal stimulus expectations, lower interest rates, and resilient consumer spending. Earnings trends show stability, with companies like agribusiness leaders reporting strength despite volume pressures, supported by pricing power and efficiency gains. Key drivers include e-commerce expansion in grocery, sustainability shifts, and AI-driven supply chain optimizations. Risks encompass input cost inflation (commodities, labor), regulatory scrutiny on pricing, and geopolitical supply disruptions, though the sector's low beta (market sensitivity) mitigates broader equity drawdowns.

Performance and Positioning Comparison

In recent weeks and months through mid-2026, XLP has demonstrated consistent trend stability with YTD gains around 9%, bolstered by its mega-cap weighting and retail giants amid rotation to defensives. PBJ has edged higher YTD (~9.4%), benefiting from food subsector momentum in agribusiness and beverages, though its concentration introduces slightly higher volatility. FXG trails YTD (~2–3%), reflecting mid-cap tilts and factor sensitivities that lagged in recent cycles, with deeper drawdowns during pullbacks. All exhibit low relative volatility (betas ~0.5), but XLP's scale yields superior liquidity and shallower drawdowns. Performance divergences stem from structures: XLP's cap-weighting favors stable giants, PBJ's thematic focus captures subsector upswings, and FXG's alpha-seeking may shine in momentum shifts but adds concentration risk.

AI Screener

Tickeron’s AI Screener is an AI-powered stock and ETF discovery tool that helps traders and investors filter the market based on technical patterns, fundamentals, trends, volatility, and AI-driven signals. Users can scan thousands of stocks and ETFs using customizable filters such as industry, market capitalization (total value of outstanding shares), technical indicators, price patterns, and performance metrics. The screener identifies trade ideas, trending stocks, breakout candidates, and market opportunities more efficiently than manual screening, empowering data-driven decisions across asset classes. Explore it today to streamline your ETF comparisons and uncover hidden gems.

Tickeron AI Verdict

Tickeron’s AI favors XLP with moderate conviction (65–75% probability edge) due to its unmatched cost efficiency, broad diversification across 36 holdings, massive liquidity, and stable momentum in recent market cycles. While FXG and PBJ offer smart beta tilts for potential alpha, their higher fees and concentration elevate risk-adjusted costs without consistent outperformance. XLP's structure aligns best for enduring defensive positioning.

Disclaimer

The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer.

Disclaimers and Limitations

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SUMMARIES
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FUNDAMENTALS
Fundamentals
XLP has more net assets: 14.7B vs. FXG (230M) and PBJ (91.8M). XLP has a higher annual dividend yield than PBJ and FXG: XLP (11.101) vs PBJ (8.726) and FXG (5.520). FXG was incepted earlier than PBJ and XLP: FXG (19 years) vs PBJ (21 years) and XLP (28 years). XLP (0.08) has a lower expense ratio than PBJ (0.61) and FXG (0.63). PBJ has a higher turnover FXG (81.00) and XLP (8.00) vs FXG (81.00) and XLP (8.00).
FXGPBJXLP
Gain YTD5.5208.72611.101
Net Assets230M91.8M14.7B
Total Expense Ratio0.630.610.08
Turnover81.00139.008.00
Yield2.881.572.62
Fund Existence19 years21 years28 years
TECHNICAL ANALYSIS
Technical Analysis
FXGPBJXLP
RSI
ODDS (%)
Bearish Trend 4 days ago
82%
N/A
N/A
Stochastic
ODDS (%)
Bearish Trend 4 days ago
82%
Bearish Trend 4 days ago
83%
Bearish Trend 4 days ago
69%
Momentum
ODDS (%)
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
75%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
76%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
81%
MACD
ODDS (%)
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
82%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
73%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
85%
TrendWeek
ODDS (%)
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
80%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
74%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
82%
TrendMonth
ODDS (%)
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
74%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
75%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
79%
Advances
ODDS (%)
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
80%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
77%
Bullish Trend 6 days ago
81%
Declines
ODDS (%)
Bearish Trend 14 days ago
77%
Bearish Trend 12 days ago
77%
Bearish Trend 14 days ago
76%
BollingerBands
ODDS (%)
Bearish Trend 4 days ago
86%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
80%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
81%
Aroon
ODDS (%)
Bearish Trend 4 days ago
71%
Bearish Trend 4 days ago
79%
Bullish Trend 4 days ago
73%
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FXG
Daily Signal:
Gain/Loss:
PBJ
Daily Signal:
Gain/Loss:
XLP
Daily Signal:
Gain/Loss:
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FXG and

Correlation & Price change

A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, FXG has been loosely correlated with GIS. These tickers have moved in lockstep 65% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if FXG jumps, then GIS could also see price increases.

1D
1W
1M
1Q
6M
1Y
5Y
Ticker /
NAME
Correlation
To FXG
1D Price
Change %
FXG100%
+0.47%
GIS - FXG
65%
Loosely correlated
+2.04%
CAG - FXG
64%
Loosely correlated
+2.16%
PEP - FXG
60%
Loosely correlated
+0.38%
STZ - FXG
60%
Loosely correlated
+3.77%
INGR - FXG
59%
Loosely correlated
+0.68%
More

PBJ and

Correlation & Price change

A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, PBJ has been loosely correlated with CCEP. These tickers have moved in lockstep 60% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if PBJ jumps, then CCEP could also see price increases.

1D
1W
1M
1Q
6M
1Y
5Y
Ticker /
NAME
Correlation
To PBJ
1D Price
Change %
PBJ100%
+0.62%
CCEP - PBJ
60%
Loosely correlated
+1.69%
IMKTA - PBJ
58%
Loosely correlated
-1.12%
CAG - PBJ
55%
Loosely correlated
+2.16%
MDLZ - PBJ
55%
Loosely correlated
-0.58%
MKC - PBJ
55%
Loosely correlated
-0.57%
More

XLP and

Correlation & Price change

A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, XLP has been closely correlated with CL. These tickers have moved in lockstep 73% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if XLP jumps, then CL could also see price increases.

1D
1W
1M
1Q
6M
1Y
5Y
Ticker /
NAME
Correlation
To XLP
1D Price
Change %
XLP100%
+0.65%
CL - XLP
73%
Closely correlated
+0.07%
PG - XLP
71%
Closely correlated
+0.86%
MDLZ - XLP
66%
Closely correlated
-0.58%
PEP - XLP
64%
Loosely correlated
+0.38%
CHD - XLP
64%
Loosely correlated
+0.49%
More