The team at a publicly traded bank's $3.8-trillion-AUM (as of June 30) asset management arm is rolling out what they're pitching as a "low-cost dividend ETF."

Today, Matthew Bartolini, head of SPDR Americas research at State Street Global Advisors (SSGA [profile]), unveils the launch of the SPDR Portfolio S&P Sector Neutral Dividend ETF (SPDG on the NYSE Arca, Inc.). The new fund is a series of the SPDR Series Trust.

SPDG's inception date was yesterday, and by the end of day it had $3.01 million in AUM. The new fund comes with an expense ratio of five basis points.

State Street Global Advisors Funds Management, Inc. (SSGA FM) will serve as administrator and investment advisor to SPDG, and S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC will serve as index provider. The new fund's PM team includes three senior portfolio managers in SSGA's global equity beta solutions group. Those PMs are: Juan Acevedo, vice president; Ted Janowsky, vice president; and Emiliano Rabinovich, managing director.

SPDG is designed to track the S&P Sector-Neutral High Yield Dividend Aristocrats Index. That index, in turn, is designed to mirror the sector weights of the S&P Composite 1500 Index and includes companies that have maintained or boosted their dividend payments each year for at least seven years.

Bartolini describes SPDG as "designed for income-oriented buy-and-hold investors seeking a low-cost, core dividend fund."

"SPDG is a compelling addition to our low-cost SPDR Portfolio ETF lineup as well as our broader dividend income suite," Bartolini states.

SPDG's other service providers will include: Ernst & Young LLP as independent accounting firm; Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP as counsel; State Street Bank and Trust Company as custodian, securities lending agent, sub-administrator, and transfer agent; and State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, Inc. (SSGA FD) as distributor. 

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