FOWF vs XAR

FOWFBPacer Solactive Whitney Future of Warfare ETF

XARAState Street SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF

In short

FOWF Most defense funds are built around the old primes. FOWF tracks the Solactive Whitney Future of Warfare Index, aimed at companies behind emerging defense technology across the U.S. and allied nations.

XAR Most defense funds hand the wheel to a handful of giant primes. XAR spreads its roughly 50 aerospace and defense names close to equal weight, so a mid cap parts maker carries about the same load as a household-name contractor.

Stated mandate

FOWF The Fund seeks capital appreciation by tracking companies that support critical emerging defense technologies in the U.S. and its allied nations.

XAR The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the total return performance of the S&P Aerospace & Defense Select Industry Index.

Why people hold it

• FOWF Points at the next war, not the last one: the index targets companies supporting critical emerging defense technologies, not a broad aerospace-and-defense basket.
• 0.49% a year, right at the middle of the defense-theme pack. No niche premium charged for the narrower mandate.
• The mandate covers the U.S. and its allied nations, so allied suppliers abroad are in scope, not just Pentagon contractors.
• Roughly 100 holdings spread the theme across many names instead of a few giants, and the fund distributes quarterly.

• XAR Modified equal weighting keeps any single prime contractor from running the show: large, mid and small cap names carry similar weight in the index.ssga.com
• Costs 0.35% a year, under the 0.50% typical of defense funds and a hair below ITA at 0.37%. Cheap for a targeted industry bet.
• Trading since 2011 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund, it is one of the most established and best-built ways to own the US aerospace and defense industry.
• About 50 US-listed aerospace and defense stocks pulled from the S&P Total Market Index, so suppliers and smaller specialists sit alongside the famous names.ssga.com

Worth knowing

• FOWF Launched in December 2024, so the track record is short and any read on its risk profile rests on limited history.
• Small and thinly traded next to category heavyweights like ITA and XAR, which can mean wider spreads on larger orders.
• A narrow theme tied to defense budgets and procurement cycles, so it can move very differently from a broad market fund.

• XAR One industry, tied to government budgets and order cycles. Expect bigger swings than a broad market fund.
• Equal weighting leans on smaller suppliers, which cuts both ways: less of the fund rides the megacap primes when those lead.ssga.com
• Distributions land quarterly, but this is an industry growth basket, not an income vehicle.

Full FOWF profile⁠

Full XAR profile⁠