FQAL vs SPHQ: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Fidelity Quality Factor ETF

FQALANYSE Arca

Invesco S&P 500 Quality ETF

SPHQANYSE Arca

Overlap

29.5%by weight

Expense ratio

FQAL0.15%SPHQ0.15%

Avg volume · 30D

SPHQ 23.1×the volume

FQAL58.6KSPHQ1.35M

10Y return · a year

SPHQ +0.2pt

FQAL+14.4%SPHQ+14.6%

FQAL vs SPHQ Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+67.7%FQAL+72.5%SPHQ

Expense ratio: FQAL 0.15%; SPHQ 0.15%
Fund size: FQAL $1.41B; SPHQ $18.5B
1Y total return: FQAL +12.2%; SPHQ +13.2%, better
Yield (12M): FQAL 1.16%, better; SPHQ 1.05%
Holdings: FQAL 138; SPHQ 102
Avg volume (30D): FQAL 58.6K sh; SPHQ 1.35M sh, better
NAV per share: FQAL $83.39; SPHQ $82.92
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for FQAL, SPHQ, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	FQAL	SPHQ
Cost30% weight	A84	A84
Mission25% weight	A89Higher	B69
Risk15% weight	A70Higher	B62
Tradability15% weight	C54	A95Higher
Holdings10% weight	C52Higher	D38
Durability5% weight	A76	A91Higher

Rank among US Quality Index funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. FQAL and SPHQ are both graded against the same 26 US Quality Index funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Quality Index⁠

Category · 26 funds

See all 26 ›

FQAL ranks 3rd and SPHQ 4th of 26 funds in the US Quality Index Category.

Rank 1AJQUAJPMorgan U.S. Quality Factor ETFScore 81
Rank 1AQUALiShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETFScore 81
Rank 3AFQALFidelity Quality Factor ETFScore 75
Rank 4ASPHQInvesco S&P 500 Quality ETFScore 74
Rank 5AVFQYVanguard U.S. Quality Factor ETFScore 70

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

FQALAFidelity Quality Factor ETF

SPHQAInvesco S&P 500 Quality ETF

In short

FQAL Fidelity's own quality screen, boxed into an ETF: roughly 130 U.S. companies picked for profitability, steady cash flow and clean balance sheets, at 0.15% a year, well under the typical fee in the quality-factor group.

SPHQ Live since 2005, SPHQ is an elder statesman of quality investing: rank the S&P 500 on profitability, earnings quality and balance-sheet strength, hold the top 100, charge 0.15% net of a waiver through August 31, 2028.

Stated mandate

FQAL The fund prioritizes U.S. companies exhibiting higher profitability, stable cash flows, and strong balance sheets.

SPHQ The fund seeks exposure to the S&P 500 Quality Index and normally invests at least 90% of assets in common stocks included in that index.

Why people hold it

FQAL Costs 0.15% a year, roughly half the typical fee among quality-factor ETFs. That puts it in the cheapest tier of the group, alongside JQUA, VFQY and QUAL.
The rulebook is Fidelity's own: the Fidelity U.S. Quality Factor Index, tracked tightly. One of the closer index implementations in its peer group.
Live since 2016 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund, so this is a settled product rather than a launch still finding its footing.
The screen is explicit about what it wants: higher profitability, stable cash flows, strong balance sheets. No vague 'quality' hand-waving.

SPHQ 0.15% net of a waiver through August 31, 2028 (0.20% gross), below the median for quality factor funds and level with QUAL and FQAL at 0.15%.
The rules are published and mechanical: score the S&P 500 on return on equity, accruals ratio and financial leverage ratio, take the top 100, weight by quality score times market cap.spglobal.com
Universe discipline: candidates come only from the S&P 500, so every holding is an established large cap rather than a smaller name screened in from a broader pool.spglobal.com
A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, pays quarterly, and has run since 2005. It sits in the stronger tier of quality factor ETFs.

Worth knowing

FQAL Roughly 130 stocks, not the whole market. A narrower bench means individual names and sector tilts carry more weight than in a total-market fund.
Trading volume is light next to the category's biggest quality funds, which can show up as wider bid-ask spreads.
Distributions come quarterly, but the screen hunts profitability and balance-sheet strength, not yield.

SPHQ About 100 stocks, weighted by quality score times market cap, so the biggest high-scorers carry real weight. Narrower than owning the full S&P 500.spglobal.com
The index rebalances semiannually, so a company whose fundamentals slip mid-period stays in the portfolio until the next reshuffle.spglobal.com
Two peers undercut it on fee: JQUA at 0.12% and VFQY at 0.13%.

Full FQAL profile⁠

Full SPHQ profile⁠

FQAL vs SPHQ Holdings

How FQAL and SPHQ differ

Overlap by weight

29.5%

Shared holdings make up 69.0% of SPHQ and 31.5% of FQAL.

Level by level

Holdings42 in both29.5%
Sector11 Sectors81.0%
Asset classEquity100%
Countryby domicile99.6%

Sector

Sector weights in FQAL and SPHQ, widest gap first
Sector	More in FQALMore in SPHQ	FQAL	SPHQ
Industrials	SPHQ +7.9 points	9.1%	17.0%
Health Care	FQAL +6.1 points	9.8%	3.7%
Financials	SPHQ +5.0 points	11.9%	16.9%
Communication	FQAL +4.0 points	9.2%	5.2%
Consumer Staples	SPHQ +3.6 points	4.3%	7.9%
Consumer Discretionary	FQAL +2.9 points	8.4%	5.5%
Energy	FQAL +2.2 points	3.6%	1.4%
Utilities	FQAL +1.9 points	1.9%	0.0%
Real Estate	FQAL +1.9 points	1.9%	0.0%
Technology	SPHQ +1.6 points	37.9%	39.5%
Materials	SPHQ +1.0 points	2.0%	3.0%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in FQAL and SPHQ, widest gap first
Country	More in FQALMore in SPHQ	FQAL	SPHQ
United States	SPHQ +0.4 points	99.6%	100.0%
Switzerland	FQAL +0.4 points	0.4%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

FQAL38.9%
SPHQ43.5%

Securities held

FQAL135
SPHQ99

Asset class

FQAL: Equity
SPHQ: Equity

Holdings

Only in FQAL93
In both42
Only in SPHQ57

Only in FQAL

93 securities, 64.9% of FQAL by weight

NVIDIA Corp7.54%
Microsoft Corp5.95%
Alphabet Inc Class A3.81%
Broadcom Inc2.71%
Micron Technology Inc2.11%
Meta Platforms Inc Class A2.03%
Eli Lilly & Co1.86%
JPMorgan Chase & Co1.78%
Palantir Technologies Inc1.43%
Johnson & Johnson1.27%
Exxonmobil Holdings Corp1.22%
AbbVie Inc1.11%
Merck & Co Inc New0.89%
UnitedHealth Group Inc0.85%
Coca Cola Co0.80%
Cme Group Inc Class A0.79%
Chevron Corp0.78%
Home Depot Inc0.77%
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc0.77%
Philip Morris Intl Inc0.74%
Amgen Inc0.74%
Verisign Inc0.73%
Gilead Sciences Inc0.72%
Msci Inc0.70%
Caterpillar Inc0.64%
Mcdonalds Corp0.60%
East West Bancorp Inc0.60%
Union Pacific Corp0.58%
Kinsale Capital Group Inc0.57%
Mckesson Corp0.56%
Cullen Frost Bankers Inc0.56%
Marriott International Inc A0.54%
Popular Inc0.53%
Zions Bancorp0.53%
Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc0.53%
Axos Financial Inc0.52%
Hasbro Inc0.52%
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co0.50%
Lowes Cos Inc0.50%
Altria Group Inc0.48%
Fair Isaac Corp0.48%
Mettler-Toledo Intl Inc0.47%
Conocophillips0.45%
Yum Brands Inc0.45%
O'reilly Automotive Inc0.45%
Autozone Inc0.44%
Linde PLC0.43%
The Booking Holdings Inc0.43%
Paycom Software Inc0.43%
Vertiv Holdings Co0.42%

Only in SPHQ

57 securities, 31.0% of SPHQ by weight

Costco Wholesale Corp4.21%
Sandisk Corp2.62%
Texas Instruments Inc2.53%
Western Digital Corp2.25%
KLA Corp2.19%
Intuitive Surgical Inc1.57%
Accenture PLC1.32%
Lockheed Martin Corp1.22%
Johnson Controls International plc1.04%
Allstate Corp/The0.75%
eBay Inc0.62%
NetApp Inc0.58%
Rockwell Automation Inc0.54%
Ciena Corp0.49%
Autodesk Inc0.45%
Dexcom Inc0.44%
Expedia Group Inc0.35%
ResMed Inc0.35%
Cboe Global Markets Inc0.34%
Arch Capital Group Ltd0.34%
Hartford Insurance Group Inc/The0.34%
Workday Inc0.33%
Zoetis Inc0.32%
Old Dominion Freight Line Inc0.31%
ON Semiconductor Corp0.27%
International Flavors & Fragrances Inc0.26%
DuPont de Nemours Inc0.25%
Fortive Corp0.25%
Cincinnati Financial Corp0.25%
Dollar Tree Inc0.23%
T Rowe Price Group Inc0.22%
Expand Energy Corp0.21%
Broadridge Financial Solutions Inc0.21%
Steris PLC0.20%
Lennar Corp0.19%
PTC Inc0.19%
Best Buy Co Inc0.19%
JB Hunt Transport Services Inc0.18%
CH Robinson Worldwide Inc0.17%
Nordson Corp0.16%
Incyte Corp0.16%
Jacobs Solutions Inc0.16%
Ralph Lauren Corp0.15%
NVR Inc0.15%
F5 Inc0.14%
Deckers Outdoor Corp0.14%
Gartner Inc0.13%
Solventum Corp0.13%
GoDaddy Inc0.13%
Jack Henry & Associates Inc0.13%

Weight gaps

All 42 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in FQAL and SPHQ, widest gap first
Holding	More in FQALMore in SPHQ	FQAL	SPHQ
Mastercard Inc Class AMA	SPHQ +5.09 points	1.35%	6.44%
Visa Inc Class AV	SPHQ +4.75 points	1.55%	6.30%
Ge Vernova IncGEV	SPHQ +3.12 points	0.61%	3.73%
Netflix IncNFLX	SPHQ +2.75 points	0.48%	3.23%
Ge AerospaceGE	SPHQ +2.76 points	0.70%	3.46%
Lam Research CorpLRCX	SPHQ +2.52 points	0.95%	3.47%
Procter & Gamble CoPG	SPHQ +2.39 points	0.80%	3.19%
Cisco Systems IncCSCO	SPHQ +2.36 points	1.16%	3.52%
Apple IncAAPL	FQAL +1.64 points	7.57%	5.93%
Qualcomm IncQCOM	SPHQ +1.57 points	1.02%	2.59%
Newmont CorpNEM	SPHQ +1.46 points	0.28%	1.74%
Applied Materials IncAMAT	SPHQ +1.24 points	0.96%	2.20%
Applovin CorpAPP	SPHQ +1.14 points	0.20%	1.34%
Tjx Companies Inc NewTJX	SPHQ +0.89 points	0.54%	1.43%
Valero Energy CorpVLO	SPHQ +0.67 points	0.37%	1.04%
Progressive Corp OhioPGR	SPHQ +0.67 points	0.79%	1.46%
Automatic Data Processing IncADP	SPHQ +0.62 points	0.50%	1.12%
Parker Hannifin CorpPH	SPHQ +0.58 points	0.45%	1.03%
Fortinet IncFTNT	SPHQ +0.55 points	0.70%	1.25%
Seagate Techn Holdings PLCSTX	SPHQ +0.49 points	0.75%	1.24%
Trane Technologies PLCTT	SPHQ +0.46 points	0.42%	0.88%
Adobe IncADBE	SPHQ +0.44 points	0.76%	1.20%
3M CoMMM	SPHQ +0.42 points	0.44%	0.86%
Illinois Tool Works IncITW	SPHQ +0.37 points	0.44%	0.81%
Moodys CorpMCO	SPHQ +0.30 points	0.70%	1.00%
Airbnb Inc Class AABNB	SPHQ +0.28 points	0.50%	0.78%
Ross Stores IncROST	SPHQ +0.27 points	0.44%	0.71%
Colgate-Palmolive CoCL	SPHQ +0.25 points	0.42%	0.67%
Idexx Labs IncIDXX	SPHQ +0.21 points	0.40%	0.61%
Cintas CorpCTAS	SPHQ +0.21 points	0.48%	0.69%
Comfort Systems Usa IncFIX	SPHQ +0.17 points	0.31%	0.48%
Expeditors Intl of Wash IncEXPD	FQAL +0.14 points	0.43%	0.29%
Fastenal CoFAST	SPHQ +0.12 points	0.43%	0.55%
Williams-Sonoma IncWSM	FQAL +0.09 points	0.42%	0.33%
Ameriprise Financial IncAMP	SPHQ +0.08 points	0.57%	0.65%
Ww Grainger IncGWW	SPHQ +0.08 points	0.45%	0.53%
Apa CorpAPA	FQAL +0.08 points	0.26%	0.18%
Travelers Companies IncTRV	SPHQ +0.08 points	0.70%	0.78%
Kimberly Clark CorpKMB	SPHQ +0.05 points	0.30%	0.35%
Cf Industries Holdings IncCF	SPHQ +0.04 points	0.14%	0.18%
Chipotle Mexican Grill IncCMG	SPHQ +0.03 points	0.40%	0.43%
Tapestry IncTPR	Same weight	0.31%	0.31%

All 130 FQAL holdings⁠All 100 SPHQ holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

FQAL vs SPHQ Cost

Same expense ratio

$3,137

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

FQAL 0.15%
$3,137
SPHQ 0.15%
$3,137

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

FQAL 0.15%
SPHQ 0.15%

Year by year

Year	FQAL	SPHQ
10	$274	$274
20	$1,071	$1,071
30	$3,137	$3,137

Expense ratio

0.15%FQAL
0.15%SPHQ

FQAL0.15%SPHQ0.15%

0.12%0.60%

Middle half of US Quality Index funds
Median 0.39%

FQAL 3rd cheapest of 26 funds

SPHQ 3rd cheapest of 26 funds

FQAL vs SPHQ Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): FQAL 1.16%, better; SPHQ 1.05%
Payout (12M): FQAL $0.97; SPHQ $0.87
Last payment: FQAL $0.24; SPHQ $0.15
Ex-dividend: FQAL Sep 18, 2026; SPHQ Sep 21, 2026
Paid on: FQAL Sep 22, 2026; SPHQ Sep 25, 2026
Frequency: FQAL Quarterly; SPHQ Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

FQALQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll FQAL payments⁠

SPHQQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll SPHQ payments⁠

FQAL vs SPHQ Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

FQAL
SPHQ

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: FQAL 11.0%, betterSPHQ 12.5%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: FQAL 1.45, betterSPHQ 1.23
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: FQAL −25.5%SPHQ −25.1%, better
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: FQAL 0.95SPHQ 0.81; Market = 1

FQAL and SPHQ in the news

All news⁠

Category Review
Cash-flow quality returned 42% while QUAL returned 17%
Updated Sep 22, 2026FQALSPHQ
New ETFs
Jensen's first passive ETF charges 0.25% for a 10-year profit test
Oct 5, 2026SPHQ

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