It’s been a rough few weeks for the S&P 500 as well as other major American economic indicators. The S&P 500 hit its lowest level in four months on Tuesday, erasing its election gains. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index is struggling to a similar degree, down almost 6% in the past six months.
While most traders prefer bull markets, bear markets present unique price opportunities that long-term investors can take advantage of to build a more price-efficient portfolio. This dip in tech stock prices may be especially inviting for anyone looking to snatch up stocks making waves in the microchip and AI industries currently dominating the news cycle. These four major tech ETFs, trading near 50-day lows, could be worth considering for long-term portfolio goals.
Big Tech Weighs on XLK—Why Institutions Are Still Buying
[content-module:CompanyOverview|NYSEARCA:XLK]The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEARCA: XLK) is one of the largest American tech ETFs, investing in some of the largest technology companies in the S&P 500. Managed by State Street Global Advisors and holding more than $68 billion in assets, XLK is a top pick for investors looking for broad technology sector exposure.
The fund's largest holdings include Apple, Microsoft and NVIDIA, which make up more than 40% of its weight. Because of this weighting, the current dip in major tech shares has hit XLK especially hard. In March, shares traded at around $220 per share—nearly 10% below their 52-week high of $242 per share.
XLK holdings have an aggregate rating of Moderate Buy, with insider buying supporting analysts' confidence. In the last quarter, institutional investors have purchased more than $3.4 billion in XLK shares while selling only $679 million. Retail investors looking for a solid, broad tech market ETF to hold in the long term may see a bargain with XLK.
XSW ETF: A Diverse Software & Services Play Near 50-Day Lows
[content-module:CompanyOverview|NYSEARCA:XSW]For a fund that moves beyond Apple and Amazon.com, consider the SPDR S&P Software & Services ETF (NYSEARCA: XSW). This fund's underlying index represents the software and services segment of the S&P Total Market Index, encompassing sub-industries like application software, interactive home entertainment, IT consulting and other smaller service sectors.
Investors looking for IT-heavy funds that focus less on consumer tech may find XSW to be a valuable hold. The fund’s top holdings are D-Wave Quantum, Palantir Technologies and AppLovin, making up just 4% of its total assets. No individual stock held more than 1.25% weight in March 2025, making XSW an exceptionally diverse choice.
XSW is trading near its 50-day low price of $171 per share following the tech crash, with institutional investors purchasing $45 million in shares of the fund in Q4. While this fund is a lower capitalization choice, its wide selection of holdings offers instant diversification.
$27M in Institutional Buys—Is FINX a Bargain at This Level?
[content-module:CompanyOverview|NASDAQ:FINX]The Global X FinTech ETF (NASDAQ: FINX) is another tech ETF for investors looking to buy beyond blue chips. FINX offers diversified exposure to the fintech industry, with top holdings in Fiserv and PayPal that make up about 14.6% of the fund’s weighting.
This fund also includes comparatively more exposure to international tech picks, with 23% of FINX’s exposure held outside of the United States.
This ETF is the lowest-priced option on our list, trading near its 50-day low of $29 per share. Short interest trends on FINX are exceptionally positive, falling by more than 12% in the last month.
Institutional purchasing was also up in the last quarter, with more than $27 million bought in total.
SMH ETF: A Semiconductor Play Near 50-Day Lows
[content-module:CompanyOverview|NASDAQ:SMH]The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ: SMH) is a mid-size fund with 25 holdings. It offers a competitive entry point into the semiconductor industry.
Top holdings include NVIDIA, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and Broadcom, which make up about 39% of the fund’s weight.
Holdings in SMH have a Moderate Buy average consensus rating, indicating analyst optimism.
In early March, SMH is trading near a new 50-day low price of $223 per share. While short interest on this ETF rose 10% last month, investors looking to capitalize on the growth potential of the semiconductor sector may soon find a suitable entry point into this lower-cost ETF.
Where Should You Invest $1,000 Right Now?
Before you make your next trade, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis.
Our team has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and none of the big name stocks were on the list.
They believe these five stocks are the five best companies for investors to buy now...
