VanEck Semiconductor ETF Surges 64% in 2025 Without Apple
SMH is up 64% year to date and 111% over 12 months, yet holds zero Apple shares by structural design.
The VanEck Semiconductor ETF, trading under the ticker SMH, has delivered one of the most striking performances in the ETF universe this year, climbing 64.47% year to date through July 2 and more than doubling over the trailing 12 months with a 111.24% gain. Those numbers place it well ahead of broad-market benchmarks and most technology-focused funds — a remarkable run that raises an equally remarkable question: how does a top-performing tech ETF get there without owning a single share of Apple, one of the most widely held stocks in the world?
The answer lies in mandate, not judgment. SMH is a pure-play semiconductor fund, meaning its portfolio is constructed around companies that design, manufacture, or distribute chips. Apple, despite its enormous influence over the semiconductor supply chain and its in-house chip development, is classified as a consumer electronics and software company — not a semiconductor maker. The exclusion is therefore structural rather than a portfolio manager's tactical call against the stock.
Read more US Equity Indexes Climb as Tech Sector Leads Intraday Gains →
That distinction matters for investors trying to understand what they are actually buying. A fund that tracks semiconductors will concentrate its exposure in names like Nvidia, TSMC, ASML, and Broadcom — businesses whose revenue is directly tied to chip demand cycles, AI infrastructure buildout, and advanced node manufacturing. Apple, by contrast, derives its value from device sales, services, and ecosystem lock-in, even if its silicon ambitions are formidable. Owning SMH is a deliberate bet on the picks-and-shovels layer of the technology economy.
The 64% year-to-date surge also underscores how powerfully the artificial intelligence investment wave has translated into semiconductor revenue. Data center expansion, sovereign AI programs, and the arms race among hyperscalers for accelerated computing have all funneled capital toward the exact companies SMH holds. The fund's performance is less a story about what it doesn't own and more a story about the structural tailwind behind what it does own.
For investors benchmarking tech exposure, SMH's Apple-free construction is a useful reminder that sector ETFs can diverge sharply from broad technology indexes — and that in certain cycles, that divergence can work dramatically in the investor's favor. Continue reading at Yahoo.
