I SPY a Broad ETF Comeback

WILLIAMSTOWN, MASS. (TheStreet) -- Improvement in the broader economy has attracted assets back into ETFs like the SPDR S&P 500(SPY Quote). According to data recently released by the National Stock Exchange(NSX Quote), broad-based traditional ETFs attracted large amounts of investor assets in July while nontraditional leveraged products hemorrhaged funds.

SPY, iShares Russell 2000(IWM Quote) and PowerShares QQQ(QQQQ Quote) were among the top asset gatherers in July, accumulating $3,015 million; $981 million; and $932 million respectively. These broad, market capitalization-based funds boast stakes in the largest companies in their respective underlying portfolios. SPY tracks the S&P 500, IWM tracks the Russell 2000 and QQQQ tracks the Nasdaq 100.

Top components in each of the funds will likely be recognizable to investors. The top five holdings in SPY are Exxon Mobil(XOM Quote), Microsoft(MSFT Quote), JPMorgan Chase(JPM Quote), Johnson & Johnson(JNJ Quote) and IBM(IBM Quote) (IBM). PowerShares' QQQQ also highlights large-cap funds like Apple(AAPL Quote), Qualcomm(QCOM Quote), Microsoft, Google(GOOG Quote) and Cisco Systems(CSCO Quote).

While SPY focuses on 500 value-weighted large-cap stocks and QQQQ focuses on 100 large non-financial stocks, IWM targets smaller capitalization. IWM has more than 2,000 components that consist of the smallest-cap components in the Russell 3000 index. The top five holdings in IWM are currently: Highwoods Properties(HIW Quote), Bally Technologies(BYI Quote), Medarex(MEDX Quote), Palm(PALM Quote) and Tupperware Brands(TUP Quote).

Year-to-date, all three of these funds have seen a net outflow in assets. While the numbers have rebounded strongly in July, year-to-date all three funds are in the red. Expect to see these numbers strengthen as confidence in the economy grows, the ETF industry expands and the crackdown on leveraged funds increases in intensity.

SPY, IWM and QQQQ are all core ETF positions that are appropriate for a broad range of long-term portfolio goals. All three funds include a wide range of companies that are indexed passively and operate in the most traditional sense. SPY was one of the first ETFs to hit the market in the '90s and offers a low-cost alternative to traditional mutual fund strategies.