Renowned investor Ken Griffin, founder of Citadel, made significant purchases of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the second quarter of 2024. Griffin’s hedge fund, Citadel, increased its stake in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust by approximately 56.7%, acquiring over 2 million additional shares. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, the largest ETF by assets under management (AUM), tracks the performance of the S&P 500 index.
Griffin’s second-largest purchase was the Invesco QQQ ETF, where Citadel bought 2.82 million shares, boosting its position by nearly 585%. The Invesco QQQ ETF tracks the Nasdaq-100 index, consisting of the 100 largest non-financial companies traded on the Nasdaq stock exchange.
While Griffin has not publicly commented on his investment decisions, it is speculated that his bullish outlook on the U.S. economy, particularly large-cap stocks, may have influenced his purchases. Both ETFs offer exposure to prominent artificial intelligence (AI) companies, with the majority of their top holdings being AI stocks.
The diversification provided by these ETFs, allowing exposure to a wide range of stocks, is likely another factor that attracted Griffin. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust holds positions in 503 stocks, while the Invesco QQQ ETF includes 101 stocks.
While Griffin’s choices may be appealing, it is important for individual investors to consider other options. The Vanguard 500 ETF, which also tracks the S&P 500, offers a lower expense ratio of 0.03% compared to the SPDR ETF’s 0.0945%. Similarly, the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF holds many of the same stocks as the Invesco QQQ ETF but with a lower expense ratio of 0.07% compared to 0.2%.