Ray Dalio is putting more money behind the broad U.S. stock market, with Bridgewater Associates sharply increasing its positions in two of the biggest S&P 500 ETFs in the second quarter.
Bridgewater added 955,446 shares of State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and 323,202 shares of IVV, taking its holdings to 5.32 million and 3 million shares, respectively. The positions were worth about $3.97 billion and $2.25 billion at June 30, putting their combined value at roughly $6.22 billion.
The two ETFs together accounted for about 25.5% of Bridgewater’s $24.38 billion 13F portfolio, far exceeding its individual positions in Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA), Broadcom, Inc (NASDAQ:AVGO) and Amazon.com, Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN).
That raises a bigger question for investors: Is Dalio’s move a signal to buy the S&P 500, and if so, is SPY or IVV the better vehicle?
SPY vs. IVV: The Technical Differences
For long-term investors, the underlying exposure is nearly identical: both hold 504 stocks that track the S&P 500.
The biggest difference is cost. IVV charges 0.03%, versus 0.0945% for SPY.
At $100,000, that works out to approximately $30 per year in IVV fund expenses versus $94.50 for SPY.
SPY’s advantage is trading infrastructure. Its enormous size and deep liquidity make it particularly attractive to active traders and investors using options. IVV is generally the more compelling choice for a buy-and-hold investor because of its lower fee.
Besides that, performance differences are tiny. IVV’s 2026 NAV return so far was almost 13%, while SPY’s YTD gain was roughly 13.5%.
The S&P 500 Has Momentum — But it Isn’t Cheap
The technical picture remains constructive. SPY is trading at $773.42 at the time of publication on Monday, sitting 0.8% below its 52-week high. The RSI is 64.8, indicating strong momentum, according to Benzinga Pro data. Similarly, IVV’s RSI stands at 64.8, showing strong momentum.
But valuations offer a reason for caution. As a fund, SPY traded at a P/E of 22.54, well above the FactSet Segment Average P/E of 11.10, according to ETF Database.
IVV, despite being the cheaper among the two funds, had a P/E ratio of about 30.2.
Is Now a Good Time to Buy?
Dalio’s move is bullish for broad-market exposure, but investors shouldn’t treat a 13F as a real-time trading signal. The filing reflects holdings as of June 30 and does not reveal subsequent changes.
Still, the combination of rising market breadth, prices above key moving averages and continued earnings-driven strength argues against trying to call a top solely because the S&P 500 is at record levels.
For investors entering now, staggering purchases rather than making a single large allocation could reduce timing risk.
And between the two ETFs, the verdict is relatively straightforward: SPY for trading and options liquidity; IVV for long-term S&P 500 exposure and lower costs.
Dalio may own both. Most investors probably don’t need to.
Photo: T. Schneider / Shutterstock
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