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Should Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF (VIOG) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Launched on 09/09/2010, the Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF (VIOG - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Vanguard. It has amassed assets over $547.47 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Small Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

Why Small Cap Growth

Sitting at a market capitalization below $2 billion, small cap companies tend to be high-potential stocks compared to its large and mid cap counterparts, but come with higher risk.

Growth stocks have higher than average sales and earnings growth rates. While these are expected to grow faster than the broader market, they also have higher valuations. Additionally, growth stocks have a greater level of risk associated with them. They are likely to outperform value stocks in strong bull markets but over the longer-term, value stocks have delivered better returns than growth stocks in almost all markets.

Costs

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts if all other fundamentals are the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.15%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.23%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector--about 20.30% of the portfolio. Information Technology and Financials round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Applied Industrial Technologies Inc. (AIT - Free Report) accounts for about 1.15% of total assets, followed by Sps Commerce Inc. (SPSC - Free Report) and Comfort Systems Usa Inc. (FIX - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 6.31% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

VIOG seeks to match the performance of the S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth Index before fees and expenses. The S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth Index represents the growth companies of the S&P Small-Cap 600 Index.

The ETF has added roughly 7.36% so far this year and is up about 10.14% in the last one year (as of 07/04/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $87.19 and $106.12.

The ETF has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 22.99% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 339 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, VIOG is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (IWO - Free Report) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF (VBK - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF has $10.07 billion in assets, Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF has $14.10 billion. IWO has an expense ratio of 0.23% and VBK charges 0.07%.

Bottom-Line

Retail and institutional investors increasingly turn to passively managed ETFs because they offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; these kind of funds are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.

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