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Is Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF (VYM) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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The Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF (VYM - Free Report) was launched on 11/10/2006, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy.

Investors who believe in market efficiency should consider market cap indexes, as they replicate market returns in a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way.

On the other hand, some investors who believe that it is possible to beat the market by superior stock selection opt to invest in another class of funds that track non-cap weighted strategies--popularly known as smart beta.

This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.

This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.

Fund Sponsor & Index

The fund is sponsored by Vanguard. It has amassed assets over $51.63 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Value. VYM, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the FTSE High Dividend Yield Index.

The FTSE High Dividend Yield Index which is consists of common stocks of companies that pay dividends that generally are higher than average.

Cost & Other Expenses

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.06%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.06%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector - about 21.80% of the portfolio. Consumer Staples and Healthcare round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Jpmorgan Chase & Co (JPM - Free Report) accounts for about 3.36% of total assets, followed by Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM - Free Report) and Broadcom Inc (AVGO - Free Report) .

Performance and Risk

So far this year, VYM has added about 1.82%, and is up about 6.43% in the last one year (as of 02/13/2024). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $98.71 and $113.74.

The fund has a beta of 0.85 and standard deviation of 14.42% for the trailing three-year period, which makes VYM a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 450 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Value segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD - Free Report) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV - Free Report) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Value Index. Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF has $52.96 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $108.42 billion. SCHD has an expense ratio of 0.06% and VTV charges 0.04%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Large Cap Value.

Bottom Line

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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