The Vanguard Consumer Discretionary Index Fund ETF Shares (VCR Quick QuoteVCR - Free Report) was launched on January 26, 2004, and is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Consumer Discretionary - Broad segment of the equity market.

While an excellent vehicle for long term investors, passively managed ETFs are a popular choice among institutional and retail investors due to their low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency.

Sector ETFs are also funds of convenience, offering many ways to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Consumer Discretionary - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 1, placing it in top 6%.

Index Details

The fund is sponsored by Vanguard. It has amassed assets over $5.87 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Consumer Discretionary - Broad segment of the equity market. VCR seeks to match the performance of the MSCI US Investable Market Consumer Discretionary 25/50 Index before fees and expenses.

The MSCI US Investable Market Consumer Discretionary 25/50 Index is designed to transition in and out of securities affected by pending updates to the consumer discretionary sector.

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 0.09%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 0.78%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Consumer Discretionary sector -- about 99.9% of the portfolio.

Looking at individual holdings, Amazon.com Inc (AMZN) accounts for about 21.11% of total assets, followed by Tesla Inc (TSLA) and Home Depot Inc/the (HD).

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about 5.58% so far this year and is up roughly 14.92% in the last one year (as of 03/18/2026). In that past 52-week period, it has traded between $290.42 and $412.7.

The ETF has a beta of 1.28 and standard deviation of 20.59% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 291 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Vanguard Consumer Discretionary Index Fund ETF Shares carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, VCR is a good option for those seeking exposure to the Consumer Discretionary ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (ITB) tracks Dow Jones U.S. Select Home Construction Index and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) tracks Consumer Discretionary Select Sector Index. iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF has $2.47 billion in assets, State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF has $22.32 billion. ITB has an expense ratio of 0.38%, and XLY charges 0.08%.

Bottom Line

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