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23 important things you should know about Vanguard VFIAX mutual fund
Updated: July 12, 2021
100
Bull Case
- High net assets
- 3-year return above the benchmark
- 5-year return above the benchmark
- 10-year return above the benchmark
- 15-year return above the benchmark
- Low expense ratio
- No sales load or distribution fees
Bear Case
- No Bear case arguments for now!
Before we start: if you’re looking for VFIAX “stock” price, you can quickly find it out by visiting Finny and typing "VFIAX quote". If you’re looking for a quick scoop on VFIAX "stock" (price chart, key stats, buy or sell analysis and holdings), go to Finny and look for "VFIAX". You’ll get all this info in one place.
Are you looking to buy or sell VFIAX? Or perhaps you’re looking for VFIAX fact sheet, and learn about its alternatives? If so, you came to the right place.
In this VFIAX mutual fund review, we’ll address key questions our readers have been asking us about this fund, above and beyond what you can find in its prospectus, and on Morningstar or Yahoo Finance.
Here is what you’ll be able to find in this review:
- Fact Sheet: VFIAX performance, returns, expense ratio, holdings and dividend yield;
- Analysis: VFIAX buy or sell; the pros and cons of investing in VFIAX mutual fund;
- Alternatives: other ETFs and mutual funds you should consider as alternatives to VFIAX.
And here is the list of questions we’ll answer:
- Describe Vanguard Index Funds: Vanguard 500 Index Fund; Admiral Shares (VFIAX).
- What are VFIAX holdings?
- What is VFIAX performance? What are VFIAX historical returns?
- How many up and down years did VFIAX have historically?
- What is VFIAX dividend yield?
- What is VFIAX minimum initial investment amount?
- What is VFIAX expense ratio?
- Does VFIAX have any sales loads or 12b-1 distribution expenses?
- What is VFIAX tax efficiency (tax-cost ratio)?
- What is VFIAX beta? How would you assess VFIAX risk?
- What is VFIAX Sharpe ratio?
- What is VFIAX Finny Score? VFIAX buy or sell?
- What are the pros of investing in VFIAX? What are VFIAX buy reasons?
- What are the cons of investing in VFIAX? What are VFIAX sell reasons?
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs IVV.
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VUG.
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs SPY.
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VOO.
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VOOG.
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VTI.
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs DODGX.
- Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs FNILX.
So let’s start. Scroll down to the question that interests you the most.
Fact Sheet
1. Describe Vanguard Index Funds: Vanguard 500 Index Fund; Admiral Shares (VFIAX).
The Fund seeks to track the performance of its benchmark index, the S&P 500. The Fund employs an indexing investment approach. The Fund attempts to replicate the target index by investing all of its assets in the stocks that make up the Index with the same approximate weightings as the Index.
2. What are VFIAX top holdings?
VFIAX has 506 stock holdings and 0 bond holdings.
The top 10 holdings represent 27.80% of total assets. Here are the top holdings:
| Name | Symbol | % Assets |
|---|---|---|
| Apple Inc | AAPL | 6.65% |
| Microsoft Corp | MSFT | 5.68% |
| Amazon.com Inc | AMZN | 4.79% |
| Facebook Inc A | FB | 2.25% |
| Alphabet Inc A | GOOGL | 1.57% |
| Alphabet Inc Class C | GOOG | 1.54% |
| Berkshire Hathaway Inc Class B | BRK.B | 1.48% |
| Johnson & Johnson | JNJ | 1.40% |
| Procter & Gamble Co | PG | 1.24% |
| Visa Inc Class A | V | 1.20% |
3. What is VFIAX performance? What are VFIAX historical returns?
VFIAX has generated the following returns:
- 1-month return is 3.54%;
- 3-month return is 8.66%;
- 1-year return is 8.66%;
- 3-year return is 19.03%;
- 5-year return is 17.86%;
- 10-year return is 14.79%;
- 15-year return is 10.81%.
4. How many up and down years did VFIAX have historically?
In the last 10 years, VFIAX had 9 up years and 1 down year.
5. What is VFIAX dividend yield?
VFIAX yield is 1.33%.
6. What is VFIAX minimum initial investment amount?
VFIAX minimum initial investment amount is $10.00K.
7. What is VFIAX expense ratio?
VFIAX expense ratio is 0.04%. The expense ratio of a fund is the total percentage of fund assets used for administrative, management, and all other expenses.
8. Does VFIAX have any sales loads or 12b-1 distribution expenses?
VFIAX 12b-1 distribution fee is 0. VFIAX front-end sales load is 0. VFIAX back-end sales load is 0.
9. What is VFIAX tax efficiency (tax-cost ratio)?
- 1-year ax cost ratio is 0.36%;
- 3-year ax cost ratio is 0.44%.
11. What is VFIAX Sharpe ratio?
- 3-year Sharpe ratio is 0.95;
- 5-year Sharpe ratio is 1.08;
- 10-year Sharpe ratio is 1.04;
- 15-year Sharpe ratio is 0.68.
Analysis
12. What is Finny Score? buy or sell?
Finny Score is 100. Our quantitative analysis shows 7 reasons to buy and 0 reasons to sell it, resulting in the Finny Score of 100.
13. What are the pros of investing in VFIAX? What are VFIAX buy reasons?
The following are VFIAX strengths from our perspective:
- VFIAX net assets are $410.09 billion. This fund is a popular choice with retail and institutional investors.
- VFIAX 3-year return is 19.03%, which is in line with the 3-year return of the benchmark index (S&P 500 TR USD), 19.06%.
- VFIAX 5-year return is 17.86%, which is in line with the 5-year return of the benchmark index (S&P 500 TR USD), 17.9%.
- VFIAX 10-year return is 14.79%, which is in line with the 10-year return of the benchmark index (S&P 500 TR USD), 14.82%.
- VFIAX 15-year return is 10.81%, which is in line with the 15-year return of the benchmark index (S&P 500 TR USD), 10.82%.
- VFIAX expense ratio is 0.04%, which is considered low. Nice job picking a low-cost fund.
- Good news: this fund does not have 12b1, front-end or back-end sales fees.
14. What are the cons of investing in VFIAX? What are VFIAX negatives?
There are no visible red flags.
Alternatives
15. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs IVV.
VFIAX is a mutual fund, whereas IVV is an ETF. VFIAX has a higher 5-year return than IVV (17.86% vs 17.65%). VFIAX has a higher expense ratio than IVV (0.04% vs 0.03%). Below is the comparison between VFIAX and IVV.
| VFIAX | IVV | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | Equity: U.S. - Large Cap |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $286.99B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0.03% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | passive (index-based) |
| Underlying Index | N/A | S&P 500 |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 17.25% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 40.68% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | 18.33% |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | 17.65% |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | 14.78% |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 1.35% |
IVV profile: The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&P 500 Index. Uses a replication strategy to try to track the Index, which includes approximately 77% of the market capitalization of all publicly traded US equity securities.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs IVV comparison details.
16. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VUG.
VFIAX is a mutual fund, whereas VUG is an ETF. VFIAX has a lower 5-year return than VUG (17.86% vs 23.07%). VFIAX and VUG have the same expense ratio (0.04%). Below is the comparison between VFIAX and VUG.
| VFIAX | VUG | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | Equity: U.S. - Large Cap Growth |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $78.97B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0.04% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | passive (index-based) |
| Underlying Index | N/A | CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 16.01% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 39.38% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | 25.15% |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | 23.07% |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | 17.43% |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 0.57% |
VUG profile: The Fund seeks to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of large-capitalization growth stocks. The Fund employs a "passive management"--or indexing--investment approach designed to track the performance of the MSCI US Prime Market Growth Index.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs VUG comparison details.
17. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs SPY.
VFIAX is a mutual fund, whereas SPY is an ETF. VFIAX has a higher 5-year return than SPY (17.86% vs 17.56%). VFIAX has a lower expense ratio than SPY (0.04% vs 0.09%). Below is the comparison between VFIAX and SPY.
| VFIAX | SPY | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | Equity: U.S. - Large Cap |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $374.03B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0.09% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | passive (index-based) |
| Underlying Index | N/A | S&P 500 |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 17.26% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 40.61% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | 18.24% |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | 17.56% |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | 14.7% |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 1.33% |
SPY profile: The Trust seeks investment results that, before expenses, generally correspond to the price and yield performance of the component common stocks of the S&P 500 Index.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs SPY comparison details.
18. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VOO.
VFIAX is a mutual fund, whereas VOO is an ETF. VFIAX has a higher 5-year return than VOO (17.86% vs 17.65%). VFIAX has a higher expense ratio than VOO (0.04% vs 0.03%). Below is the comparison between VFIAX and VOO.
| VFIAX | VOO | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | Equity: U.S. - Large Cap |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $232.77B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0.03% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | passive (index-based) |
| Underlying Index | N/A | S&P 500 |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 17.29% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 40.71% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | 18.34% |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | 17.65% |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | 14.78% |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 1.4% |
VOO profile: The Fund seeks to track the performance of its benchmark index, the S&P 500. The Fund employs an indexing investment approach. The Fund attempts to replicate the target index by investing all of its assets in the stocks that make up the Index with the same approximate weightings as the Index.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs VOO comparison details.
19. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VOOG.
VFIAX is a mutual fund, whereas VOOG is an ETF. VFIAX has a lower 5-year return than VOOG (17.86% vs 21.82%). VFIAX has a lower expense ratio than VOOG (0.04% vs 0.1%). Below is the comparison between VFIAX and VOOG.
| VFIAX | VOOG | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | Equity: U.S. - Large Cap Growth |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $6.00B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0.1% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | passive (index-based) |
| Underlying Index | N/A | S&P 500 Growth Index |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 17.37% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 39.53% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | 22.9% |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | 21.82% |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | 17.17% |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 0.78% |
VOOG profile: The Fund seeks to track the performance of benchmark index that measures the investment return of large-capitalization growth stocks in the United States. The Fund employs a "passive management" or indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the S&P 500 Growth Index.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs VOOG comparison details.
20. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs VTI.
VFIAX is a mutual fund, whereas VTI is an ETF. VFIAX has a higher 5-year return than VTI (17.86% vs 17.85%). VFIAX has a higher expense ratio than VTI (0.04% vs 0.03%). Below is the comparison between VFIAX and VTI.
| VFIAX | VTI | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | Equity: U.S. - Total Market |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $252.83B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0.03% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | passive (index-based) |
| Underlying Index | N/A | CRSP US Total Market Index |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 16.79% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 43.91% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | 18.25% |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | 17.85% |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | 14.63% |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 1.3% |
VTI profile: The Fund seeks to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of the overall stock market. The Fund employs an indexing investment approach to track the performance of the CRSP US Total Market Index. The Fund invests by holding a collection of securities that approximates the Index.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs VTI comparison details.
21. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs DODGX.
Both VFIAX and DODGX are mutual funds. VFIAX has a higher 5-year return than DODGX (17.86% vs 17.59%). VFIAX has a lower expense ratio than DODGX (0.04% vs 0.52%). Below is the comparison between VFIAX and DODGX.
| VFIAX | DODGX | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | U.S. Equity: Large Value |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $88.99B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0.52% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | active |
| Underlying Index | N/A | N/A |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 27.33% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 8.65% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | 16.01% |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | 17.59% |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | 13.84% |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 1.39% |
DODGX profile: The Fund seeks long-term growth of principal and income. A secondary objective is to achieve a reasonable current income.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs DODGX comparison details.
22. Compare and contrast: VFIAX vs FNILX.
Both VFIAX and FNILX are mutual funds. Below is the comparison between VFIAX and FNILX.
| VFIAX | FNILX | |
|---|---|---|
| Segment | U.S. Equity: Large Blend | |
| Net Assets | $410.09B | $4.24B |
| Expense Ratio | 0.04% | 0% |
| Management Style | passive (index-based) | N/A |
| Underlying Index | N/A | N/A |
| YTD Return | 16.73% | 15.84% |
| 1-Year Return | 8.66% | 8.87% |
| 3-Year Return | 19.03% | N/A |
| 5-Year Return | 17.86% | N/A |
| 10-Year Return | 14.79% | N/A |
| Dividend Yield | 1.33% | 1.05% |
FNILX profile: The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond to the total return of stocks of large-capitalization US companies. It invests in common stocks of large capitalization companies included in the Fidelity US Large Cap Index, designed to reflect the performance of US large capitalization stocks.
For further information, check out VFIAX vs FNILX comparison details.