VFIAX - Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares
| Previous Close | 288.76 |
| YTD Return | 27.61% |
| Expense Ratio (net) | 0.04% |
| Category | Large Blend |
| Last Cap Gain | 0.00 |
| Morningstar Rating | ★★★★★ |
| Morningstar Risk Rating | Average |
| Sustainability Rating |
| Net Assets | 520.28B |
| Beta (3Y Monthly) | 1.00 |
| Yield | 1.87% |
| 5y Average Return | N/A |
| Holdings Turnover | 4.00% |
| Last Dividend | 0.03 |
| Average for Category | N/A |
| Inception Date | Nov 13, 2000 |
- Kiplinger
2019 Stock Market Holidays and Bond Market Holidays
Is the market open today? Here's a look at what holidays the stock markets and bond markets take off in 2019.
- Kiplinger
Is the Stock Market Open on Black Friday After Thanksgiving?
The stock market is open on the Friday following Thanksgiving, but post-holiday trading will be cut a little short.
- MarketWatch
Choosing an HSA can save you money now and make you even more later
Forget your preconceived notions about health savings accounts and figure out whether an HSA might improve your finances.
- Kiplinger
Is the Stock Market Open on Veterans Day?
Despite being a federal holiday, the stock market is open on Veterans Day during regular trading hours.
- Kiplinger
Stock Market Trading Hours: What Time Is the Stock Market Open on Veterans Day?
Regular trading hours are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, but the major U.S. stock exchanges close early on certain days ahead of or just after market holidays.
- InvestorPlace
Take Buffett’s Advice: 5 Vanguard Funds to Buy
[Editor's note: This story was last updated in September 2019. It has since been updated and republished.]Vanguard should probably be thanking Warren Buffett.In Berkshire Hathaway's (NYSE:BRK.B) 2014 shareholders letter, Buffett mentioned Vanguard funds in a big way. Specifically, he recommended that the cash left to his wife be invested 10% in short-term government bonds and 90% in a very low-cost S&P 500 index fund. Not just any index fund mind you, but a Vanguard fund in particular.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips * 10 Hot Stocks Staging Huge Reversals Whether it be exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds, the Oracle of Omaha believes Vanguard funds are the way to go. With that in mind, I've put together a portfolio of two ETFs, two mutual funds and a fifth wildcard. The resulting portfolio should be appropriate for Buffett's wife -- or anyone else, for that matter. 1\. Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares (VFIAX)Source: Shutterstock Allocation: 50% of Portfolio 10-year performance: 13.2%The goal is to keep costs to a minimum while generally sticking to Buffett's hypothesis when it comes to his wife's investments.In that case, it makes more sense for the S&P 500 investment to be a mutual fund rather than an ETF (although Vanguard Funds do offer commission-free ETFs) to avoid paying commissions on the largest segment of the portfolio. The Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares (VFIAX) charge an annual expense ratio of just 0.04%.Your annual fees would amount to a mere $20 on a $50,000 portfolio. That's hard to beat, and Buffett knows it. The largest holdings in this fund include Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) and Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL, NASDAQ:GOOG). The minimum investment is $10,000. 2\. Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Fund Admiral Shares (VIMAX)Allocation: 20% of Portfolio 10-year performance: 13% The VFIAX covers the large-cap portion of the portfolio quite nicely. While Buffett might not be fond of mid-cap stocks being added to the mix, but evidence suggests mid-caps outperformed large-cap stocks over a four-year period between 2009 and 2013.In fact, John Hancock published a report in 2012 that cautions investors about underweighting mid-caps because of an assumption that a large-cap fund combined with a small-cap fund will do the job. That's simply not the case.Mid-cap stocks tend to provide an attractive combination of risk and reward. For this reason, I recommend the Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Fund Admiral Shares (VIMAX), which tracks the CRSP Mid Cap Index, an index composed of stocks that fall between the top 70%-85% of investable market capitalization. * 10 Hot Stocks Staging Huge Reversals They're big enough to survive an economic hit but small enough to still be growing. With an expense ratio of 0.05%, this entry on our list of Vanguard funds is giving you safety and performance in one. Top holdings include Moody's (NYSE:MCO) and Roper Technologies (NYSE: ROP). 3\. Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US Small-Cap ETF (VSS)Source: Shutterstock Allocation: 10% of Portfolio 3-year performance: 3.75% Although I just said mid-caps are a key part of any portfolio and tend to outperform small caps while utilizing less risk, there is always a place for small caps in your portfolio.That's especially true when the two previous picks from Vanguard Funds are almost 100% invested in the U.S. with virtually no international exposure. For this reason, a little bit of love outside America makes total sense.My recommendation is to go with the Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US Small-Cap ETF (VSS), a fund that tracks the performance of the FTSE Global Small Cap ex US Index, which consists of over 3,000 stocks in dozens of countries. Investing in both developed and emerging markets, the fund provides good exposure to some of the world's future stars at an annual expense ratio of just 0.12%.With such low fees, it's no wonder $6.37 billion is invested in this ETF. 4\. Vanguard Short-Term Government Bond ETF (VGSH)Source: Shutterstock Allocation: 10% of Portfolio 5-year performance: 1.26% Buffett recommends that 10% of his wife's portfolio go to short-term government bonds. Vanguard Funds has an ETF that does exactly that.The Vanguard Short-Term Government Bond ETF (VGSH) invests in investment-grade U.S. government bonds with average maturities between one and three years. The risk, on a scale of one to five, is one -- meaning this Vanguard ETF is for conservative investors looking for stable share prices. * 10 Hot Stocks Staging Huge Reversals And with an expense ratio of 0.07%, this ETF should give you peace of mind for your short-term needs. 5\. Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC)Source: Shutterstock Allocation: 10% of Portfolio 10-year performance: 12.26% On this final piece of the puzzle, I'm going defensive. The mutual fund version of the S&P 500 has less than 10% invested in consumer staples' stocks. I mean to remedy that by putting the final 10% in the Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC), a collection of 109 household names including Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) and Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO).Since its inception in 2004, VDC has had but one year of negative annual total returns, and that was in 2008 when it experienced a 17% decline -- 20 percentage points better than the S&P 500. When the you-know-what hits the fan, you'll be glad you own this particular low-cost ETF (with a 0.10% expense ratio) from Vanguard Funds.It seems the "keep it simple" rule holds true, and Warren Buffett is the No. 1 follower.As of this writing, Will Ashworth did not own a position in any of the aforementioned securities. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 10 Hot Stocks Staging Huge Reversals * 7 Under-The-Radar Growth Stocks That Could Benefit New Investors * 5 Excellent High-Yield Dividend Stocks to Buy The post Take Buffett's Advice: 5 Vanguard Funds to Buy appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- Kiplinger
5 Ways to Slice the SP 500
What started as a plain-vanilla fund concept now comes in many flavors.
- Kiplinger
Does the Stock Market Close Early the Friday Before Labor Day?
The stock market is closed on Labor Day, but investors do not get an early start to the holiday weekend the Friday before Labor Day.
- Zacks
Is Vanguard 500 Index Admiral (VFIAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Mutual Fund Report for VFIAX
- Yahoo Finance
Why interest rate cuts won't 'stop the bleeding'
Wall Street is expecting the Federal Reserve to cut interest rate three more times this year because of the U.S. China trade war and global economic slowdown. But Randy Frederick, Schwab Center for Financial Research's vice president of trading and derivatives, says it won't help boost the market.
- Kiplinger
Does the Stock Market Close Early for the Fourth of July?
The stocks market is closed on Independence Day, and trading ends early on July 3. The bond market also closes early ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.
- Morningstar
How to Become a Duration Detective
What contributed to Vanguard 500 Index's VFIAX 6.4% decline that month? Understanding a bond portfolio's performance drivers, on the other hand, is a much trickier undertaking. For starters, there's no widely available resource where you can look up monthly returns for individual bonds, like you can for stocks.
- Kiplinger
Does the Stock Market Close Early for Memorial Day?
The stock market is closed on Memorial Day, but it's open as usual the Friday before Memorial Day. However, the bond market closes early ahead of the holiday weekend.
- Kiplinger
8 Great Vanguard ETFs for a Low-Cost Core
Vanguard is the best-known pioneer of low-cost investing, including in the exchange-traded fund space. But it's hardly alone anymore, as providers such as Schwab, iShares and SPDR have all hacked away at each other with ever-shrinking fees.Still, don't sleep on Vanguard ETFs. While Vanguard isn't always No. 1 among the cheapest index funds in every class, it's still a low-cost leader in several areas, and it's typically one of the least expensive options no matter where you look.And inexpensive does matter. Let's say an investor puts $100,000 apiece in two different funds that both gain 8% annually, but Fund A charges 1% in fees while Fund B charges 0.5%. In 30 years, Fund A will be worth a respectable $744,335 ... but Fund B will be worth $865,775. That's roughly $120,000 lost not just in fees, but also lost opportunity cost from returns that could have been reinvested in the fund.Here are eight low-cost Vanguard ETFs that investors can use as part of a core portfolio. All of these index funds are among the least expensive in their class and offer wide exposure to their respective market areas. SEE ALSO: The 19 Best ETFs for a Prosperous 2019
- Market Realist
Is the World’s Largest Hedge Fund Right about Equity Valuations?
Dalio’s Bridgewater Warns about Peak Margins—Should You Care?(Continued from Prior Part)Margins on the verge of reversion In its research, Bridgewater Associates has argued that the current margins in the US corporate (DIA) (QQQ) sector aren’t
Market RealistWhy MS and GS Have a More Bearish View than Raymond James
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- Market Realist
BAML Survey: How Are Global Fund Managers Positioned?
BAML Survey: How Are Global Fund Managers Positioned?BAML survey’s key findings BAML (Bank of America Merrill Lynch) conducted a survey that polled 187 global investors with $547 billion in total assets under management between April 5 and April
- Market Realist
Gundlach’s Advice to Investors during 2020 Elections
Why Jeffrey Gundlach Thinks Now's a Good Selling Opportunity(Continued from Prior Part)Jeffrey Gundlach on next presidential elections Jeffrey Gundlach accurately predicted Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 elections. While talking about his
- Kiplinger
Is the Stock Market Closed for Good Friday and Easter?
The Friday before Easter is a stock market holiday. The bond market is also closed. How about Maundy Thursday?
- Market Realist
US Labor Market Strength Remains Intact despite Wage Slowdown
Job Market Rebounds in March, Markets Breathe Sigh of Relief(Continued from Prior Part)Wage growth slowed While job additions in March topped analysts’ estimate of 175,000, coming in at 196,000, wage growth came in below expectations. Economists
- Market Realist
Market Optimism about a US-China Trade Deal Could Be Short-Lived
Market Optimism about a US-China Trade Deal Could Be Short-LivedMarket optimism about a US-China trade deal Optimism about a trade deal between the United States and China has been a major driver of the year-to-date rally in the markets. The
- Market Realist
Markets Spooked as Yield Curve Inverts for First Time since 2007
Markets Spooked as Yield Curve Inverts for First Time since 2007Flattening of the yield curveA yield curve tracks the yields of Treasury securities maturing at different times. Usually, the yields of securities with higher durations, such as
- Morningstar
Morningstar Runs the Numbers
We take a numerical look through this week's Morningstar research. Plus, our most popular articles and videos for the week ended March 15.
- Zacks
3 of America's Best Fund Houses to Gain in 2019
Vanguard has been the best performer among the three big players in the mutual fund space.
