VFIAX - Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares
| Previous Close | 278.67 |
| YTD Return | 18.33% |
| Expense Ratio (net) | 0.04% |
| Category | Large Blend |
| Last Cap Gain | 0.00 |
| Morningstar Rating | ★★★★★ |
| Morningstar Risk Rating | Average |
| Sustainability Rating |
| Net Assets | 486.39B |
| Beta (3Y Monthly) | 1.00 |
| Yield | 1.97% |
| 5y Average Return | N/A |
| Holdings Turnover | 4.00% |
| Last Dividend | 0.02 |
| Average for Category | N/A |
| Inception Date | Nov 13, 2000 |
- InvestorPlace
Take Buffett’s Advice: 5 Vanguard Funds to Buy
[Editor's note: This story was last updated in June 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 * 7 Stocks to Buy In a Flat Market 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: 13.41%The goal here 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: 13.50% 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. * 7 Best Tech Stocks to Buy Right Now 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: 3.98% 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 approximately 3,050 stocks in dozens of countries. Investing in both developed and emerging markets, the fund gives you 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 Vanguard Funds has $6.6 billion invested in this ETF. 4\. Vanguard Short-Term Government Bond ETF (VGSH)Source: Shutterstock Allocation: 10% of Portfolio 5-year performance: 1.28% 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. * The 8 Worst Stocks to Buy Before the Trade Turmoil Cools Off 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: 12.43% 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 * 4 Top American Penny Pot Stocks (Buy Before June 21) * 7 S&P 500 Dividend Stocks to Buy at Least Yielding 3% * 7 Stocks to Buy That Don't Care About Tariffs * 5 Healthcare Stocks to Pick Up From the Wreckage The post Take Buffett's Advice: 5 Vanguard Funds to Buy appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- Kiplinger
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- Kiplinger
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- Kiplinger
2019 Stock Market Holidays and Bond Market Holidays
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- Zacks
Is Vanguard 500 Index Admiral (VFIAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Mutual Fund Report for VFIAX
- Yahoo Finance
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- Kiplinger
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- MarketWatch
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- MarketWatch
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As shown in the accompanying graph, the S&P 500, including dividends, has been underperforming the so-called Total Market Index for over 18½ years. The total market in the U.S. consists of approximately 3,600 listed companies: large-cap, microcap, and everything in between. For this reason, the accompanying graph plots specific mutual funds that any investor could have easily purchased.
- 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?
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- 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
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- Market Realist
US Labor Market Strength Remains Intact despite Wage Slowdown
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- Market Realist
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- Market Realist
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- Morningstar
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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.
- Kiplinger
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- Kiplinger
The Power of Index Funds
Index funds benefit investors in other ways besides low fees. Trading expenses and tax consequences are minimal.
