8.3 in Large Blend
U.S. News evaluated 544 Large Blend Funds. Our list highlights the top-rated funds for long-term investors based on the ratings of leading fund industry researchers.
| Scorecard | |
|---|---|
| Morningstar | 4 / 5 Stars |
| Lipper | 4 5 4 5 4 |
| Zacks Investment Research | 3 (Hold) |
| Standard & Poor's | 5 / 5 Stars |
| TheStreet.com | A- (Buy) |
Fund Overview
The Vanguard Total Stock Market Index fund can be a one-stop shop for investors looking for a domestic stock fund that invests broadly across sectors and capitalizations.
As of April 04, 2012, the fund has assets totaling $190.80 billion. Its portfolio consists of common domestic stocks and tracks the MSCI U.S. Broad Market Index.
For the past several years, the fund has beaten the S&P 500, owing in part to its broader mix of small-cap stocks, which have outperformed large caps. However, the fund still performs similarly to the large-cap indexes because it invests heavily in stocks like ExxonMobil, Johnson & Johnson, and Apple. The fund has returned 7.21 percent over the past year and 24.39 percent over the past three years.
Since 2005, the fund has tracked the MSCI U.S. Broad Market Index, which holds nearly all publicly traded stocks. The fund has returned 2.40 percent over the past five years and 4.92 percent over the past decade.
| Trailing Returns | Updated 03.31.2012 |
|---|---|
| Year to date | 12.9% |
| 1 Year | 7.2% |
| 3 Years (Annualized) | 24.4% |
| 5 Years (Annualized) | 2.4% |
| 10 Years (Annualized) | 4.9% |
Investment Strategy
The fund includes a diverse basket of stocks because it tracks the MSCI U.S. Broad Market Index, which represents 99.5 percent or more of the total market capitalization of U.S. common stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. The fund invests in small, midsize, and micro-cap stocks from all industries and all sectors. Its management models the fund's industry weighting and market capitalization on the index.
Role in Portfolio
Morningstar calls the fund a core player in a portfolio, saying, "This fund's low costs, broad sector and market-cap diversification, and tax efficiency are tough to beat."
Fund Opinion
In the March 2010 edition of The Independent Adviser for Vanguard Investors, Dan Wiener says, "70% to 80% of this fund's performance is dictated by the 500 largest in its portfolio. These stocks are the same ones in the S&P 500."
2010-06-02
The fund's Value Line Overall Rank, a measure of risk-adjusted performance and relative growth in fund returns, is 2 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the best and 5 the worst.
Value Line 2012-03-09
Management
Gerard O'Reilly has assisted former manager Gus Sauter, Vanguard's chief investment officer, since 1994. O'Reilly became lead manager of the fund in 2005, but he has been managing portfolios at Vanguard since 1992.
In the annual Lipper/Barron's Fund Families Survey for 2009, Vanguard ranks 40th out of 61 fund families surveyed.
2010-02-17
Morningstar gives this fund a stewardship rating of B on a scale of A to F.
Morningstar 2010-02-17
Performance
The fund has returned 7.21 percent over the past year, 24.39 percent over the past three years, 2.40 percent over the past five years, and 4.92 percent over the past decade.
Hypothetical Growth of $10,000
Updated 03.31.2012
The fund's Value Line Growth Persistence rank, which awards funds that consistently outperform their broad universes, is 2 for one year, 3 for five years, and 4 for 10 years. Scores are on a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 being the best and 5 the worst.
Value Line 2012-03-09
Holdings
The fund offers a diversified portfolio of stocks, which together reflect the full index in terms of several characteristics, including industry weightings, market capitalization, and financial metrics like price-earnings ratio and dividend yield.
Asset Allocation
| % Long | % Net | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash | 0.43 | 0.43 |
| Stocks | 99.02 | 99.02 |
| Bonds | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Other | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Foreign Bonds | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Foreign Stocks | 0.55 | 0.55 |
| Convertible | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Preferred | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Updated 12.31.2011
Top Holdings
Performance as of 03.31.2012
Portfolio as of 12.31.2011
| Ticker | YTD Return % | % Net Assets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exxon Mobil Corporation | XOM | 3.28 | 2.95 |
| Apple, Inc. | AAPL | 52.75 | 2.68 |
| International Business Machines Corp | IBM | 14.32 | 1.57 |
| Chevron Corp | CVX | 2.55 | 1.52 |
| Microsoft Corporation | MSFT | 25.15 | 1.4 |
In the March 2010 edition of The Independent Adviser for Vanguard Investors, Dan Wiener says, "70% to 80% of this fund's performance is dictated by the 500 largest in its portfolio. These stocks are the same ones in the S&P 500."
2010-06-02
Fees
Vanguard Total Stock Market has an expense ratio of 0.17 percent.
Risk
The fund risks lagging its peers if small-cap stocks do not perform as well as large-cap stocks. There is also index sampling risk if the securities selected for the fund do not perform similarly to the index. Historically, mid- and small-cap stocks, which the fund holds, have been more volatile than large-cap stocks.
The fund's Value Line Risk Rank, a measure of volatility, is 3 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the least volatile and 5 the most.
Value Line 2012-03-09
