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Should Vanguard Extended Market ETF (VXF) Be on Your Investing Radar?

Launched on 12/27/2001, the Vanguard Extended Market ETF (VXF) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

The fund is sponsored by Vanguard. It has amassed assets over $13.90 billion, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Blend segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Blend

Compared to large and small cap companies, mid cap businesses tend to have higher growth prospects and are less volatile, respectively, with market capitalization between $2 billion and $10 billion. These types of companies, then, have a good balance of stability and growth potential.

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Blend ETFs are aptly named, since they tend to hold a mix of growth and value stocks, as well as show characteristics of both kinds of equities.

Costs

When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts in the long term if all other factors remain equal.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.06%, making it one of the cheaper products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.31%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Information Technology sector--about 19.10% of the portfolio. Industrials and Financials round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Uber Technologies Inc. (UBER) accounts for about 1.03% of total assets, followed by Blackstone Inc. (BX) and Palo Alto Networks Inc. (PANW).

Performance and Risk

VXF seeks to match the performance of the S&P Completion Index before fees and expenses. The S&P Completion Index contains all of the U.S. common stocks regularly traded on the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq over-the-counter market, except those stocks included in the S&P 500 Index.

The ETF has gained about 4.07% so far this year and is down about -3.56% in the last one year (as of 06/01/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $126.36 and $155.13.

The ETF has a beta of 1.18 and standard deviation of 24.38% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 3655 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Vanguard Extended Market ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, VXF is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF (VO) and the iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF (IJH) track a similar index. While Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF has $50.01 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF has $63.53 billion. VO has an expense ratio of 0.04% and IJH charges 0.05%.

Bottom-Line

An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

Vanguard Extended Market ETF (VXF): ETF Research Reports

Blackstone Inc. (BX) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (PANW) : Free Stock Analysis Report

iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF (IJH): ETF Research Reports

Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF (VO): ETF Research Reports

Uber Technologies, Inc. (UBER) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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Zacks Investment Research