VYM — VYM | U.S. High Dividend ETF 13F holdings and portfolio analysis
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Baseline
Analysis messagesPre-generated Q&A about this fund. Use as reference context for your own analysis.
Following the disclosed baseline exposes an investor to a diversified but still factor-tilted dividend portfolio with moderate top-name risk and clear benchmark lag risk. The baseline top 10 holdings are 27.31% and top 20 are 40.30%, so this is not an extreme concentrated strategy, but AVGO still leads at 7.63%. Sector exposure is centered in Financials (22.12%), Information Technology (15.68%), Health Care (13.28%), Industrials (12.16%), and Consumer Staples (11.01%). The backtest profile is lower-risk than SPY, with beta 0.67 and max drawdown -14.02%, but it came with negative alpha (-2.99) and only moderate Sharpe (0.79).
The recent periods that best explain the trade-off are the defensive wins in early 2025 and the lagging rebounds after market drawdowns. In 2025-01 the baseline lost just -0.20% versus SPY at -2.79%, for +2.59% excess return, and in 2025-02 it lost -4.25% versus SPY at -6.48%, for +2.23% excess. But that protection faded in rebound phases: 2025-04 returned 3.41% versus SPY 6.28% (-2.88% excess), 2025-05 returned 2.71% versus 3.75% (-1.04%), and 2025-09 returned -0.14% versus +2.05% (-2.19%). Those periods match the overall pattern of lower beta defense but weaker upside capture.
The next step is to inspect whether the baseline’s income-defensive structure is worth its persistent relative underperformance. Start with the largest positions and sector weights: AVGO at 7.63%, JPM at 4.18%, XOM at 2.42%, JNJ at 2.37%, and WMT at 2.31%, alongside Financials at 22.12% and Information Technology at 15.68%. Then compare that structure with the baseline’s realized trade-off: annualized return 9.33%, total return 29.58%, Sharpe 0.79, and alpha -2.99. If the goal is smoother equity exposure and lower beta, the baseline may be acceptable; if the goal is beating SPY, the evidence so far argues for caution.