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Should Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF (IVOG) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Designed to provide broad exposure to the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market, the Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF (IVOG - Free Report) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 09/09/2010.

The fund is sponsored by Vanguard. It has amassed assets over $722.68 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs attempting to match the Mid Cap Growth segment of the US equity market.

Why Mid Cap Growth

Mid cap companies, with market capitalization in the range of $2 billion and $10 billion, offer investors many things that small and large companies don't, including less risk and higher growth opportunities. These types of companies, then, have a good balance of stability and growth potential.

While growth stocks do boast higher than average sales and earnings growth rates, and they are expected to grow faster than the wider market, investors should note these kinds of stocks have higher valuations. Also, growth stocks are a type of equity that carries more risk compared to others. Compared to value stocks, growth stocks are a safer bet in a strong bull market, but don't perform as strongly in almost all other financial environments.

Costs

Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.15%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.02%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector--about 20.80% of the portfolio. Consumer Discretionary and Information Technology round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Steel Dynamics Inc. (STLD - Free Report) accounts for about 1.71% of total assets, followed by Carlisle Cos. Inc. (CSL - Free Report) and Axon Enterprise Inc. (AXON - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 11.5% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

IVOG seeks to match the performance of the S&P MidCap 400 Growth Index before fees and expenses. The S&P MidCap 400 Growth Index measures the performance of growth stocks of medium-size U.S. companies.

The ETF has added about 2.60% so far this year and is down about -6.23% in the last one year (as of 04/07/2023). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $76.85 and $96.24.

The ETF has a beta of 1.09 and standard deviation of 23.77% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 236 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, IVOG is an excellent option for investors seeking exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well.

The Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth ETF (VOT - Free Report) and the iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP - Free Report) track a similar index. While Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth ETF has $9.86 billion in assets, iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF has $11.95 billion. VOT has an expense ratio of 0.07% and IWP charges 0.23%.

Bottom-Line

Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are 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.

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