Broad low cost global equity portfolio with a strong US tilt and balanced risk profile
Report created on Jul 1, 2026Risk profile
4/7
Diversification profile
3/5
Positions
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VT Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
VTI - US9229087690 38.28% -
VO Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
VOO - US9229083632 33.28% -
VX Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares
VXUS - US9219097683 28.44%
This portfolio is made up of three broad equity index ETFs, all from the same provider, with no bonds or cash. Roughly two thirds is in US-focused funds, split between a total US market ETF and a large-cap US ETF, while just under a third is in a broad international equity ETF. This structure is simple and transparent, which makes it easy to understand how the portfolio behaves. A concentrated lineup like this keeps things straightforward but means every holding meaningfully shapes performance. The balanced risk label and mid-range risk score line up with a pure-stock mix that still spans thousands of companies, rather than a handful of individual names.
Growth
From mid-2016 to mid-2026, $1,000 grew to about $3,706, which is a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.05%. CAGR is like your average speed over a long road trip, smoothing out all the bumps along the way. The portfolio’s biggest drop was about -34% during early 2020, similar to broad markets, with a recovery in roughly five months. Over this period, it slightly lagged the US market benchmark but outpaced the global market benchmark. That pattern fits a portfolio that’s mostly US stocks but with a meaningful international slice, capturing strong equity growth while not being fully tied to one index.
Projection
The forward projection uses a Monte Carlo simulation, which is basically a thousand “what if” future paths built from historical return and volatility patterns. It shows a median outcome of about $2,795 from $1,000 over 15 years, with a wide but informative range around that. The expected annualized return across all simulations is 8.33%, but results vary a lot, from roughly flat to several times the starting value. This highlights that even with diversified stock funds, future returns are uncertain and can differ from the past. Monte Carlo helps frame possibilities, not certainties, so it’s a tool for understanding risk ranges rather than a forecast.
Asset classes
- Stocks 100%
All of the portfolio sits in stocks, with 0% in bonds, cash, or alternatives. That makes it simple to interpret: returns are entirely driven by global equity markets, with no built-in shock absorbers from fixed income. An all-stock allocation typically has higher long-term growth potential but more pronounced ups and downs along the way. The historical max drawdown around one-third reflects that. Compared with mixed stock–bond portfolios, this structure accepts more market swings in exchange for equity-like return potential. The balanced risk label here really reflects diversification within equities, not diversification across asset classes.
Sectors
- Technology 30%
- Financials 15%
- Industrials 11%
- Consumer Discretionary 10%
- Telecommunications 9%
- Health Care 8%
- Consumer Staples 5%
- Energy 4%
- Basic Materials 4%
- Utilities 3%
- Real Estate 2%
Sector exposure is fairly broad, with technology the largest slice at 30%, followed by financials, industrials, and consumer areas. This aligns quite closely with many broad equity benchmarks, where technology has grown to a leading weight. A tech-heavy portion can boost returns during periods of innovation and growth but may feel more volatile during interest rate changes or when growth stocks fall out of favor. The presence of meaningful stakes in financials, health care, and consumer sectors supports diversification across different parts of the economy. Overall, the sector mix is well-balanced and matches benchmark-style diversification, which is a strong foundation.
Regions
- North America 74%
- Europe Developed 10%
- Asia Developed 5%
- Japan 4%
- Asia Emerging 4%
- Australasia 1%
- Africa/Middle East 1%
- Latin America 1%
Geographically, about 74% of the portfolio is tied to North America, with the rest spread across developed Europe, Japan, developed Asia, and smaller allocations to emerging regions. This clearly shows a strong US tilt, which is common in portfolios built from US-listed broad market funds. Compared with a pure global market index, this is somewhat more US-heavy, but not extremely so. The non-US exposure introduces currency and regional diversification, which can help when different economies cycle at different times. At the same time, performance will still be heavily influenced by how the US market behaves given the dominant share.
Market capitalization
- Mega-cap 44%
- Large-cap 32%
- Mid-cap 18%
- Small-cap 4%
- Micro-cap 1%
Market capitalization exposure leans toward larger companies, with 44% in mega-cap and 32% in large-cap, while mid, small, and micro-caps make up the rest. This pattern is very similar to a typical total-market index, where the biggest companies naturally dominate because they represent more of the market’s total value. Large and mega-caps tend to be more established businesses, often with more stable earnings and liquidity, while smaller companies can add extra growth potential and risk. This mix indicates broad participation across company sizes, but with overall behavior anchored by the largest, most influential firms in global equity indices.
True holdings
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NV NVIDIA Corporation 5.19%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
AA Apple Inc. 4.76%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
MS Microsoft Corporation 3.47%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
AM Amazon.com Inc 2.73%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
GO Alphabet Inc Class A 2.30%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
AV Broadcom Inc 2.20%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
GO Alphabet Inc Class C 1.82%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
ME Meta Platforms Inc. 1.44%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
TS Tesla Inc 1.28%
Part of fund(s):- LS 1x Tesla Tracker ETP Securities GBP
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
MU Micron Technology Inc 1.13%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
- Top 10 total 26.32%
Looking through the ETFs’ top holdings, several mega-cap names appear repeatedly, like NVIDIA, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, and Meta. These companies together account for a noticeable share of the portfolio even though they are only held via funds. Because many broad index ETFs own the same giants, their weights can stack up across funds, creating hidden concentration. For example, NVIDIA alone is about 5.19% of the portfolio via multiple ETFs. It’s worth noting that this overlap is likely understated since only top-10 holdings are captured. Still, the pattern is typical of index-based portfolios, where market leaders also become portfolio leaders.
Factors
Factor exposure is broadly neutral across all six major factors: value, size, momentum, quality, yield, and low volatility. Factor exposure describes how much a portfolio leans into specific characteristics that academic research has linked to returns over time. Here, scores hover around the 50% “market average” mark, indicating no strong tilt toward or away from any particular style. This is exactly what you’d expect from broad, market-cap-weighted index funds that aim to mirror the overall market rather than target specific strategies. The portfolio should therefore behave similarly to the broad equity market, without pronounced factor-driven surprises.
Risk contribution
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Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
Weight: 38.28% 40.1% -
Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
Weight: 33.28% 34.2% -
Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares
Weight: 28.44% 25.8%
Risk contribution shows how much each holding adds to overall ups and downs, which can differ from its simple weight. In this portfolio, the total US market ETF contributes about 40% of risk, slightly more than its 38% weight, and the S&P 500 ETF contributes a similar proportionate share. The international equity ETF contributes somewhat less risk than its weight, reflecting slightly lower volatility or different behavior relative to the US funds. Together, all three positions drive 100% of portfolio risk, with no single ETF dominating. This pattern suggests risk is broadly aligned with position size, helping keep concentration manageable.
Redundant positions
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High correlationVanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF SharesVanguard S&P 500 ETF
The correlation data highlights that the S&P 500 ETF and the total US market ETF move almost identically. Correlation measures how often and how strongly assets move together; highly correlated assets tend to rise and fall at the same time. When two holdings are very similar, they offer limited diversification benefits relative to each other, even if they are technically different funds. In practice, this means that the US portion of the portfolio behaves like one large US equity block. Diversification therefore comes more from the split between US and international stocks than from differences within the two US-focused ETFs.
Risk vs. return
This chart shows the Efficient Frontier, calculated using your current assets with different allocation combinations. It highlights the best balance between risk and return based on historical data. "Efficient" portfolios maximize returns for a given risk or minimize risk for a given return. Portfolios below the curve are less efficient. This is informational and not a recommendation to buy or sell any assets.
Click on the colored dots to explore allocations.
The efficient frontier analysis shows the current portfolio sitting on or very near the frontier, which is the curve of the best possible risk–return combinations using these same holdings. The Sharpe ratio of 0.61 for the current mix is lower than the maximum of 0.84 but similar to the minimum-variance portfolio’s 0.69. The Sharpe ratio is a simple way to compare risk-adjusted returns: higher means more return per unit of volatility. Being near the frontier implies the existing allocation is already efficient for its risk level, and any improvements would come mainly from reweighting these ETFs rather than needing different products.
Dividends
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF 1.10%
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares 1.10%
- Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares 2.60%
- Weighted yield (per year) 1.53%
The portfolio’s overall dividend yield is about 1.53%, with slightly higher income from the international fund compared with the US funds. Dividend yield is the annual cash payout as a percentage of the current price, like a “rent” you collect for owning the shares. In a broad equity index portfolio, dividends typically form a steady but smaller part of total return, with price growth doing most of the heavy lifting over time. The yield level here is consistent with a growth-oriented equity mix where many companies reinvest earnings instead of paying high dividends, especially in technology and other growth sectors.
Ongoing product costs
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF 0.03%
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares 0.03%
- Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares 0.05%
- Weighted costs total (per year) 0.04%
Total ongoing costs are very low, with a blended total expense ratio (TER) of about 0.04%. TER is the annual fee charged by the funds as a percentage of assets, quietly deducted inside the ETF. Keeping costs this low is a notable strength, because even small fee differences compound significantly over decades. For every $10,000 invested, a 0.04% TER means about $4 a year in fund fees, which is hard to beat. The use of broad, low-cost index ETFs is strongly aligned with cost-efficient investing practices and supports better long-term outcomes compared with higher-fee alternatives tracking similar markets.
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