Broad global stock portfolio with strong US tilt low costs and balanced factor exposure
Report created on Apr 19, 2026Risk profile
4/7
Diversification profile
3/5
Positions
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VT Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
VTI - US9229087690 70.00% -
VX Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares
VXUS - US9219097683 30.00%
This portfolio is built from just two broad equity index ETFs: one covering the total US stock market at 70%, and one covering international stocks at 30%. That creates a simple “all‑stock” structure with a clear tilt toward the US. A two‑fund setup like this is easy to understand and track, and it closely mirrors how many global equity benchmarks are constructed. The 70/30 split means most performance will be driven by US companies, with the international fund adding diversification from the rest of the world. Overall, the structure is straightforward, transparent, and aligned with a common “global equity with US tilt” style.
Growth
From 2016 to early 2026, a hypothetical $1,000 in this portfolio grew to about $3,395, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.05%. CAGR is the “average yearly speed” of growth over the whole period. The portfolio lagged the US market benchmark by 1.74% per year but beat the global market benchmark by 0.90% per year. The worst peak‑to‑trough decline, or max drawdown, was about –34.6% during early 2020, similar to the benchmarks. Only 32 days produced 90% of total returns, highlighting how a small number of strong days drove much of the long‑term outcome.
Projection
The Monte Carlo projection uses past return and volatility patterns to simulate many possible 15‑year futures. Think of it as running 1,000 alternate timelines where returns vary randomly within historically observed ranges. The median outcome turns $1,000 into about $2,823, while the central “likely range” (25th–75th percentile) spans roughly $1,835 to $4,294. The wide 5th–95th percentile band, from about $977 to $7,795, shows how uncertain long‑term equity outcomes can be. An average simulated annual return of 8.15% reflects both good and bad paths. As always, this is a statistical exercise using history, not a forecast or guarantee of what will actually happen.
Asset classes
- Stocks 100%
Asset‑class exposure here is very clear: 100% in stocks, with no bonds, cash, or alternatives included. Equities historically offer higher expected long‑term returns than safer assets, but they also come with larger short‑term swings in value. Many broad market benchmarks for diversified investors mix stocks with bonds; this portfolio instead mirrors a “pure growth engine” equity sleeve. The historic drawdown of around one‑third is consistent with that. This all‑stock approach means the portfolio’s ups and downs will be closely tied to global corporate earnings, economic cycles, and investor sentiment, without the shock‑absorbing role that fixed income often plays.
Sectors
- Technology 27%
- Financials 15%
- Industrials 12%
- Consumer Discretionary 10%
- Health Care 10%
- Telecommunications 8%
- Consumer Staples 5%
- Basic Materials 4%
- Energy 4%
- Utilities 3%
- Real Estate 3%
Sector exposure is spread across the economy, with technology the largest at 27%, followed by financials, industrials, consumer discretionary, and health care. This pattern is broadly comparable to global equity benchmarks that are also tech‑led. A notable point is that no single non‑tech sector dominates, and smaller allocations to utilities, real estate, and energy keep the portfolio from being overly concentrated in defensive or cyclical niches. Tech‑heavy allocations can experience sharper moves when interest rates change or when innovation cycles speed up or slow down. Here, the diversified mix helps balance that sector risk while still capturing growth from more innovative industries.
Regions
- North America 72%
- Europe Developed 11%
- Japan 5%
- Asia Developed 4%
- Asia Emerging 4%
- Australasia 1%
- Africa/Middle East 1%
- Latin America 1%
Geographically, about 72% of the portfolio is in North America, with the remaining exposure spread across Europe, Japan, other developed Asia, and emerging regions. This is more US‑tilted than the MSCI ACWI global benchmark, which tends to have a lower US share, but the structure is still broadly global. The international 30% slice introduces currencies and economies beyond the US, which can help when different regions move out of sync. At the same time, returns will still be dominated by North American markets. This alignment with US‑tilted global norms is common for US‑based investors and represents a familiar geographic profile.
Market capitalization
- Mega-cap 42%
- Large-cap 31%
- Mid-cap 18%
- Small-cap 6%
- Micro-cap 2%
Market capitalization exposure is anchored in larger companies: 42% mega‑cap and 31% large‑cap, with the rest in mid, small, and micro‑caps. This resembles the global stock market, where the largest firms naturally dominate by value. The inclusion of mid and smaller companies, while modest in weight, adds some extra diversification and potential for different growth patterns compared with the giants. Large and mega‑caps typically provide more stability and liquidity, while small and micro‑caps can be more volatile and sensitive to economic conditions. Overall, this mix is well‑balanced and aligns closely with global standards for a broad‑market equity index approach.
True holdings
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NV NVIDIA Corporation 4.48%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
AA Apple Inc 4.14%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
MS Microsoft Corporation 3.06%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
AM Amazon.com Inc 2.24%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
GO Alphabet Inc Class A 1.86%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
AV Broadcom Inc 1.63%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
GO Alphabet Inc Class C 1.48%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
ME Meta Platforms Inc. 1.39%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
TS Tesla Inc 1.16%
Part of fund(s):- LS 1x Tesla Tracker ETP Securities GBP
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
-
23 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. 1.04%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares
- Top 10 total 22.48%
Looking through the ETFs, the biggest underlying exposures are highly recognizable large growth companies, with NVIDIA, Apple, and Microsoft leading the list. Several names, like Alphabet (two share classes), Meta, and Amazon, show up as sizeable positions, reflecting their large weights in broad index funds. Because only ETF top‑10 holdings are used, total overlap is likely understated, but it’s clear that a meaningful slice of the portfolio’s behavior will track these mega‑cap leaders. This kind of “hidden concentration” is typical of cap‑weighted indexes: even with thousands of holdings, a small group of very large companies drives a big share of overall performance.
Factors
Factor exposures across value, size, momentum, quality, yield, and low volatility all sit in the neutral 40–60% band, essentially mirroring the broad market. Factor exposure describes how much a portfolio leans into characteristics that research links to returns, like cheapness (value) or trend strength (momentum). Here, there are no strong tilts toward or away from any factor; the portfolio behaves like a generic global index. This well‑balanced factor profile means performance will mostly be driven by overall market direction and stock selection inside the indices, rather than by explicit bets on any particular style or factor premium.
Risk contribution
-
Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
Weight: 70.00% 72.8% -
Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares
Weight: 30.00% 27.3%
Risk contribution shows how much each holding adds to overall volatility, which can differ from its weight. The US total market ETF is 70% of assets but contributes about 72.8% of total risk, so its influence on ups and downs is slightly higher than its size. The international ETF, at 30% weight and 27.3% risk contribution, adds diversification that softens risk a bit relative to its share. This is typical when combining highly correlated but not identical equity markets. The takeaway is that the portfolio’s risk is understandably dominated by the US sleeve, but the non‑US allocation still plays a meaningful risk‑dampening role.
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.
On the risk‑return chart, the current portfolio sits on or very near the efficient frontier, meaning that for its mix of holdings, the allocation is already using risk effectively. The Sharpe ratio, which measures return per unit of risk above the risk‑free rate, is 0.56 for the current mix versus 0.77 for the mathematically optimal mix and 0.62 for the minimum‑variance version. Importantly, those alternative points come from reweighting the same two ETFs, not adding new ones. Being almost on the frontier indicates the existing 70/30 split achieves a strong balance between expected return and volatility given this pair of building blocks.
Dividends
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares 1.10%
- Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares 2.80%
- Weighted yield (per year) 1.61%
The combined dividend yield of the portfolio is about 1.61%, blending a lower‑yielding US fund at 1.10% with a higher‑yielding international fund at 2.80%. Dividend yield is the annual cash payout as a percentage of price, separate from price changes. For an all‑equity portfolio, this is a relatively modest but steady income stream that mainly supplements the total return story driven by capital gains. International markets often yield more than the US, so the 30% non‑US slice boosts the overall yield slightly. Dividends can help smooth return patterns over time, but in this structure they remain a secondary driver versus market price movements.
Ongoing product costs
- 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 fund costs, or TER (Total Expense Ratio), average a very low 0.04% per year across the portfolio. TER is the annual fee charged by the ETFs, expressed as a percentage of invested assets. Here, the US fund charges 0.03% and the international fund 0.05%, both firmly in the low‑cost camp. These costs are impressively low, supporting better long‑term performance because less is lost to fees each year. Over long horizons, even small fee differences compound noticeably, so this cost structure is a meaningful strength. It aligns closely with best practices for using broad, passive index funds to capture market returns efficiently.
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