US focused equity portfolio blending broad market growth and small cap value tilts
Report created on Apr 27, 2026Risk profile
5/7
Diversification profile
2/5
Positions
-
VO Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
VOO - US9229083632 50.00% -
AV Avantis® U.S. Small Cap Value ETF
AVUV - US0250728773 30.00% -
VU Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
VUG - US9229087369 20.00%
This portfolio is simple and very focused: three US stock ETFs make up 100% of the allocation. Half is in a broad S&P 500 fund, giving exposure to large established companies. Another 20% leans into large‑cap growth, while 30% targets US small cap value stocks. This structure creates a “barbell” between big growth names and smaller value names, with the S&P 500 as a diversified core. A concentrated lineup like this is easy to understand and track. It also means every holding matters: changes to any of the three funds can noticeably shift how the whole portfolio behaves over time.
Growth
Over the period from late 2019 to April 2026, $1,000 grew to about $2,719, which is a 16.48% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). CAGR is like your average speed on a road trip: it smooths the ups and downs into one yearly number. This beat both the US market benchmark (15.85%) and the global market (13.32%). The deepest drop was around -36.95% during early 2020, slightly worse than the benchmarks’ drawdowns. That pattern—higher long‑term growth with somewhat sharper falls—fits a growth‑tilted equity portfolio and shows how added return potential can come with punchier downturns.
Projection
The Monte Carlo simulation projects many possible 15‑year paths based on how similar portfolios behaved historically. Think of it as running the market a thousand different ways, using past volatility and returns as inputs, then seeing the range of outcomes. The median result shows $1,000 growing to roughly $2,697, with a “middle” band from about $1,784 to $4,139. Extreme but plausible outcomes range from roughly flat to over seven times the starting value. These are not predictions, just scenarios. They highlight that even with the same starting point, long‑term results can vary a lot, especially in an all‑stock portfolio like this.
Asset classes
- Stocks 100%
All of this portfolio is in stocks, with no bonds or cash‑like assets. That’s why the risk classification lands in the “growth” range with a relatively high risk score. Stocks historically have offered higher returns than bonds over long periods, but they also swing more in the short term and can experience steep drawdowns. Having 100% in equities keeps the growth engine fully engaged but also means there’s no built‑in cushion from steadier asset classes during market stress. This pure‑equity stance is straightforward: the portfolio’s results almost entirely reflect how stock markets, especially in the US, perform over time.
Sectors
- Technology 29%
- Financials 15%
- Consumer Discretionary 13%
- Telecommunications 9%
- Industrials 9%
- Energy 7%
- Health Care 7%
- Consumer Staples 4%
- Basic Materials 3%
- Real Estate 1%
- Utilities 1%
Sector exposure is tilted toward technology at 29%, followed by meaningful allocations to financials, consumer discretionary, telecom, and industrials. This mix loosely resembles a broad US market, but the combination of S&P 500 and a growth ETF lifts tech and other growth‑oriented areas a bit more than a fully neutral benchmark. Tech‑heavy portfolios tend to benefit when innovation and digital businesses lead markets, but they can be more sensitive when interest rates rise or when investors rotate into more defensive areas. The presence of financials, industrials, and energy adds some balance, spreading risk beyond just a handful of high‑growth industries.
Regions
- North America 99%
Geographically, the portfolio is almost entirely US‑focused, with about 99% in North America. This close alignment with the US market explains why it tracked and slightly beat the US benchmark while pulling further ahead of the global one. A strong US tilt can work well when domestic markets outperform the rest of the world. At the same time, it means the portfolio’s fortunes are closely tied to one economy, one currency, and one policy environment. When global leadership shifts to other regions, a US‑only stance may miss some of that strength, though it keeps things simpler and easier to follow.
Market capitalization
- Mega-cap 37%
- Large-cap 22%
- Small-cap 16%
- Micro-cap 14%
- Mid-cap 12%
Across company sizes, the portfolio mixes 37% mega‑caps and 22% large‑caps with a meaningful slice in smaller names: 12% mid‑cap, 16% small‑cap, and 14% micro‑cap. That’s more exposure to the smaller end of the market than a typical broad US index, driven mainly by the dedicated small cap value ETF. Smaller companies often move more dramatically than mega‑caps, which can boost returns during strong economic cycles but add volatility in downturns or when credit conditions tighten. This size spread creates a nice diversity of business types, from global giants to more niche or early‑stage firms that behave differently across the market cycle.
True holdings
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NV NVIDIA Corporation 6.45%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
AA Apple Inc 5.79%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
MS Microsoft Corporation 4.28%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
AM Amazon.com Inc 2.74%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
GO Alphabet Inc Class A 2.60%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
AV Broadcom Inc 2.19%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
GO Alphabet Inc Class C 2.08%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
ME Meta Platforms Inc. 1.95%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
TS Tesla Inc 1.63%
Part of fund(s):- LS 1x Tesla Tracker ETP Securities GBP
- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
-
BR Berkshire Hathaway Inc 0.79%
Part of fund(s):- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
- Top 10 total 30.50%
Looking through to the top holdings, several large US companies appear multiple times across the ETFs. NVIDIA, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and Tesla together make up a meaningful chunk of the look‑through exposure. Because these names sit in the S&P 500 and the growth ETF, they create hidden concentration: their influence is larger than it seems from the three‑fund list alone. This overlap is only based on ETF top‑10 holdings, so actual duplication is likely higher. The upside is strong participation in leading companies that have driven recent US returns; the trade‑off is more reliance on the same set of mega‑cap growth stocks.
Factors
Factor exposure shows a notable tilt toward value at 60%, slightly above the market‑like 50% level. Factors are like underlying “personality traits” of stocks—value, size, momentum, and so on—that help explain return patterns over time. The higher value score comes largely from the small cap value ETF, which emphasizes cheaper companies by valuation metrics. Other factors—size, momentum, quality, yield, and low volatility—sit in the neutral range, meaning they behave broadly like the market as a whole. This balance suggests the portfolio may act similarly to a broad US market, with a modest extra lean toward value characteristics that can shine in certain economic phases.
Risk contribution
-
Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
Weight: 50.00% 45.0% -
Avantis® U.S. Small Cap Value ETF
Weight: 30.00% 34.8% -
Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares
Weight: 20.00% 20.2%
Risk contribution shows how much each ETF drives the portfolio’s ups and downs, which can differ from simple weights. Here, the S&P 500 fund is 50% of the portfolio but contributes about 45% of overall risk, slightly less than its size. The growth ETF’s risk share is very close to its 20% weight. The standout is the small cap value ETF: at 30% weight, it contributes nearly 35% of total risk, meaning it’s a bit more volatile than the others. All three together account for nearly 100% of risk, as expected, but that extra punch from small caps helps explain why drawdowns can be sharper than broad benchmarks.
Redundant positions
-
High correlationVanguard Growth Index Fund ETF SharesVanguard S&P 500 ETF
The correlation data highlights that the S&P 500 ETF and the growth ETF move almost identically. Correlation measures how often two investments move in the same direction and by how much; high correlation limits diversification benefits between them. In practice, this means those two funds behave like closely related versions of large‑cap US stocks, with growth providing a more aggressive twist. When US large‑cap growth rallies or falls, both will typically move together. The small cap value ETF adds more differentiated behavior, since smaller, cheaper companies often react differently to interest rates, inflation, and economic surprises than mega‑cap growth stocks do.
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 mix sits very close to the best possible trade‑off between risk and return using these three ETFs. The Sharpe ratio—return earned per unit of risk—of 0.64 is slightly lower than both the optimal and minimum‑variance portfolios, but the gap is modest. Importantly, the tool suggests that simple reweighting among the existing funds is all that’s needed to reach those slightly higher Sharpe points, not adding new holdings. In other words, for this set of building blocks, the portfolio is already using them efficiently, providing a strong balance between return potential and volatility at its chosen risk level.
Dividends
- Avantis® U.S. Small Cap Value ETF 1.30%
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF 1.10%
- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares 0.40%
- Weighted yield (per year) 1.02%
The portfolio’s overall dividend yield is around 1.02%, with the small cap value ETF offering the highest yield and the growth ETF the lowest. Yield is the cash income paid out as a percentage of investment value each year, separate from price changes. Here, most of the expected return is from capital growth rather than income, which matches the growth‑oriented and small cap focus. Dividends can still provide a modest cushion in flat or slightly down markets, but they are not the main driver of results in this setup. This low‑to‑moderate yield profile is typical for a growth‑tilted US equity blend.
Ongoing product costs
- Avantis® U.S. Small Cap Value ETF 0.25%
- Vanguard S&P 500 ETF 0.03%
- Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares 0.04%
- Weighted costs total (per year) 0.10%
Total costs are impressively low at a weighted TER of about 0.10%. TER, or Total Expense Ratio, is the annual fee charged by the funds, taken directly from returns. Lower costs mean more of the portfolio’s performance stays in your pocket, and the difference compounds meaningfully over long periods. The S&P 500 and growth ETFs are especially cheap, and even the small cap value fund’s 0.25% fee is reasonable for that segment. Overall, this cost structure aligns very well with best practices for long‑term investing, supporting the potential for the portfolio’s historical outperformance to be maintained net of fees.
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