The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) is widely considered the best gauge for the overall U.S. stock market due to its scope and diversity. It measures the performance of 500 large-cap companies across all 11 stock market sectors.
January has historically been a strong month for the U.S. stock market, and that has remained true in 2025. The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) advanced 2.7% in January despite headwinds from elevated Treasury yields and uncertainty surrounding tariffs and interest rates.
Looking for broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market? You should consider the Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 01/26/2004.
VHT is a low-cost index fund providing broad exposure to U.S. health care companies and is currently trading 12% below 52-week lows. The fund tracks the MSCI US IMI Health Care 25/50 Index, encompassing 400+ U.S. health care stocks. VHT offers better total returns than Vanguard's actively managed health care fund over 3, 5, and 10 years.
Looking for broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market? You should consider the Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 01/26/2004.
VHT offers exposure to 400 healthcare companies and its biggest sector allocations are in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare equipment. It has outperformed the market in the past, showing resilience during volatile periods and reflecting the sector's steady demand. However, its high valuation and concentration risks make the risk/reward profile unattractive right now.
If you're interested in broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market, look no further than the Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 01/26/2004.
The healthcare industry shows consistent growth and resilience, driven by medical advancements and aging demographics, making long-term investing in healthcare sensible. VHT offers diversified exposure to healthcare sectors with a low expense ratio, although it is top-heavy with significant holdings in a few large-cap stocks. VHT's recent breakout from a long-term trading range suggests potential for continued appreciation, supported by favorable market conditions and potential rate cuts.
Launched on 01/26/2004, the Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) is a passively managed exchange traded fund designed to provide a broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market.
Vanguard Health Care ETF focuses on investing in successful healthcare companies with $20 billion in assets and a low expense ratio of 0.10%. Top holdings include Eli Lilly, UnitedHealth Group, and Johnson & Johnson, offering potential for growth and dividends. With a focus on defensive stocks, VHT could offer strong total returns in a slowing economy, despite potential downside risks.
Many ETFs provide broad diversification for your portfolio in a single investment vehicle. Two ETFs, in particular, have a proven ability to turn thousands of dollars into millions.
Looking for broad exposure to the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market? You should consider the An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors. Investor-friendly, sector ETFs provide many options to gain low risk and diversified exposure to a broad group of companies in particular sectors. Healthcare - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 4, placing it in top 25%. The fund is sponsored by Vanguard. It has amassed assets over $17.89 billion, making it one of the largest ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Healthcare - Broad segment of the equity market. VHT seeks to match the performance of the MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index before fees and expenses. The MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index is made up of stocks of U.S. companies within the health care sector. Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts, other things remaining the same. Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.10%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space. It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.30%. 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 in the Healthcare sector--about 100% of the portfolio. Looking at individual holdings, The top 10 holdings account for about 48.87% of total assets under management. The ETF return is roughly 6.87% and is up about 11.87% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 05/20/2024), respectively. VHT has traded between $223.10 and $270.54 during this last 52-week period. The ETF has a beta of 0.71 and standard deviation of 14.69% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 411 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk. Vanguard Health Care ETF holds a Zacks ETF Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Because of this, VHT is an outstanding option for investors seeking exposure to the Health Care ETFs segment of the market. There are other additional ETFs in the space that investors could consider as well. To read this article on Zacks.com click here.