VFIFX vs XLV: 4% overlap

Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 and Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund share 4.3% of their portfolios by weight — computed as Σ min(wA, wB) over every holding both funds own.

Different holding dates. These holdings were published about 4 months apart — VFIFX as of 2026-03-31, the rest through 2026-07-23. Each fund is compared using its most recent file, so any trading in between shows up as a difference.

Hold both, 50/50
2.0Effective Funds

You would hold two tickers and get the diversification of 2.0. Two funds that shared nothing would score 2.0; two identical funds score 1.0.

Overlap
4.3%
VFIFX expense ratio
0.08%
XLV expense ratio
0.08%

Top shared holdings

VFIFX and XLV hold 60 of the same securities. The ten contributing most to the overlap figure:

Holdingin VFIFXin XLVΔ
LLY0.7%16.1%15.4%
JNJ0.4%10.7%10.3%
ABBV0.3%7.8%7.5%
UNH0.3%6.6%6.3%
MRK0.2%5.5%5.3%
AMGN0.1%3.4%3.3%
TMO0.1%3.6%3.5%
ABT0.1%3.0%2.9%
GILD0.1%2.8%2.7%
CASH1.9%0.1%1.8%

Where VFIFX and XLV differ

Sector weights as a share of each fund, ordered by the size of the gap rather than the size of the sector — two funds that overlap heavily still usually diverge somewhere.

SectorVFIFXXLVΔ
Health Care6.9%99.7%92.8pp
Information Technology26.1%0.0%+26.1pp
Financials14.1%0.0%+14.1pp
Industrials10.5%0.0%+10.5pp
Consumer Discretionary7.5%0.0%+7.5pp
Unclassified6.3%0.0%+6.3pp
Communication Services5.9%0.0%+5.9pp
Consumer Staples4.0%0.0%+4.0pp

Δ is VFIFX minus XLV, in percentage points. Sector data is not published by every issuer, so “Unclassified” is a real category rather than a gap in the table.

What each fund holds alone

Only in VFIFX
16,622 positions

93.9% of VFIFX by weight, held in no part of XLV.

Only in XLV
1 positions

0.0% of XLV by weight, held in no part of VFIFX.

A large count with a small weight is the usual shape: the positions one fund adds are typically its smallest ones.

Concentration and cost

VFIFXXLV
Top 10 holdings19.3%62.0%
Positions held662
Cost per $10,000 held, per year$8$8

Cost is the expense ratio applied to $10,000; it excludes any brokerage commission, bid-ask spread or tax consequence. Figures are facts about the funds, not a suggestion about which to hold.

Frequently asked

How much do VFIFX and XLV overlap?

VFIFX and XLV overlap 4.3% by portfolio weight — largely distinct portfolios. They share 60 holdings. The figure comes from current issuer holdings files (VFIFX as of 2026-03-31, XLV as of 2026-07-23).

How is the overlap between VFIFX and XLV calculated?

As the sum of the smaller weight in each fund, over every holding both funds own: Σ min(wA, wB). If VFIFX holds a stock at 6% and XLV holds the same stock at 4%, 4% counts as shared. The result is bounded between 0% and 100%, and it is computed after looking through any fund-of-funds to the underlying holdings.

Is it redundant to hold both VFIFX and XLV?

That depends on your goals — we state facts, not advice. At 4.3% overlap, each fund still contributes meaningfully distinct exposure.

What does VFIFX own that XLV doesn't?

VFIFX holds 6 positions and XLV holds 62; 16,622 of VFIFX's positions don't appear in XLV at all, and they are 93.9% of VFIFX by weight.

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Related comparisons

Sources: issuer holdings files, VFIFX as of 2026-03-31, XLV as of 2026-07-23. Weights are fractions of each fund. Diagnostics, not advice.