VFORX vs VYM: 15% overlap

Vanguard Target Retirement 2040 and Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF share 15.3% 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 3 months apart — VFORX as of 2026-03-31, the rest through 2026-06-30. Each fund is compared using its most recent file, so any trading in between shows up as a difference.

Hold both, 50/50
1.8Effective Funds

You would hold two tickers and get the diversification of 1.8. Two funds that shared nothing would score 2.0; two identical funds score 1.0.

Overlap
15.3%
VFORX expense ratio
0.08%
VYM expense ratio
0.04%

Top shared holdings

VFORX and VYM hold 586 of the same securities. The ten contributing most to the overlap figure:

Holdingin VFORXin VYMΔ
AVGO1.1%7.3%6.2%
CASH1.8%0.5%1.3%
JPM0.5%3.4%2.9%
JNJ0.4%2.5%2.2%
XOM0.3%2.4%2.0%
CAT0.3%2.0%1.7%
ABBV0.3%1.8%1.6%
CSCO0.2%1.9%1.7%
UNH0.2%1.6%1.3%
BAC0.2%1.6%1.3%

Where VFORX and VYM 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.

SectorVFORXVYMΔ
Unclassified9.7%0.0%+9.6pp
Treasuries8.7%0.0%+8.7pp
Financials12.7%20.9%8.3pp
Health Care5.8%13.1%7.4pp
Energy2.3%8.5%6.2pp
Information Technology21.6%16.7%+4.9pp
Consumer Staples3.4%8.0%4.7pp
Industrials8.7%13.2%4.5pp

Δ is VFORX minus VYM, 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 VFORX
16,096 positions

82.9% of VFORX by weight, held in no part of VYM.

Only in VYM
20 positions

0.8% of VYM by weight, held in no part of VFORX.

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

Concentration and cost

VFORXVYM
Top 10 holdings23.9%26.0%
Positions held6606
Cost per $10,000 held, per year$8$4

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 VFORX and VYM overlap?

VFORX and VYM overlap 15.3% by portfolio weight — moderate overlap. They share 586 holdings. The figure comes from current issuer holdings files (VFORX as of 2026-03-31, VYM as of 2026-06-30).

How is the overlap between VFORX and VYM calculated?

As the sum of the smaller weight in each fund, over every holding both funds own: Σ min(wA, wB). If VFORX holds a stock at 6% and VYM 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 VFORX and VYM?

That depends on your goals — we state facts, not advice. At 15.3% overlap, each fund still contributes meaningfully distinct exposure.

What does VFORX own that VYM doesn't?

VFORX holds 6 positions and VYM holds 606; 16,096 of VFORX's positions don't appear in VYM at all, and they are 82.9% of VFORX by weight.

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Related comparisons

Sources: issuer holdings files, VFORX as of 2026-03-31, VYM as of 2026-06-30. Weights are fractions of each fund. Diagnostics, not advice.