VAS - Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF

frugal.rock said:

I'm so confused, why is there 2 VAS threads?
Is it a stock or an ETF?
Why is this thread in the stocks thread?

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By looking at who started the thread will give you the answer.

frugal.rock said:

That sounds interesting as a concept. Might look into that instead.

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Does have DRP. MER is 0.16%

VAS estimated distribution is $0.889041 payable 18 July.

Vanguard has announced the estimated September quarterly distribution for VAS as being $1.292455 payable on 17 October. The distribution for the previous corresponding period was $1.450577.

A substantial amount in the five figure range will go into the account as a consequence. The only hard work I had to do on share selection was to buy units in VAS.

Very quiet, anyone have any bad experiences dealing with VAS , or is it just a set and forget investment?

sptrawler said:

Very quiet, anyone have any bad experiences dealing with VAS , or is it just a set and forget investment?

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not 'bad' here , but it basically tracks the appropriate index ( as promised ) so not a lot to get excited/disappointed about

and unless the index dips markedly no compelling reason to add more ( although i participate in the DRP )

now of course all this could change if there is a major market correction ( or melt-up )

sptrawler said:

Very quiet, anyone have any bad experiences dealing with VAS , or is it just a set and forget investment?

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Nup, it just chugs along & drops money in my account 4 times per year.

VAS is my third tip in the 2025 yearly comp.

this holding is just the shares earned in the DRP running ( the cash and some profit has been rescued )

am up 73% over the last 13 years , but this was bought to provide insurance against ( my ) bad stock selection , and that job done i am letting the profits run

now index funds are weird beasts they feed ( investment ) cash into the indexes , pushing market caps. and indexes higher .. which attracts more investment cash ...

i see more worker's super cash going into ASX share ( a lot of it via index funds ) that should cushion the blow of any major downturn , but also harness some of the rise

@mullokintyre

an update for the yearly comp.

VAS should ride this market higher for at least a short while

some big players will return to the stock market on Tuesday , and as more folks come back from holidays , cash into super funds should accelerate , and VAS should get a share of those super inflows

i don't expect anything startling to happen here but the ASX isn't that far from record intra-day highs , the market might be tempted to rally higher

divs4ever said:

@mullokintyre

an update for the yearly comp.

VAS should ride this market higher for at least a short while

some big players will return to the stock market on Tuesday , and as more folks come back from holidays , cash into super funds should accelerate , and VAS should get a share of those super inflows

i don't expect anything startling to happen here but the ASX isn't that far from record intra-day highs , the market might be tempted to rally higher

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IMO it will rally higher, if the RBA drop rates, people have to chase returns to keep up with the real inflation.

sptrawler said:

IMO it will rally higher, if the RBA drop rates, people have to chase returns to keep up with the real inflation.

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they aren't already ?

it is a tough job getting adequate ( dividend ) returns in the current market

sure i am doing VERY nicely in some places , thanks to some luckily timed buys

but look at this


riddled with value traps , and shares unlikely to sustain those levels of divs ( if bought on say , Tuesday )

and some are suggesting the mid-caps and some large caps will be under pressure to slim down the div. payouts (for various reasons )

i thought i heard some market commentators calling TI.N.A. ( There Is No Alternative ) 2 years back

but there seems to be upward momentum in the markets currently as the US reporting season unfolds and some locals have good things to report in the quarterly announcements

sure VAS is nice to me ( my theoretical average is below $58 ) at my av. SP but $100 ( plus ) and some chance the market will retreat in the mid-term .. but money has to be parked regardless , some will be looking at unrealized capital losses soon enough

frugal.rock said:

I'm so confused, why is there 2 VAS threads?
Is it a stock or an ETF?
Why is this thread in the stocks thread?

View attachment 158019

Click to expand...

The two VAS threads have finally been joined together.

@mullokintyre

a gratuitous post for the 2025 full year comp.

VAS top ten holdings



Top 10 Holdings



Total Holdings
309

Category Average
42.25


46.8%


Distinct Portfolio
yes

Portfolio Turnover
0.82%

the 309 stocks hints there is still some M&A action going through the top 300

Fund Objective​

The Fund will hold or be exposed to most of the securities in the S&P/ASX 300 Index allowing for individual security weightings to vary marginally from the Index from time to time. The Fund may invest in securities that have been removed from or are expected to be included in the Index. The Fund may also hold securities that are not in the Index where we identify opportunities to gain exposure to securities currently or expected to be included in the Index, where we consider that to be in the interests of unitholders.

one might note the minor variation to the original mandate , preempting the ascension of future XKO ( top 300 ) participants as well as Vanguard's declaration they MAY lend out shares ( in the portfolio ) short-term

since this is a close ( but NOT exact ) replica of the index , one might note how various stock weightings have shifted even since the beginning of 2025

i hold VAS ( essentially the shares accumulated via the DRP over the previous 12 years )

those 3 monthly divs. sure make a difference when compounded