Better Small-Cap Growth ETF: Vanguard's VBK vs. State Street's SLYG

Core Insights - The State Street SPDR S&P 600 Small Cap Growth ETF (SLYG) and the Vanguard Small-Cap Growth ETF (VBK) target U.S. small-cap growth stocks but differ in fees, size, performance, and volatility [1][2] Cost & Size Comparison - SLYG has an expense ratio of 0.15% and assets under management (AUM) of $3.7 billion, while VBK has a lower expense ratio of 0.07% and a significantly larger AUM of $39.7 billion [3][4] - The one-year return for SLYG is 10.2%, compared to VBK's 14.4%, indicating stronger recent performance for VBK [3] Performance & Risk Metrics - Over five years, SLYG has a max drawdown of -29.18%, while VBK has a higher max drawdown of -38.39% [5] - The growth of $1,000 over five years is $1,210 for SLYG and $1,145 for VBK, showing SLYG's better performance in this period [5] Portfolio Composition - VBK tracks 579 U.S. small-cap growth stocks with major sector allocations in technology (27%), industrials (21%), and healthcare (18%) [6] - SLYG covers 336 stocks with sector allocations of technology (19%), industrials (18%), and healthcare (16%) [7] Investment Implications - VBK's greater emphasis on technology leads to higher volatility, as indicated by its larger beta of 1.43 compared to SLYG's beta of 1.18 [10] - SLYG's lower exposure to technology results in lower volatility and a more stable investment profile, despite its smaller AUM and higher expense ratio [12]