What stocks do I own from my index funds?

Question

As we know, index funds invest in an "index" of stocks in a particular sector or class. For example, VOO is the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, and it tracks the S&P 500 stocks and invests in them. Looking at the fund profile, one can see the holdings for the fund to get an idea of where one's money is actually invested.

However, many people find themselves in a position where they're invested in multiple index funds. Likely, there is some overlap between the funds where multiple funds invest in the same company.

For example, VFIAX and VWELX both hold Microsoft. This could lead to inefficiencies or less diversification than expected in a portfolio. Or, for those who might be particular about not investing in particular industries, the index might mask that sort of thing for those who don't scrutinize all of the holdings.

Websites like Mint or Personal Capital will display the allocation in particular sectors and industries, but they don't get as granular as down to the individual company stock.

How can I determine the net makeup of my portfolio of index funds in terms of percentage/dollar amount/shares of individual stocks? Edit: I mean an automated means, not going through a prospectus or fund profile and tallying them all by hand.

Answer 1

Typically that information is not available with a cursory search. Your best bet is to go to the actual fund site, the top ten holdings are normally listed and the amount and type of cash a fund holds. You may attempt to call the fund and see if you can find information that way.

Keep in mind that a actively managed fund, like Wellington, will have holdings change. How often do you think that you will update the holdings sheet? It will be a lot of data to go through. They call it an S&P 500 fund because it holds 500 stocks!

The same holds true (sort of) for an index fund, but the changes will be small in relationship to the actual dollar amounts that you hold of each company.

You may be achieving inefficiency in a different way. Your goal should be to get Admiral shares rather than Investor see for details. You could save on expenses by concentrating on one fund rather than multiple.

One of the advantages of mutual fund investing is the ability to "fire and forget", invest your money and re balance your portfolio occasionally by asset class. Doing it by individual stock would be a lot of work and eliminate one of the things you pay professional managers for through fees.

Answer 2

VFIAX: https://investor.vanguard.com/mutual-funds/profile/overview/VFIAX/portfolio-holdings

VWELX: https://investor.vanguard.com/mutual-funds/profile/overview/VWELX/portfolio-holdings

The prospectus for any fund should include a list of the individual stocks making up that fund. Sometimes such lists will show the percentage of the total for stock. If not, you can calculate it by dividing the total for that stock by the grand total. Either way, you can then get your holdings by multiplying the percentage by the amount of your investment.

Answer 3

I believe the Morningstar portfolio XRay tool reports on the components of your entered fund portfolio (which can be one fund if you are so inclined). It used to be free with registration for a limited number of portfolios; I can't tell without signing up again if this still holds or if the current terms are "free trial then paid subscription" for this feature.