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COWG vs VUG

Pacer US Large Cap Cash Cows Growth Leaders ETF

COWGBNasdaq

Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF

VUGANYSE Arca

Overlap

Expense ratio

VUG −0.46pt a year

COWG0.49%VUG0.03%

Avg volume · 30D

VUG 24.7×the volume

COWG256KVUG6.32M

3Y return · a year

COWG +0.1pt

COWG+24.7%VUG+24.6%

COWG vs VUG Performance

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

+8.5%COWG+2.7%VUG

Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. COWG +8.5%. VUG +2.7%. Use the arrow keys to read each point.−15%−10%−5%15%Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026
Expense ratio
COWG 0.49%
VUG 0.03%, better
Fund size
COWG $2.3B
VUG $392B
1Y total return
COWG +8.5%, better
VUG +2.7%
Yield (12M)
COWG 0.75%, better
VUG 0.41%
Holdings
COWG 101
VUG 136
Avg volume (30D)
COWG 256K sh
VUG 6.32M sh, better
NAV per share
COWG $39.39
VUG $85.06
52W range

ETF.net Grade

COWG: Cost 18, Risk 57, Mission 92, Tradability 66, Holdings 65, Durability 50. VUG: Cost 96, Risk 49, Mission 99, Tradability 65, Holdings 29, Durability 91.
Pillar letters and Scores for COWG, VUG, with each pillar’s weight
PillarCOWGVUG
Cost30% weightF18A96Higher
Mission25% weightA92A99Higher
Risk15% weightB57HigherC49
Tradability15% weightB66HigherB65
Holdings10% weightB65HigherD29
Durability5% weightC50A91Higher

Rank among US Growth Index funds

How we build Categories ›
Same Category. Both funds are graded against the same funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Same Category. COWG and VUG are both graded against the same 35 US Growth Index funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Growth Index⁠

Category · 35 funds
See all 35 ›

VUG ranks 5th and COWG 22nd of 35 funds in the US Growth Index Category.

  1. Rank 2ASCHGSchwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETFScore 78
  2. Rank 5AVUGVanguard Morningstar Growth ETFScore 77
  3. Rank 6AVBKVanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Growth ETFScore 72
  4. Rank 19BSNPGXtrackers S&P 500 Growth Scored & Screened ETFScore 59
  5. Rank 22BCOWGPacer US Large Cap Cash Cows Growth Leaders ETFScore 55
  6. Rank 23CRPGInvesco S&P 500 Pure Growth ETFScore 54

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

COWGBPacer US Large Cap Cash Cows Growth Leaders ETF

VUGAVanguard Morningstar Growth ETF

In short

COWG Pacer aimed its Cash Cows free-cash-flow playbook at growth stocks: roughly 100 Russell 1000 names chosen on cash generation and profitability rather than revenue growth alone. Growth, with the cash burners screened out.

VUG Three basis points buys roughly 170 US large-cap growth names. Running since 2004, over $100 billion in assets, and it tracks its index about as closely as an index fund can.

Stated mandate

COWG The Fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the Pacer US Large Cap Cash Cows Growth Leaders Index. Its rules-based strategy selects growth companies from the Russell 1000 using free cash flow margin and related profitability screens.

VUG The fund seeks to track a benchmark index measuring the investment return of large-capitalization growth stocks.

Why people hold it

  • COWG The screen is the product: Russell 1000 growth companies ranked on free cash flow margin and related profitability tests, and the fund has tracked that index closely.paceretfs.com
  • About 100 holdings, so the cash flow filter actually shows up in the portfolio instead of being diluted across a several-hundred-name growth benchmark.
  • Has reached multi-billion-dollar scale since its 2022 launch, trades at moderate volume, and pays on a quarterly schedule.
  • VUG 0.03% a year against a 0.18% median for its growth peer group. A rival tracking the same declared index charges 0.36%, twelve times more for the same shopping list.vanguard.com
  • One of the largest and most heavily traded funds in US large-cap growth, and among the tightest index implementations in that group. Deep volume tends to mean thin spreads.
  • Trading since January 2004, so the record spans full market cycles rather than a backtest. Distributions land quarterly.

Worth knowing

  • COWG The screen is not cheap: 0.49% a year against a growth-cohort median of 0.18%, and multiples of plain index rivals like VUG (0.03%) or SCHG (0.04%).
  • Short history. It launched in December 2022, so there is no full-cycle record behind the methodology yet.
  • A concentrated rules-based slice can look quite different from a standard large-cap growth index between rebalances, in either direction.
  • VUG Cap-weighted, so the biggest mega-caps dominate the top of the book. That makes it one of the more concentrated portfolios in this cohort.vanguard.com
  • A style sleeve, not the whole market: growth screens only, large caps only. When growth is out of favor it can swing harder than a total-market fund.
  • SPYG and SCHG sit at 0.04%, so the price edge is a rounding error. The real gap is how each index defines a growth stock.

Full COWG profile⁠

Full VUG profile⁠

COWG vs VUG Holdings

As of
How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

COWG vs VUG Cost

Overpaying COWG vs VUG

$9,154

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • COWG 0.49%

    $9,792

  • VUG 0.03%

    $638

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • COWG 0.49%
  • VUG 0.03%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2K$4K$6K$8K$10K051015202530COWG $9,792VUG $638

Year by year

YearCOWGVUGOverpaying
10$883$55$828
20$3,394$216$3,178
30$9,792$638$9,154

Expense ratio

  • 0.49%COWG
  • 0.03%VUG, cheaper
  • Middle half of US Growth Index funds
  • Median 0.18%

VUG cheapest of 35 funds

COWG 28th cheapest of 35 funds

COWG vs VUG Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026
Yield (12M)
COWG 0.75%, better
VUG 0.41%
Payout (12M)
COWG $0.30
VUG $0.35
Last payment
COWG $0.19
VUG $0.09
Ex-dividend
COWG Sep 3, 2026
VUG Sep 28, 2026
Paid on
COWG Sep 8, 2026
VUG Sep 30, 2026
Frequency
COWG Quarterly
VUG Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

COWGQuarterly · 15 paymentsAll COWG payments⁠
One bar per payment. 15 payments from 2017 to 2026 YTD. Mar 23, 2023 $0.02; Jun 22, 2023 $0.02; Sep 21, 2023 $0.02; Dec 27, 2023 $0.04; Mar 21, 2024 $0.03; Jun 27, 2024 $0.02; Sep 26, 2024 $0.03; Dec 27, 2024 $0.05; Mar 6, 2025 $0.0049; Jun 5, 2025 $0.0082; Sep 4, 2025 $0.04; Dec 30, 2025 $0.06; Mar 5, 2026 $0.01; Jun 4, 2026 $0.03; Sep 3, 2026 $0.19. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$0.202017202020232026YTD
VUGQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll VUG payments⁠
One bar per payment. 39 payments from 2017 to 2026 YTD. Mar 24, 2017 $0.06; Jun 23, 2017 $0.06; Sep 22, 2017 $0.07; Dec 21, 2017 $0.08; Mar 22, 2018 $0.06; Jun 22, 2018 $0.07; Sep 28, 2018 $0.08; Dec 24, 2018 $0.09; Mar 28, 2019 $0.07; Jun 27, 2019 $0.07; Sep 16, 2019 $0.06; Dec 24, 2019 $0.08; Mar 26, 2020 $0.07; Jun 25, 2020 $0.07; Sep 25, 2020 $0.07; Dec 24, 2020 $0.08; Mar 25, 2021 $0.06; Jun 24, 2021 $0.06; Sep 24, 2021 $0.05; Dec 27, 2021 $0.08; Mar 23, 2022 $0.05; Jun 23, 2022 $0.05; Sep 23, 2022 $0.07; Dec 22, 2022 $0.07; Mar 23, 2023 $0.07; Jun 23, 2023 $0.07; Sep 21, 2023 $0.06; Dec 21, 2023 $0.10; Mar 21, 2024 $0.08; Jun 27, 2024 $0.08; Sep 26, 2024 $0.08; Dec 23, 2024 $0.09; Mar 27, 2025 $0.08; Jun 30, 2025 $0.08; Sep 29, 2025 $0.08; Dec 22, 2025 $0.08; Mar 27, 2026 $0.08; Jun 26, 2026 $0.09; Sep 28, 2026 $0.09. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$0.202017202020232026YTD

COWG vs VUG Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years
COWG 16.0%, betterVUG 17.3%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years
COWG 1.19, betterVUG 1.11
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years
COWG −23.6%since Dec 2022VUG −35.6%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years
COWG 1.04VUG 1.23

COWG and VUG in the news

All news⁠

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