FLRG vs VYM

FLRGAFidelity U.S. Multifactor ETF

VYMAVanguard High Dividend Yield ETF

In short

FLRG Fidelity's multifactor screen distilled into about 100 US large caps at 0.15% a year, less than half what the typical multifactor fund charges. A cheap, rules-based tilt instead of the plain index.

VYM The no-frills dividend workhorse. VYM buys the higher-yielding end of the US market, roughly 600 names, for four basis points: no quality screen, no dividend-growth-streak test, just yield, at scale since 2006.

Stated mandate

FLRG The fund seeks returns that generally correspond, before fees and expenses, to the performance of the Fidelity U.S. Multifactor Index.

VYM The Fund seeks to track a benchmark index measuring the investment return of common stocks from companies characterized by high dividend yields.

Why people hold it

• FLRG 0.15% a year against a 0.32% median for US multifactor funds. On price it undercuts most of the aisle.
• Roughly 100 names, not 600. The screen actually shows up in the portfolio rather than getting diluted into a closet index fund.
• Tracks the published Fidelity U.S. Multifactor Index, so the tilt follows disclosed rules rather than a manager's discretion. Pays quarterly.fidelity.com
• Cost and risk profile put it in the upper half of a crowded factor-fund field.

• VYM Four basis points a year, against a peer-group median near 0.32%. Cheaper than cohort neighbors VONV (0.06%) and FNDX (0.25%).
• Running since 2006 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so ordinary orders tend to fill at tight spreads.
• Simple mandate: track the FTSE High Dividend Yield Index of US common stocks screened on yield. No manager discretion, no options overlay, plain 1940-Act fund.vanguard.com
• Pays quarterly, and among 100-plus value and multifactor rivals it stands as one of the strongest overall packages in the group.

Worth knowing

• FLRG Thinly traded. Spreads can widen, so limit orders matter more here than with the mega-cap index giants.
• Launched in 2020, so the live record is short and covers only a handful of market moods.
• Plain-vanilla neighbors go cheaper still, with VYM and IUSG at 0.04%. The extra basis points buy the factor screen, not broad exposure.

• VYM The screen is yield, not payout growth or dividend quality, so a company can qualify simply because its share price fell.
• This is a value slice by design, tilted to established payers, so it behaves differently from a total US market fund.
• Roughly 600 holdings, but weight leans toward the largest payers, so the top of the roster does more of the work than the count suggests.

Full FLRG profile⁠

Full VYM profile⁠