IJK vs VYM

IJKAiShares S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF

VYMAVanguard High Dividend Yield ETF

In short

IJK IJK splits the S&P MidCap 400 in half and keeps the growth side: roughly 250 mid-size US companies picked by the index's growth and momentum screen, for 0.16% a year. It has been doing exactly that since 2000.

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

IJK The fund seeks to track an index of U.S. mid-capitalization equities exhibiting growth characteristics.

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

• IJK A 2000 vintage, which makes it one of the original style-box ETFs and now a multi-billion-dollar fund. Two decades of live history is rare in the factor aisle.
• 0.16% a year, roughly half the typical fee among the factor funds it competes with.
• Growth here is a published rulebook, not a manager's hunch: S&P's own growth and momentum screen applied to the MidCap 400. The fund tracks that index closely, among the tighter trackers in its group.ishares.com
• Mid caps are the slice most portfolios skip. This one covers about 250 of them, with cash paid out quarterly.

• 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

• IJK This is half the mid-cap market by design. The growth screen leaves the value side of the 400 on the table, so it is a tilt, not full mid-cap coverage.
• Volatility is the trade-off. Mid-size companies screened for growth and momentum move more than a broad total-market fund, and that shows up in this fund's risk profile.
• Volume is moderate rather than headline-grabbing, so spreads can widen on chunky orders.

• 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 IJK profile⁠

Full VYM profile⁠