QQEW vs VONV

QQEWCFirst Trust Nasdaq-100 Select Equal Weight ETF

VONVAVanguard Russell 1000 Value ETF

In short

QQEW Same Nasdaq-100 neighborhood, very different math: QQEW screens the names on a blended quality and growth score, then weights them roughly evenly, so a handful of megacaps don't run the whole portfolio.

VONV The plain-vanilla value trade, done cheap: about 900 large US value stocks, full replication of the Russell 1000 Value Index, 0.06% a year. No factor cocktail, no premium price tag, and one of the strongest implementations in its factor peer group.

Stated mandate

QQEW The Fund seeks to track the price and yield performance of the Nasdaq-100 Select Equal WeightTM Index before fees and expenses, normally investing at least 80% of net assets in index securities.

VONV The fund seeks to track the Russell 1000 Value Index, representing large-capitalization value stocks in the United States. It uses passive indexing and full replication to remain closely aligned with that benchmark.

Why people hold it

• QQEW Equal weighting is the whole point. Each of the roughly 100 holdings gets a similar slice at rebalance, so the fund's path leans on the broad Nasdaq-100 field rather than its four or five biggest names.
• Not a blind equal-weight sleeve. The index picks its lineup using a Blended Quality and Growth Score, so the equal weighting is applied to a screened list, not the raw membership roll.ftportfolios.com
• Live since 2006, with billions in assets and quarterly distributions. This is a long-tenured fund that has traded through several full market cycles, not a recent thematic launch.
• The mandate is tight and testable: at least 80% of net assets in the securities of its named index, so what you see in the index rulebook is what drives the portfolio.

• VONV 0.06% a year, a fraction of the typical fee among factor ETFs. On a rules-based value index there is little room for cleverness, so cost does most of the work.vanguard.com
• Full replication, not sampling: it owns the index's roughly 900 names and has stayed tightly aligned with the Russell 1000 Value benchmark since launching in 2010.
• Same Russell benchmark as pricier rivals for less: the Goldman MarketBeta version (GVUS) charges 0.12% to track the identical value index.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, among the easiest in its group to get in and out of, and it distributes quarterly.

Worth knowing

• QQEW Fees are the trade-off. At 0.55%, QQEW costs meaningfully more than the typical fund in its multifactor peer group, where broad names like VYM and IUSG run at a fraction of that.
• It trades lightly next to the household-name Nasdaq trackers, so bid-ask spreads can be wider, especially in fast markets or on large orders.
• Still a concentrated slice: roughly 100 companies from one exchange's large-cap index. Equal weighting spreads the bets inside that pool, it doesn't broaden the pool.

• VONV One screen, one style. Value only, with no quality or momentum overlay, so the ride follows the value side of the market wherever it goes.vanguard.com
• This is the entire value bucket, not a best-ideas portfolio. About 900 holdings means results hug the large-cap value category rather than stray from it.
• Cheaper exists nearby: Vanguard's VYM charges 0.04%, but it screens for dividend yield, a different portfolio than a Russell value index.

Full QQEW profile⁠

Full VONV profile⁠