VDE ETF: fees, returns, drawdowns and holdings

How has VDE done since 2004?#

VDES&P 500 (SPY)Growth of $10,000, log scale, with dividends reinvested. Past results do not tell you what happens next.

From September 2004 to October 2026, VDE returned about 8.8% a year. The S&P 500 returned about 11.1% a year over the same dates. Say you put in $10,000 at the start. It would have been worth about $64,572 at the end, with every dividend reinvested.

Period	VDE	S&P 500 (SPY)
1 month	6.2%	1.5%
3 months	19.0%	1.9%
6 months	19.7%	9.3%
Year to date	53.8%	12.8%
1 year	61.9%	16.8%
3 years per year	18.1%	22.0%
5 years per year	22.7%	12.8%
10 years per year	10.8%	15.4%
Since 2004 per year	8.8%	11.1%

Periods longer than a year show the return per year (CAGR). Prices through October 16, 2026. Figures use daily closing prices adjusted for splits, with dividends reinvested. They do not include taxes or the cost of buying and selling. Past results do not tell you what will happen next.

VDE returns by month and year#

VDE rose in 151 of its 266 months (57%). Its best month was April 2020, at 32.2%. Its worst was March 2020, at −36.5%.

Return each month, in percent
Year	Total	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
2026	53.8%	14.2	9.6	10.4	−2.0	−6.2	−5.0	11.9	7.3	−3.9	10.4
2025	7.1%	1.9	2.4	3.2	−13.7	2.1	5.1	2.8	3.6	0.0	−1.0	2.5	−0.5
2024	6.8%	−0.8	3.2	10.5	−1.0	0.2	−1.6	2.4	−2.5	−3.0	1.0	8.5	−8.9
2023	0.0%	3.0	−6.6	−1.1	2.4	−9.5	7.6	8.3	2.0	2.4	−5.4	−1.2	−0.2
2022	62.9%	17.5	7.5	10.0	−1.7	15.2	−17.1	10.6	3.2	−9.4	24.0	1.3	−3.9
2021	56.3%	5.0	22.5	3.1	0.4	6.6	5.2	−8.7	−1.8	10.0	9.9	−5.7	2.6
2020	−33.0%	−11.8	−14.9	−36.5	32.2	1.7	−0.9	−4.2	−0.6	−14.7	−3.5	28.0	5.3
2019	9.3%	11.7	2.2	2.3	−0.2	−11.7	8.8	−2.4	−8.7	3.9	−2.6	1.1	7.1
2018	−20.0%	3.2	−10.7	2.0	9.7	3.6	0.7	1.1	−3.0	2.6	−12.1	−2.8	−13.4
2017	−2.5%	−3.5	−2.6	−1.1	−3.5	−4.0	−0.5	2.6	−5.6	10.5	−1.1	2.1	5.4
2016	29.2%	−3.8	−2.2	10.6	10.3	−1.7	2.8	−1.9	1.9	3.4	−3.7	9.8	1.9
2015	−23.2%	−4.9	4.9	−1.9	7.1	−5.1	−3.7	−8.5	−4.1	−7.6	11.5	−0.2	−11.1
2014	−11.7%	−6.1	5.6	2.5	5.1	1.3	5.4	−3.7	2.7	−7.8	−4.0	−9.2	−2.3
2013	25.8%	8.0	0.3	2.3	−1.3	2.7	−2.1	5.2	−1.5	2.4	4.5	0.2	3.0
2012	3.4%	2.0	6.1	−3.6	−1.1	−11.1	5.1	3.9	2.2	3.5	−2.4	−1.3	1.2
2011	2.8%	7.0	7.5	1.8	1.2	−4.4	−2.1	1.6	−10.7	−13.9	18.5	1.6	−1.4
2010	21.1%	−4.3	2.4	2.8	4.5	−11.9	−5.8	8.0	−4.5	10.0	5.1	6.5	9.0
2009	25.5%	−1.9	−12.2	3.9	9.4	14.1	−6.9	5.6	1.2	6.8	1.8	2.9	1.2
2008	−39.6%	−11.1	8.7	−2.5	11.1	5.2	3.4	−14.4	−0.7	−15.1	−20.0	−2.8	−5.3
2007	34.6%	−1.1	−1.4	6.3	5.4	7.4	1.3	−0.6	0.6	7.5	2.2	−4.2	7.6
2006	19.0%	14.4	−9.1	4.7	5.4	−3.0	2.1	3.3	−4.5	−3.7	4.7	8.7	−3.0
2005	39.1%	3.7	16.6	−2.8	−6.2	3.2	7.0	7.3	6.3	6.6	−8.9	1.6	1.6
2004	5.3%									0.9	−0.1	7.5	−2.8

Each month runs from the last close of the month before. The first month counts from the first close.

How risky is VDE compared with the S&P 500?#

Measured from October 2021 to October 2026, on the days both traded.

Beta 0.60. When the S&P 500 moved 1% in a day, VDE tended to move about 0.60%.
Correlation 0.40. VDE moved with the S&P 500 some of the time.
Up and down months. In months the S&P 500 rose, VDE rose 98% as much on average. In months it fell, VDE fell 30% as much.

Measure	VDE	S&P 500 (SPY)
Return per year	22.6%	12.8%
Volatility	25.8%	17.1%
Worst drop	−26.6%	−24.5%
Sharpe ratio	0.92	0.79
Sortino ratio	1.30	1.15
Calmar ratio	0.85	0.52

Volatility is how much the price swings in a year. The Sharpe ratio is return per unit of volatility, the Sortino ratio counts only the falls, and the Calmar ratio is the return per year over the worst drop. Higher ratios mean more return for the risk taken.

Is VDE above its 200-day average?#

VDE closed 18.2% above its 200-day average on October 16, 2026. A rule that holds VDE only above that average would hold it today.

vs 200-day average: +18.2%; above it
50-day vs 200-day: +10.6%; trend rising
vs 52-week high: 0.0%; high of $190.14

A moving average is the average close over the last so many days. Trend rules such as the 10-month moving average strategy hold a fund only while it is above one. You can build that rule for VDE and backtest it in a minute.

What was VDE’s worst drop?#

Drawdown: how far VDE was below its last high on each day.

A drawdown is how far a fund falls from its last high point. VDE’s worst fall was −74.7%, from June 23, 2014 to March 18, 2020. It got back to that high on April 18, 2022. On October 16, 2026 it closed at a new high.

Drop	From the high	To the bottom	Back to the high
−74.7%	Jun 23, 2014	Mar 18, 20205.7 years	Apr 18, 20222.1 years
−58.2%	May 20, 2008	Mar 2, 20099 months	Sep 11, 20134.5 years
−26.6%	Jun 7, 2022	Jul 14, 202237 days	Nov 1, 20224 months
−21.4%	Nov 22, 2024	Apr 8, 20255 months	Jan 5, 20269 months
−18.5%	Nov 15, 2022	Mar 17, 20234 months	Sep 8, 20236 months

Big drops are normal for some funds. They matter because selling during a drop locks in the loss.

What does VDE hold?#

This fund owns shares of about 110 US energy companies, such as oil and gas producers and pipeline firms. A few big companies make up much of the fund. Energy stocks often swing a lot with oil and gas prices.

It tracks the MSCI US Investable Market Energy 25/50 Index. It had 111 holdings as of September 30, 2026, according to Vanguard.

What is the VDE expense ratio?#

VDE charges 0.09% a year. An expense ratio is the yearly fee a fund takes to run itself. On $10,000, a 0.09% fee comes to about $9 a year. Of the 162 ETFs on Tactfolio, 52% charge more.

You never get a bill for it. The fund takes the fee out of its own value a little each day.

0.09%

Which Tactfolio strategies hold VDE?#

No classic strategy holds VDE yet. You can add it to your own rules in the builder and see how they would have done.

How does VDE compare with similar ETFs?#

Funds that can stand in for VDE:

XLE: State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF, 0.08% a year
XLB: State Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF, 0.08% a year
VAW: Vanguard Materials ETF, 0.09% a year
DJP: iPath Bloomberg Commodity Index Total Return ETN, 0.7% a year

See all 6 VDE alternatives, compared on the same dates as VDE.

Test VDE in your own rules#

Tactfolio is a platform where you build rules-based investing strategies, backtest them on decades of real prices, share them, and run them automatically in your own Alpaca account. Open the builder, add VDE, and see how a rule such as “hold it only above its 200-day average” would have done. Strategies run on daily prices and hold US stocks and ETFs only.

The details#

Prices come from Tactfolio’s stored daily prices for VDE and SPY. Each close is adjusted for splits, and dividends are reinvested on the day the fund pays them out. CAGR is the steady yearly return that turns the starting value into the ending value. Volatility is the yearly standard deviation of daily returns. Beta and correlation compare daily returns with the S&P 500 over the same dates.

Fund facts come from Vanguard. We checked them on October 17, 2026. Read what a backtest simulates and how to read drawdown and CAGR for more on these measures.

Common questions#

What is the expense ratio of VDE?#

VDE charges 0.09% a year, according to Vanguard as of October 17, 2026. That is about $9 a year for every $10,000 you hold.

When did VDE start trading?#

VDE started trading on September 23, 2004. It is run by Vanguard.

What does VDE track?#

VDE tracks the MSCI US Investable Market Energy 25/50 Index. This fund owns shares of about 110 US energy companies, such as oil and gas producers and pipeline firms.

How much has VDE returned per year?#

From September 2004 to October 2026, VDE returned about 8.8% a year with dividends reinvested. Its worst drop was −74.7%. Past returns do not tell you what it will do next.

Is VDE above its 200-day moving average?#

On October 16, 2026, VDE closed 18.2% above its 200-day moving average. This page updates after each US market close.

Which strategies use VDE?#

None of Tactfolio’s classic strategies hold VDE yet. You can test it in your own rules in the builder.

Sources#

Vanguard: Vanguard Energy ETF fund page