Fund profile
VYM
Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index Fund ETF SharesVanguard High Dividend Yield (VYM) — simplified ETF snapshot for research (not advice).
Current price
$162.69
Distribution yield
2.23%
Trailing 12 months
Expense ratio
0.040%
Annual fund cost
Holdings
~550
Fund-level estimate
Strategy
High yield
Site classification
Payout record
VYM dividend history — annual distribution per share
Total distributions Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index Fund ETF Shares paid per share in each completed calendar year, summed from actual payment dates.
Latest full year
$3.50
2025
Years with data
15
Within 2011–2025
Annual growth
+7.2%
Compound annual rate
Change over period
+163%
Per share, cumulative
| Year | Distribution per share | Relative size | vs. prior year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $3.50 | +0.0% | |
| 2024 | $3.50 | +0.6% | |
| 2023 | $3.48 | +7.1% | |
| 2022 | $3.25 | +4.8% | |
| 2021 | $3.10 | +6.5% | |
| 2020 | $2.91 | +2.5% | |
| 2019 | $2.84 | +7.2% | |
| 2018 | $2.65 | +10.4% | |
| 2017 | $2.40 | +8.6% | |
| 2016 | $2.21 | +2.8% | |
| 2015 | $2.15 | +12.6% | |
| 2014 | $1.91 | +9.1% | |
| 2013 | $1.75 | +10.1% | |
| 2012 | $1.59 | +19.5% | |
| 2011 | $1.33 | — |
All distributions are included, so a year containing a year-end capital gains distribution will be higher than its income alone. Fund distributions vary with the income of the underlying holdings and are not a fixed payout. The current year is omitted until it is complete, and a dash marks a year whose source payment records are incomplete. Figures are summed from payment history and may differ from fund-reported distribution schedules.
Portfolio concentration
Reported top holdings
The visual summarizes the reported top 10 holdings out of approximately 550 total. It is a composition reference, not a complete portfolio file.
Largest holding
AVGO 7.35%
Broadcom Inc
Top 5 combined
18.15%
Largest five reported weights
Reported top set
26.11%
Top 10 combined
Site coverage
10/10
Holdings linked to site pages
Source: Yahoo Finance fund snapshot. Weights and holding names may lag, and the displayed holdings are not the full fund portfolio.
Research note
VYM: a high-dividend index fund is not a high-yield promise
VYM answers a different question from a covered-call income ETF: how to own a broad basket of companies selected for above-average dividend characteristics.
The index is the starting discipline
VYM seeks to track the FTSE High Dividend Yield Index. That tells a reader more than the word “dividend” alone: this is an index-based fund whose selection process is designed around companies characterized by above-average yields, rather than a manager selling options to manufacture an income target. The fund's appeal is breadth and a rules-based starting point, not a promise that every constituent has the same payout quality or the same prospects for raising a dividend.
That distinction keeps a common comparison from going wrong. A fund can have a higher portfolio yield because its companies have lower share prices, slower expected growth, or a different sector mix. Yield is one input into the index exposure; it is not a scorecard for business quality. The holdings list is useful for seeing the present composition, while the fund's index methodology explains why that composition can change without a manager making a discretionary call on one stock.
Quarterly cash payments will not form a straight line
VYM's distribution history is best read as a record of what the underlying portfolio delivered through the fund, not as a monthly-income schedule. Portfolio companies declare dividends on different calendars and in different amounts. When those payments flow through an ETF, one quarter can be higher or lower than the next without proving that the strategy has changed or failed.
The annual totals table smooths some of that calendar noise, but it has its own limit: a rising completed-year total does not guarantee the next year's payment. Comparing completed years, current yield, and the latest distribution together is more informative than elevating any one of them. Investors looking for a specific payment date should use the sponsor's distribution notice rather than infer it from last year's schedule.
Breadth changes the risk, not the need for judgment
A broad portfolio reduces reliance on a single company's board decision, but it does not remove equity-market risk, sector tilts, valuation risk, or the possibility of dividend cuts across holdings. The reported top holdings on this page are a useful snapshot of concentration. They are not a complete portfolio file, and they should not be mistaken for a list of individual recommendations.
For a dividend investor, the useful question is not simply “What yield does VYM show today?” It is whether broad high-dividend equity exposure fits alongside the rest of the portfolio, including bonds, growth holdings, and any higher-income option strategies. The dividend screener can help explore individual-company metrics, but an ETF's index construction and diversification are the reason to evaluate it as a fund rather than as a bundle of tickers.
Fund-structure source: Vanguard's VYM profile. Holdings, prices, and distribution figures above come from this site's daily fund snapshot and may lag the sponsor's reports.
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