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Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.

ETFIQetfiq.com · independent ETF data

PFF vs VBK: how they differ

PFF and VBK hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and VBK returned more over the year.

iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF and Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund.

What they hold in common

By the books each fund has filed, PFF and VBK hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.

Largest positions each one holds and the other does not
Only in PFFOnly in VBK
BOEING COMPANY (THE) 3.99%Credo Technology Group Holding Ltd 1.27%
STRATEGY INC 2.99%REVOLUTION Medicines Inc 1.07%
WELLS FARGO & COMPANY 2.37%Astera Labs Inc 1.05%
ORACLE CORP 2.31%Natera Inc 1.04%
HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE COMPANY 1.79%Twilio Inc 0.88%
BANK OF AMERICA CORP 1.47%Casey's General Stores Inc 0.83%
CITIGROUP CAPITAL XIII 1.33%Carpenter Technology Corp 0.82%
ALBEMARLE CORP 1.31%Curtiss-Wright Corp 0.79%

Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026.

PFF and VBK on the fields both publish, as of Sep 12, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
PFF
iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF
VBK
Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund
Where it sitsCore index fundCore index fund
IssueriSharesVanguard
What it isPreferred and Income SecuritiesSmall-Cap Growth
Total return, 1 year−0.8%+13.8%
S&P 500 over the same days+17.5%+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500−18.3 pts−3.7 pts
Expense ratio0.45%0.05%
Already in the S&P 50021.6%10.2%
Holdings455545

PFF in plain words

PFF is an index equity fund tracking the Preferred and Income Securities. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned −0.8% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.45% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 22% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 455 positions, with the top ten at 19.9%. It sat 3.2% below its high of May 8, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

VBK in plain words

VBK is an index equity fund tracking the Small-Cap Growth. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +13.8% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.05% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 10% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 545 positions, with the top ten at 9.3%. It sat 7.0% below its high of Aug 17, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, PFF or VBK?
In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, PFF returned −0.8% and VBK returned +13.8%, so VBK returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, PFF or VBK?
PFF charges 0.45% a year and VBK charges 0.05%, so VBK is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
How much do PFF and VBK overlap with the S&P 500?
By their latest filed holdings, 22% of PFF and 10% of VBK by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.

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Where these figures came from

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.

PFF against VBK, ETFIQ, data as of Sep 12, 2026. Every figure is arithmetic on a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page. ETFIQ, PFF against VBK, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/PFF-VBK Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources