Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
COWZ vs VDE: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, COWZ returned +24.4% to VDE's +58.8%; 12% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $19.5bn on Oct 27, 2026 for Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF, and $10.4bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Energy ETF.
Pair scorecard
VDE costs 0.40 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 34.4 points.
| Measure | COWZ | VDE |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +24.4% | +58.8% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Pacer US Cash Cows 100 Index | MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Energy 25/50 |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.09% |
| Net assets, COWZ as of Oct 27, 2026 and VDE as of Sep 30, 2026 | $19.5bn | $10.4bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 12% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 20.4% | 67.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Dec 30, 2016 to Oct 23, 2026 · 512 weekly returnsCOWZ returned more: +251.9% to +159.1%. COWZ swung less: 19.6% to 30.3%. COWZ fell less at its worst: −36.3% to −66.6%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | COWZ | VDE | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +251.9% | +159.1% | COWZ | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +13.6% | +10.2% | COWZ | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +188.5% | +84.4% | COWZ | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 19.6% | 30.3% | COWZ | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 13.8% | 21.6% | COWZ | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −36.3% | −66.6% | COWZ | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.62 | 0.39 | COWZ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.89 | 0.55 | COWZ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.38 | 0.15 | COWZ | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 512 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, COWZ and VDE hold 12% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026.
half
12% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
COWZ and VDE on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
COWZ and VDE do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. COWZ follows Pacer US Cash Cows 100 Index and VDE follows MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Energy 25/50.
- Holdings in common. 12% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 COWZ returned +24.4% and VDE +58.8% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 34.4 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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COWZ
COWZ tracks an index of US Cash Cows 100. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +24.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.49% a year. By its holdings filed for Jul 31, 2026, 95% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 100 positions, with the top ten at 20.4%.
VDE
VDE tracks an index of Energy. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +58.8% with distributions reinvested, against +59.0% for its benchmark, the MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Energy 25/50. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 81% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 113 positions, with the top ten at 67.1%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, COWZ or VDE?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, COWZ returned +24.4% and VDE +58.8%.
- Which is cheaper, COWZ or VDE?
- VDE is cheaper, by 0.40 percentage points a year. That is about $40 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, COWZ against VDE, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cowz-vs-vde
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). COWZ against VDE. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cowz-vs-vde
[COWZ against VDE (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cowz-vs-vde)
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