Between geopolitical events, tech stocks sliding, and overall uncertainty in the U.S. economy, it was a rough start to the year for the U.S. stock market. Through late March, the S&P 500 was down 7.5%, and investors had begun leaning more on international stocks.
Now, the S&P 500 has posted back-to-back gains. It finished April up 10.4%, May up 5.2%, and started June up 10.5% for the year.
The go-to for many investors looking to invest in international stocks was the Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS -0.64%), but with the S&P 500's current momentum, is VXUS a better or worse buy now than a month ago?
Image source: Getty Images.
VXUS has one goal aside from performance
For most, the main benefit of investing in VXUS is gaining instant exposure to essentially the entire international stock market in a single investment. Its 8,770 holdings cover companies from every non-U.S. region you can think of, so it's as broad as they come.
Although it's outperforming the S&P 500 year to date -- up 13.6% to 11% as of market close on June 2 -- it has underperformed the index over the past three months.
| Month | VXUS Returns | S&P 500 Returns |
|---|---|---|
| January | 5.6% | 1.4% |
| February | 5.2% | (0.8%) |
| March | (8%) | (5.1%) |
| April | 7.7% | 10.4% |
| May | 3.6% | 5.2% |
Data source: YCharts. Table by author.
Recent underperformance aside, VXUS's goal isn't necessarily to outperform the market (though it's greatly appreciated when it does). VXUS's main purpose is to diversify your portfolio and hedge against country-specific risks the U.S. may face. It's the best country to invest in long-term, but that doesn't make it foolproof or exempt from down periods.
If less than 10% of your portfolio is in international stocks, VXUS is still a good buy. If more than 10% of your portfolio is in international stocks, I wouldn't recommend adding more at this time. You can adjust the percentage to suit your preferences, but that's where I typically draw the line in my portfolio.
I still believe having the majority of your portfolio (around 90%) in American stocks is the smarter long-term bet.
NASDAQ: VXUS
Key Data Points
An underrated perk of investing in VXUS
VXUS might not be a consistent market beater, but it's an underrated dividend-paying ETF. It doesn't qualify as a dividend ETF, but it routinely pays an attractive dividend. Over the past decade, it has averaged around a 2.9% yield. Over that same span, the S&P 500 averaged a 1.6% yield.
VXUS Dividend Yield data by YCharts
For an ETF as broad as VXUS, its yield is impressive. Short of you investing a lump sum, it won't produce life-changing money, but it's a productive dividend for a complementary piece in a portfolio. And it's cheap, with an expense ratio of only 0.05%.
