SPYG vs. VHT

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF (SPYG) and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT).

SPYG and VHT are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. SPYG is a passively managed fund by State Street that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Growth Index. It was launched on Sep 25, 2000. VHT is a passively managed fund by Vanguard that tracks the performance of the MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index. It was launched on Jan 26, 2004. Both SPYG and VHT are passive ETFs, meaning that they are not actively managed but aim to replicate the performance of the underlying index as closely as possible.

Performance

SPYG vs. VHT - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF (SPYG) and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

SPYG vs. VHT - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
SPYG State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF	-8.12%	22.09%	35.99%	30.02%	-29.41%	32.01%	33.46%	30.84%	-0.12%	27.24%
VHT Vanguard Health Care ETF	-5.04%	15.46%	2.66%	2.52%	-5.60%	20.57%	18.29%	21.87%	5.58%	23.26%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, SPYG achieves a -8.12% return, which is significantly lower than VHT's -5.04% return. Over the past 10 years, SPYG has outperformed VHT with an annualized return of 15.75%, while VHT has yielded a comparatively lower 9.72% annualized return.

SPYG

• 1D: 4.08%
• 1M: -5.34%
• YTD: -8.12%
• 6M: -6.05%
• 1Y: 22.51%
• 3Y*: 21.85%
• 5Y*: 12.24%
• 10Y*: 15.75%

VHT

• 1D: 2.24%
• 1M: -7.50%
• YTD: -5.04%
• 6M: 5.91%
• 1Y: 4.70%
• 3Y*: 6.16%
• 5Y*: 5.09%
• 10Y*: 9.72%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

SPYG vs. VHT - Expense Ratio Comparison

SPYG has a 0.04% expense ratio, which is lower than VHT's 0.10% expense ratio. Despite the difference, both funds are considered low-cost compared to the broader market, where average expense ratios usually range from 0.3% to 0.9%.

VHT

Vanguard Health Care ETF

SPYG

State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF

Return for Risk

SPYG vs. VHT — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

SPYG

SPYG Risk / Return Rank: 66
SPYG Sharpe Ratio Rank: 61
SPYG Sortino Ratio Rank: 66
SPYG Omega Ratio Rank: 65
SPYG Calmar Ratio Rank: 70
SPYG Martin Ratio Rank: 69

VHT

VHT Risk / Return Rank: 21
VHT Sharpe Ratio Rank: 20
VHT Sortino Ratio Rank: 20
VHT Omega Ratio Rank: 19
VHT Calmar Ratio Rank: 25
VHT Martin Ratio Rank: 21

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

SPYG vs. VHT - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF (SPYG) and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	SPYG	VHT	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	1.01	0.27	+0.74
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	1.58	0.49	+1.09
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.22	1.06	+0.16
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	1.66	0.51	+1.15
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	6.54	1.09	+5.45
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

SPYG vs. VHT - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current SPYG Sharpe Ratio is 1.01, which is higher than the VHT Sharpe Ratio of 0.27. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of SPYG and VHT, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	SPYG	VHT	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	1.01	0.27	+0.74
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.58	0.34	+0.24
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	0.77	0.58	+0.19
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.31	0.56	-0.25

Correlation

The correlation between SPYG and VHT is 0.72, which is considered to be high. That indicates a strong positive relationship between their price movements. Having highly-correlated positions in a portfolio may signal a lack of diversification, potentially leading to increased risk during market downturns.

Dividends

SPYG vs. VHT - Dividend Comparison

SPYG's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 0.58%, less than VHT's 1.73% yield.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
SPYG State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF	0.58%	0.52%	0.60%	1.15%	1.03%	0.62%	0.90%	1.37%	1.51%	1.41%	1.55%	1.57%
VHT Vanguard Health Care ETF	1.73%	1.61%	1.53%	1.36%	1.33%	1.14%	1.21%	1.89%	1.38%	1.31%	1.45%	1.22%

Drawdowns

SPYG vs. VHT - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum SPYG drawdown since its inception was -67.63%, which is greater than VHT's maximum drawdown of -39.12%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for SPYG and VHT.

Drawdown Indicators

	SPYG	VHT	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-67.63%	-39.12%	-28.51%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-13.76%	-10.40%	-3.36%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-32.67%	-17.71%	-14.96%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-32.67%	-28.85%	-3.82%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-10.24%	-8.05%	-2.19%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-24.48%	-5.98%	-18.50%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	3.50%	4.96%	-1.46%

Volatility

SPYG vs. VHT - Volatility Comparison

State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF (SPYG) has a higher volatility of 7.20% compared to Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) at 5.10%. This indicates that SPYG's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than VHT based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	SPYG	VHT	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	7.20%	5.10%	+2.10%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	12.83%	10.28%	+2.55%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	22.39%	17.61%	+4.78%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	21.13%	14.85%	+6.28%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	20.57%	16.94%	+3.63%