VGSH — Vanguard Short-Term Treasury Index Fund ETF Shares

VGSH Price Performance — Growth of $10,000

Value of a $10,000 investment in VGSH over time, compared with SPY. Both lines are rebased to $10,000 on the first shared date. Based on total returns — prices are adjusted for dividends and splits, so this assumes distributions were reinvested. Hover or tap the chart for exact values.

VGSH Drawdown

The "underwater" chart: VGSH's decline from its highest prior value at each point in time. It shows how deep past losses ran and how long the fund took to recover to break-even.

Overview

Vanguard issues the VGSH ETF, a short-term government bond fund tracking 22 peers in its category. With $39.2 billion in assets, it holds a C grade and ranks third among similar funds. Its 0.03% expense ratio sits below the category median of 0.07%, while its 3.82% dividend yield is slightly lower than the 3.84% median. The fund’s top ten holdings represent 13.9% of assets, with the largest position being a United States Treasury Note/Bond at 2.2%.

The fund’s price of $57.92 rests at 6.8% of its 52-week range, reflecting a 3.0-year history. Short-term returns show modest gains, with one-month and three-month figures at +0.19% and +0.71% respectively. In contrast, the one-year return of +2.39% significantly outpaces the category median of +0.33%. Longer-term performance is stronger, with a three-year return of +13.40%. The ETFValuer grade has remained unchanged at C over the last 35 tracked days.

VGSH exhibits a beta of 0.22, indicating it moves only 22% as much as the broader market. Annualized volatility is labeled Very Low at 1.23%, and the maximum drawdown has been limited to -0.97%. Despite these low risk metrics, the Sharpe ratio stands at -2.12, suggesting poor risk-adjusted returns relative to the risk-free rate. Liquidity is robust, with an average daily volume of 4,391,161 shares and a tight bid-ask spread of 0.02%.

AI-generated summary based on the data on this page.

VGSH Top Holdings

Holdings as of 2026-05-31 per the fund's most recent SEC N-PORT-P filing. Top 10 holdings make up 13.9% of net assets — a rough gauge of concentration risk (the higher this figure, the more the fund's return depends on a handful of names). To see how VGSH's holdings overlap with other ETFs you own or are considering, check the Stock Overlap tool.

Which Funds Overlap With VGSH

Holding two funds that own the same companies adds cost and complexity without adding much diversification. These tracked ETFs share the most names with VGSH's top 10 — VCSH overlaps most, holding 1 of the same companies as VGSH's top 10 (13.9% of VGSH's assets).

Compares the top 10 reported holdings of each fund, so it's a floor on true overlap — two S&P 500 trackers overlap ~100% even when only 10 names are listed. Use the Stock Overlap tool to search by individual company.

Market Backdrop

10-Year Treasury Yield: 4.77% (as of 2026-09-03) — The yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds — the standard "risk-free rate" benchmark used to contextualize this fund’s Sharpe ratio and returns.

CBOE Volatility Index (VIX): 14.32 (as of 2026-09-03) — A real-time gauge of expected S&P 500 volatility over the next 30 days — useful context for this fund’s own volatility label.

Federal Funds Rate: 3.63% (as of 2026-08-01) — The Federal Reserve’s target policy rate, which anchors short-term borrowing costs across the economy.

VGSH Liquidity, Domicile & Tax Treatment

Liquidity: Quoted bid/ask spread is 0.02% and average daily volume is 4.4M/day. Tighter spreads and higher volume mean lower round-trip trading costs; this is a live-market snapshot and can widen during volatile sessions. AUM of $39.2B provides ample scale, supporting tight spreads and issuer commitment to keep the fund open.

Domicile & tax treatment: VGSH is a US-domiciled, SEC-registered ('40 Act) exchange-traded fund. Dividends and capital gains distributions are reported to US investors on Form 1099-DIV, and the fund is not subject to the PFIC reporting or UCITS-specific rules that apply to Irish- or Luxembourg-domiciled funds. Non-US investors should note that US-domiciled ETFs are generally subject to 30% US withholding tax on dividends (unless reduced by treaty) and to US estate tax exposure on the position — Irish-domiciled UCITS ETFs tracking the same index often avoid both, which is why non-US residents frequently prefer the UCITS equivalent where one exists. This is general information, not tax advice — consult a tax professional for your situation.

VGSH Performance History

How VGSH Compares to Other US Bonds - Government ETFs