Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) Top Holdings

The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) is the classic “own the market” building block: broad, low-cost exposure to the largest U.S. companies in a single ticker. It’s a default choice for long-term portfolios because it’s simple, tax-efficient, and has historically performed well with minimal fuss.

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Under the hood, though, VOO isn’t a flat democracy. It’s market-cap weighted, which means the largest companies command the largest slices of the pie, and the fund’s returns increasingly hinge on a small group of mega-cap companies. That has been a tailwind in recent years, as the largest tech platforms have outperformed, but it also concentrates risk.

To see what you really own when you buy “the market,” it helps to look at the top holdings, including deep dives on the three heaviest hitters: NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Apple.

1. NVIDIA (NVDA)

NVIDIA has become the essential compute engine of the modern cloud. Its newest Blackwell generation, B200 GPUs and Grace-Blackwell superchips, pair massive parallel compute with high-bandwidth memory and advanced interconnects (NVLink/NVSwitch). At the same time, the networking stack now spans both InfiniBand and Spectrum-X Ethernet, enabling data to be moved across AI clusters without compromising throughput.

Unlike a traditional chip vendor, NVIDIA sells a full stack: CUDA and AI Enterprise software, model frameworks, orchestration tools, and tightly integrated networking. That software layer makes its hardware more productive per rack and per watt, creating real ROI for hyperscalers and a powerful moat for NVIDIA.

Distribution keeps widening. DGX Cloud is available through major partners, while hyperscalers are standing up Blackwell systems at supercluster scale. NVIDIA has also leaned into open hardware initiatives to keep its designs aligned with the broader data-center ecosystem. The result: NVIDIA isn’t just supplying accelerators; it’s defining the architecture of AI-first infrastructure. For VOO holders, that’s why NVDA sits at the very top of the weight table.

2. Microsoft (MSFT)

Microsoft is the most diversified software platform on the planet: Azure in the cloud, Microsoft 365 for productivity, Windows on endpoints, and GitHub for developers. The common thread is recurring revenue, including subscriptions that renew monthly, and embedding Microsoft deeper into enterprise workflows.

Its AI rollout is notable for being practical, not just flashy. Copilot features are landing inside the apps businesses already use, while Azure AI offers model choice and tooling that meet enterprises where they are (governance, security, data residency). That keeps switching costs high and drives wallet share over time.

Financially, it’s a fortress: consistent double-digit growth, huge free cash flow, and a buyback/dividend program that quietly compounds returns. In VOO, Microsoft is both a stabilizer and a growth engine, large enough to matter every quarter and still early in monetizing AI across its product line.

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3. Apple (AAPL)

Apple’s superpower is its installed base, now well over two billion active devices. Hardware launches get headlines, but the real story is Services: App Store, iCloud, Music, TV+, Payments, AppleCare. Services are higher-margin, more predictable, and deepen lock-in across iPhone, Mac, iPad, and wearables.

The company keeps adding surface area. Custom Apple Silicon improves performance and battery life, Vision Pro opens up spatial computing, and health features make the Watch even more indispensable. Even when unit growth is slower, Apple’s ecosystem pulls revenue forward through upgrades and cross-sell.

Cash generation remains enormous, fueling one of the most extensive buyback programs in history. That shrinking share count quietly lifts EPS and long-term returns. As VOO’s #3 position, Apple continues to be a compounding machine, less cyclical than it appears, because the ecosystem keeps customers engaged.

What This Mix Means for VOO

Although VOO owns more than 500 companies, half of the fund is invested in just 25 stocks, and nearly 38% is in the top 10 alone. That concentration has been a feature, not a bug: NVIDIA, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Broadcom, and Meta have driven much of the index’s gains.

The flip side is exposure. If mega-cap tech stumbles, VOO will feel it. For most long-term investors, that’s an acceptable trade-off: you still get broad market coverage, world-class businesses at the top, and the simplicity of a single ticker. But it’s worth remembering that your “index” bet is, in practice, tilted heavily toward mega-cap tech.

Key Insights

• Low-cost compounding. With a 0.03% expense ratio, cost savings add up meaningfully.
• Heavy reliance on mega-caps. The top 10 holdings make up nearly 38% of the fund.
• Sector concentration in tech. Technology alone accounts for more than a third of the weight.
• Diversification still matters. Hundreds of smaller positions smooth returns over time.

Why Half the Fund Sits in 25 Companies

VOO remains one of the cleanest ways to own U.S. large caps: ultra-low fees, broad diversification, and a performance track record that’s hard to beat. The updated holdings demonstrate the significant impact of the leaders; NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Apple alone account for roughly 21% of the fund.

That concentration has driven returns and may continue to do so if AI, cloud, and platform economics continue to compound. Just remember that “owning the market” today really means owning a handful of giants, with hundreds of other companies providing balance in the background.

If you’re comfortable with that balance, VOO is still the core building block for most portfolios. It captures U.S. growth at scale, with minimal costs, in a single, simple ticker.

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Disclaimer:

Please note that the articles on TIKR are not intended to serve as investment or financial advice from TIKR or our content team, nor are they recommendations to buy or sell any stocks. We create our content based on TIKR Terminal’s investment data and analysts’ estimates. Our analysis might not include recent company news or important updates. TIKR has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading, and happy investing!