Investment Opportunities: Top 5 ETFs Worth $1,000 to Keep Permanently
In the realm of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), a few stand out as effective tools for building wealth through a disciplined approach of dollar-cost averaging. These include the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG), Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT), and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD). Each offers distinct benefits, catering to various investment strategies and risk tolerances.
VOO (tracks the S&P 500) provides broad market exposure with a low expense ratio, around 0.07%, and a solid 5-year annualized return of about 16.7% as of mid-2025. It's a foundational core holding for diversified portfolios, recommended for its simplicity and growth potential at large market scale [2].
VUG focuses on large-cap growth stocks and typically exhibits higher volatility but with potential for higher returns thanks to growth-oriented holdings. Its performance is strong in growth-driven market environments and complements broad market ETFs like VOO [1][4].
QQQ tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index, heavily weighted toward technology and innovation sectors. It historically delivers higher returns but also higher volatility, benefiting investors with longer time horizons who can tolerate market swings [1][4]. Over 60% of its holdings were in tech companies at the end of June, and it has outperformed the S&P 500 on a rolling 12-month basis 87% of the time over this stretch [5].
VGT specializes further in the information technology sector, one of the fastest-growing segments of the market. This ETF offers concentrated exposure to tech giants, driving substantial growth over the long term, though with sector-specific risk [1][4]. As of the end of June, Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple combined made up nearly 45% of its holdings [5].
SCHD is dividend-focused, investing in high dividend yield U.S. equities, often offering more income and some downside protection during market downturns. It complements growth ETFs by adding yield and potential stability to a portfolio. SCHD holds about 101 stocks and has a sizable asset base, indicating liquidity and investor interest [3].
Using dollar-cost averaging with these ETFs allows investors to build wealth gradually by regularly investing fixed amounts, reducing the impact of market volatility and taking advantage of the ETFs’ long-term upward trends. VOO offers broad market stability, VUG and QQQ/VGT potentially add higher growth exposure, and SCHD provides income and defensive qualities.
In summary, these ETFs collectively offer diversification across market caps, growth vs. dividend focus, and sector specialization, which combined with disciplined dollar-cost averaging, makes them effective tools for long-term wealth building [1][2][3][4]. The Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) has an average annual return of 17.5% over the past 10 years, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) and Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) have returned an average of 18.7% and 21.2% annually over the same period (as of the end of June) [5].
References: 1. Investopedia 2. Vanguard 3. Schwab 4. Invesco 5. CNBC
- A disciplined approach of dollar-cost averaging, combined with VOO's broad market exposure, low expense ratio, and consistent returns, makes it an effective personal-finance tool for wealth-building and a foundational core holding for diversified portfolios.
- By regularly investing fixed amounts, investors can gradually build wealth using VUG's growth-oriented holdings and high volatility, potentially adding a higher return to their personal-finance strategies, especially in growth-driven market environments.
- For investors with a longer time horizon, QQQ's focus on technology and innovation sectors and historically higher returns, despite increased volatility, could be appealing in the context of longer-term personal-finance investment goals and risk tolerances.
