One of the most popular ETFs in Australia is the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS).
In fact, at the last count, there was $14.7 billion invested in the fund.
To put that into context, that's more than the value of lithium giant Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) and Australia's flag carrier airline Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN).
Image source: Getty Images
What is the Vanguard Australian Shares Index (VAS) ETF?
This popular ETF gives investors access to the top 300 companies listed on the Australian share market.
Vanguard highlights that this provides access to long-term capital growth potential and regular income through distributions.
In addition, due to the sheer number of ASX shares that you are buying a slice of with the ETF, it provides almost instant diversification to a portfolio.
Clearly there's a lot to like about this ETF. But has it delivered the goods for investors over the last 12 months? Let's dig deeper and find out.
$10,000 invested in ASX VAS
If I had invested into this ETF 12 months ago, I would have been buying at a price of $88.87.
This means I would have been able to pick up 113 units for an investment of $10,042.31.
While the first few months of ownership would have been relatively flat before a turbulent period between mid-September and the start of November, it would've paid handsomely (literally) to have held on.
At the time of writing, VAS is trading at $96.50 on the ASX boards. This means that my 113 units would have a market value $10,904.50. That's a return of 8.6% or approximately $862 on my investment.
But it doesn't stop there. As I mentioned above, the VAS ETF offer regular income through distributions.
Since this time last year, the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF has paid out a total of $3.47 per share in dividends.
This equates to a dividend yield of 3.9% based on my buy price and would have generated $392.11 in income over the 12 months.
