If you've been an investor for a while, then you already know growth stocks can be rewarding, but picking and monitoring them can also be a lot of work. Most growth industries evolve quickly and perpetually. You have to keep up with all of this ongoing change. Otherwise, you may find yourself sitting on the wrong stocks at the wrong time.
There is an easier way. Rather than owning individual growth stocks that may or may not pan out, try owning a basket of the market's best growth prospects in the form of an exchange-traded fund (ETF). While this may not be as exciting as picking individual winners, it's certainly much easier. It's also often more rewarding in the long run, since you tend to do less trading when you're sitting on a bundle of growth names that are bought and sold as a group. Too much trading can easily damage your long-term returns.
Here's a closer look at three growth ETFs to consider buying and holding forever if you've got $500 -- or any other amount of money -- you're ready to put to work.
Vanguard Growth ETF
There's nothing wrong with owning more than one growth ETF. If you've only got room for one though, the Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG 0.47%) is arguably your first and best all-purpose choice.
It's meant to mirror the performance of the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index, which -- as the name suggests -- consists of U.S.-listed large-cap stocks in growth sectors. Technology stocks are the predominant sector, with Microsoft, Nvidia, and Apple all unsurprisingly among the ETF's top holdings right now.
Snapchat parent Snap, artificial intelligence (AI) name CoreWeave, and fintech outfit Interactive Brokers are also part of this index's 164 holdings although in very modest proportions. A handful of names from the industrial, entertainment, healthcare, and consumer-discretionary sectors can all be found within the fund.
The chief argument for owning the Vanguard Growth ETF is the same argument for owning most Vanguard index funds when there's a viable alternative -- its incredibly low cost of management. This ETF's annual expense ratio is a mere 0.04% of its assets, which is practically nothing. This means the vast majority of whatever gains these stocks dish out ultimately benefits you.
Invesco Nasdaq Next Gen 100 ETF
You've almost certainly heard of the Invesco QQQ Trust based on the Nasdaq 100 Index. Indeed, with over $360 billion in assets, this ETF is one of the world's very biggest and most popular.
The only problem with QQQ? It's not a particularly well-diversified fund anymore. Not only have many of the fastest-growing stocks of the past several years been Nasdaq-listed names, but they're mostly technology names. That's why the Invesco QQQ Trust is now not only 60% technology stocks, but its top-10 holdings make up half of the portfolio's value.
These stocks include the aforementioned Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple, as well as Amazon and Broadcom. These tickers have also become very crowded and very expensive trades.
Image source: Getty Images.
Well, there's a solution that makes perfect sense, particularly if you've already got exposure to the market's hottest large-cap technology stocks. That's the Invesco Nasdaq Next Gen 100 ETF (QQQJ).
It's a pretty clever premise, actually. Whereas the Nasdaq 100 is a basket of the biggest non-financial Nasdaq-listed names, the Invesco Nasdaq Next Gen 100 ETF holds the next 100 biggest Nasdaq listings. These include names like Monolithic Power Systems, Super Micro Computer, Seagate Technology, and 97 other promising prospects.
The assumption is that at least some of these outfits will eventually climb into the ranks of the Nasdaq 100, rewarding investors with oversized returns as a result.
The thing is, the premise is correct. There was a time with Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, and Apple didn't qualify for inclusion in the index. They earned their way into it. This ETF is also very well balanced. No single stock accounts for more than 3% of its total value.
Just be sure you're prepared to stick with this fund for the long haul. It could take years -- if not decades -- for the fund's premise to actually pay off.
iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF
Finally, add the iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF 0.60%) to your list of ETFs to buy and hold forever.
In many ways, this fund lies somewhere between the Vanguard Growth ETF and the Invesco Nasdaq Next Gen 100 ETF. It holds sizable stakes in Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple, for instance. Built to mirror the Russell 1000 Growth Index, many of the 388 growth stocks this ETF holds aren't large caps that make up the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index or even holdings found in the Invesco Nasdaq Next Gen 100 ETF.
The iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF does, however, hold lots of NYSE-listed mid caps like Block and Carnival. It's also an effective way to hold several smaller Nasdaq-listed stocks like Marvell Technology, Super Micro Computer, and Confluent, each of which stands to benefit from the ongoing growth of artificial intelligence and the massive amount of digital data that it both needs and creates.
You still won't have a great deal of exposure to these mid caps. But you'll collectively have enough to matter.
Just be smart about buying any or all of these ETFs even if you also own the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust or the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF. Although each of these three growth-oriented ETFs are different enough, each of them is still tech heavy at a time when about one-third of the S&P 500's value also comes from technology stocks. It wouldn't hurt to make a point of owning at least a little something other than tech-driven growth here as well.
