LQD vs VCIT Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
LQD and VCIT both provide investment-grade corporate bond exposure but with meaningful differences — LQD has broader maturity coverage (longer duration), larger AUM and better liquidity, and a higher expense ratio (0.14% vs VCIT's 0.04%), while VCIT focuses on intermediate maturities with lower cost. Rate-sensitive investors may prefer VCIT's shorter duration; institutional traders may prefer LQD's liquidity.
LQD vs VCIT is the liquidity-vs-cost tradeoff in investment-grade corporate bond ETFs — the largest, most liquid fund (LQD) versus the lower-cost, intermediate-duration alternative (VCIT).
VCIT holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. VCIT has delivered stronger 1-year price return (-1.74% vs -3.28% for LQD).
- Need maximum liquidity for investment-grade corporate bond exposure — institutional investors trading in size
- Want broader maturity range exposure across the investment-grade corporate bond curve
- Value iShares/BlackRock's largest corporate bond ETF brand for institutional portfolio construction
- Want the lowest-cost investment-grade corporate bond ETF with Vanguard's cost leadership (0.04% expense ratio)
- Prefer intermediate-term duration (5-10 years) as a balanced interest rate sensitivity for a core bond allocation
- Are building a Vanguard fund portfolio where VCIT fits as the corporate bond allocation alongside BND or BNDX
| Metric | LQD | VCIT |
|---|---|---|
| ETF scorei | 24.2 | 24.3 |
| Latest closei | $103.50 | $79.00 |
| 1M returni | -0.32% | -0.21% |
| 3M returni | -2.48% | -2.27% |
| 6M returni | -3.12% | -2.58% |
| 1Y returni | -3.28% | -1.74% |
The ETF score weights long-term returns and risk-adjusted performance most heavily, but still rewards low expense ratios, larger fund size, and broader diversification — so it can favor low-cost, broad, mega-cap funds over smaller thematic or actively-managed funds even when the latter have delivered stronger returns.
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | LQD | VCIT |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $10.14K (+1.4%) started 2025-10-15 | $10.32K (+3.2%) started 2025-10-15 |
| 5Y ago | $11.9K (+19.0%) started 2021-10-15 | $12.99K (+29.9%) started 2021-10-15 |
| 10Y ago | $18.6K (+86.0%) started 2016-10-17 | $19.76K (+97.6%) started 2016-10-17 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | LQD | VCIT |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratioi | 0.14% | 0.03% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $28.27B | $68.65B |
| Dividend yieldi | 4.91% | 5.08% |
| Trailing P/Ei | N/A | N/A |
| Betai | 0.46 | 0.35 |
| 52-week change | -3.28% | -1.74% |
| Metric | LQD | VCIT |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y returni | -3.28% | -1.74% |
| 6M returni | -3.12% | -2.58% |
| 3M returni | -2.48% | -2.27% |
| 1M returni | -0.32% | -0.21% |
| 1Y Sharpe ratio | -1.39 | -1.42 |
| Betai | 0.46 | 0.35 |
| Dividend yieldi | 4.91% | 5.08% |
| 5Y CAGR | -1.00% | +0.65% |
Over the past year, LQD and VCIT have moved strongly in the same direction (correlation of 0.97), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | LQD | VCIT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | -3.28% | -1.74% |
| CAGRi | -3.28% | -1.74% | |
| Volatilityi | 5.51% | 4.35% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -1.39 | -1.42 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -1.79 | -1.80 | |
| Max drawdowni | 6.01% | 4.92% | |
| Current drawdowni | 4.39% | 3.66% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 1.81% | 1.35% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 2.26% | 1.79% | |
| Max daily dropi | 1.23% | 1.01% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 2.55% | 1.98% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | -4.88% | +3.30% |
| CAGRi | -1.00% | +0.65% | |
| Volatilityi | 8.65% | 6.66% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.59 | -0.54 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.81 | -0.75 | |
| Max drawdowni | 24.54% | 19.65% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.24% | 3.66% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 10.54% | 6.40% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 12.06% | 8.36% | |
| Max daily dropi | 2.31% | 1.71% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 4.94% | 4.34% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +21.21% | +27.72% |
| CAGRi | +1.94% | +2.48% | |
| Volatilityi | 8.70% | 6.30% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.25 | -0.29 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.35 | -0.41 | |
| Max drawdowni | 24.95% | 20.56% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.75% | 3.66% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 6.57% | 4.36% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 9.07% | 6.64% | |
| Max daily dropi | 5.00% | 4.49% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 13.25% | 11.29% |
| Category | LQD | VCIT |
|---|---|---|
| Fund name | iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Index Fund ETF Shares |
| Type | ETF | ETF |
| Expense ratioi | 0.14% | 0.03% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $28.27B | $68.65B |
| Dividend yieldi | 4.91% | 5.08% |
- Largest investment-grade corporate bond ETF with excellent liquidity and tight bid-ask spreads — preferred by institutional investors for large trades
- iShares (BlackRock) brand and scale provide institutional credibility and deep secondary market liquidity
- Tracks the iBoxx index which selects for liquid bonds, making the ETF itself more liquid than less-selective corporate bond indices
- Extremely low expense ratio (0.04%) — among the lowest for investment-grade corporate bond ETFs
- Intermediate-term duration (5-10 years) provides a balanced interest rate sensitivity between short-term and long-term corporate bonds
- Vanguard's cooperative ownership structure aligns fund objectives with investor interests
- LQD has a longer effective duration than VCIT, making it more sensitive to interest rate increases — higher rate sensitivity increases losses when rates rise
- Investment-grade corporate bonds underperform Treasury bonds during economic stress as credit spreads widen
- BBB-rated bonds (the lowest investment-grade tier) represent a large portion of the corporate bond market and can be downgraded to high-yield in downturns
- Slightly less liquid than LQD given smaller AUM and institutional following — bid-ask spreads may be slightly wider for large trades
- Intermediate-term focus means VCIT doesn't include the longest-maturity corporate bonds, limiting some yield pickup versus LQD's broader maturity range
- Different index (Bloomberg vs iBoxx) means slightly different bond selection and performance versus LQD even at similar durations
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