How Does the Vanguard MSCI Australian Small Companies Index ETF (ASX:VSO) Work and What Is in Its Portfolio?

Sonal Goyal

11 October 2026 02:25 PM AEDT

How Does the Vanguard MSCI Australian Small Companies Index ETF (ASX:VSO) Work and What Is in Its Portfolio?

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The Vanguard MSCI Australian Small Companies index ETF (ASX:VSO) last traded at A$71.91 on 9 October 2026, up A$0.21 or 0.30% on the day, with 37,599 units traded and a bid/offer range of A$71.83 to A$72.50. The fund’s size was A$1.17 billion. This article summarises the fund’s structure, its latest distribution and the composition of its portfolio.

Ticker	Fund name	Price (9 Oct 2026)	Fund size	Category
ASX:VSO	Vanguard MSCI Australian Small Companies Index ETF	A$71.91 (+A$0.21, +0.30%)	A$1.17 billion	Equity Australia Mid/Small Blend

Type	Distribution amount	Annual yield	Ex date	Record date	Payment date
Final	A$2.196	4.87%	1 Jul 2026	2 Jul 2026	16 Jul 2026

Fund overview

VSO is an exchange-traded fund admitted to the ASX on 26 May 2011. It sits in the Equity Australia Mid/Small Blend category, and its benchmark is the MSCI Australia Small Cap GR LCL index. The management fee is 0.30%, there were 16,310,160 units outstanding, and its ISIN is AU000000VSO2.

The MSCI Australian Shares Small Cap Index generally consists of the smaller companies on the Australian equity market, targeting coverage of around 14% of free float-adjusted Market Capitalisation of the Australian share market.

Latest distribution

The latest distribution is a final distribution of A$2.196 per unit, with an annual Yield of 4.87%. The ex-date was 1 July 2026, the Record Date 2 July 2026 and the payment date 16 July 2026. The yield is a calculated measure that depends on the unit price and distributions over a period, and it does not forecast future payments.

Recent ASX announcements for the fund include the Annual Report (15 September 2026), an estimated distribution announcement (24 September 2026), an updated estimated distribution (1 October 2026), the final distributions notice (2 October 2026) and an outstanding securities notice for September 2026 (7 October 2026).

Portfolio composition

The portfolio held 195 companies, with the top ten holdings making up 18.95% of the fund. By asset type, 99.85% was in stocks and 0.15% in cash. By geography, 98.42% was in Australia, 1.05% in the United Kingdom and 0.53% in the United States. By size, 81.04% was in companies with a market capitalisation above A$1 billion, 18.43% between A$500 million and A$1 billion, and 0.53% below A$500 million.

The largest sector weightings were Basic Materials (29.95%), Industrials (11.69%), Real Estate (11.65%), Financial Services (9.48%), Healthcare (8.24%), Technology (7.60%), Energy (6.96%), Consumer Cyclical (6.46%), Communication Services (4.04%) and Consumer Defensive (3.03%).

The ten largest holdings were BlueScope Steel (2.38%), ALS (1.97%), Mineral Resources (1.96%), Sandfire Resources (1.87%), Stockland (1.85%), NEXTDC (1.84%), Orica (1.80%), Ampol (1.79%), CAR Group (1.74%) and Technology One (1.68%).

Sector backdrop

Small company Index Funds hold a broad range of smaller listed businesses, which can behave differently from large-company indices. Small companies are often more sensitive to economic conditions and can have lower trading liquidity.

Equity Australia Mid/Small Blend funds invest primarily in small- to mid-sized Australian companies, defined as stocks in the bottom 30% of the capitalisation of the Australian equities market, with neither growth nor value characteristics predominating.

Distribution amounts from equity funds depend on the dividends and income received by the fund and on realised gains, so they can differ materially between periods.

Risks investors should weigh

Share Market Risk is the main Factor affecting unit prices. Small company shares can be more volatile than large company shares and may be harder to buy or sell in size.

The portfolio has a sizeable weighting to basic materials at 29.95%, so Commodity prices and the performance of resource companies can have a large influence on the fund.

The distribution amount varies each period and may include income and capital gains, so the annual yield does not guarantee future income. The management fee of 0.30% is higher than that of broad large-company index funds. ETF units can trade at prices that differ from the value of the underlying assets, and trading volumes vary.

What’s next

The most recent distribution was paid on 16 July 2026. Investors who wish to understand the fund further may wish to read the annual report published on 15 September 2026 and the product disclosure statement on the ASX.

FAQs

Q: What is the Vanguard MSCI Australian Small Companies Index ETF?

A:An ASX-listed fund, code VSO, that aims to track the MSCI Australia Small Cap GR LCL index, with a management fee of 0.30%.

Q: What is the latest VSO distribution?

A:A final distribution of A$2.196 per unit with an annual yield of 4.87%, paid on 16 July 2026 to holders on the 2 July 2026 record date.

Q: What are the largest holdings?

A:BlueScope Steel (2.38%), ALS (1.97%), Mineral Resources (1.96%), Sandfire Resources (1.87%) and Stockland (1.85%).

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