Vanguard Energy ETF

This ETF offers broad-based exposure to the U.S. energy industry, making it a potentially useful tool for those looking to fine tune the domestic equity portion of their portfolio or perhaps pair against another sector/region in a long/short trade. VDE is one of the most competitive energy ETFs available from a cost perspective, in a similar class as XLE and FEG on the expenses front. VDE distinguishes itself from XLE in terms of exposure depth, including roughly four times the number of individual stocks. Like most energy ETFs, concentration is a big issue in VDE; a few stocks account for big chunks of the total portfolio, and large caps dominate the underlying basket. The equal-weighted RYE is one interesting alternative, as is the alpha-seeking FXN.