Back to investing guides

Bullstory Research June 27, 2026

ETFs every investor should memorize

Key takeaways

VTI has an operating expense of 0.03%, and with about 3,500~4,000holdings, it is a representative diversified ETF that invests across the entire U.S. SCHD is dividend-focused and aims for dividends and long-term dividend growth. SKYY is for cloud and AI infrastructure, DRAM is a memory and semiconductor theme, and VPU is a defensive ETF with stable dividends.

SKYY

  • Management fee: 0.60%

  • Dividend: low (0.5~1%)

  • Dividend growth: almost negligible

  • Investment sector

  • Cloud

  • Data centers

  • SaaS

  • AI infrastructure

  • Strengths

  • Core industry in the AI era

  • High growth potential

  • Disadvantages

  • Management fee is relatively high

DRAM

  • Management fee : 0.50%

  • Dividend : almost none

  • Dividend growth : none

  • Investment sector

  • DRAM

  • HBM

  • NAND

  • AI semiconductors

  • Advantages

  • AI semiconductor benefit

  • Weaknesses

  • Highly affected by semiconductor cycle

VPU

  • Management fee: 0.09%

  • Dividend: approximately 3%

  • Dividend growth: fairly steady

  • Investment sector

  • Utilities

  • Transmission

  • Power generation

  • Advantages

  • Defensive stock

  • Stable dividends

  • Disadvantages

  • Growth potential is lower than an AI ETF

VTI

  • Expense ratio: 0.03%

  • Dividend: about 1.2~1.4%

  • Dividend growth: steady in line with growth in the U.S. market

  • Investment sector

  • Entire United States

  • Large-cap stocks

  • Mid-cap stocks

  • Small-cap stocks

  • Number of companies

  • About 3,500~4,000companies

  • Advantages

  • Best diversification

  • Invest in the U.S. economy as a whole

  • Cons

  • Because it has a larger small-cap weighting than VOO, returns may at times be similar or slightly lower.

SCHD

  • Expense ratio : 0.06%

  • Dividend: approximately 3~4%

  • Dividend growth: average annual approximately 10% or so (long-term basis)
    Not constant every year, but upward over the long term.

  • Investment sector

  • High-quality dividend stocks

  • Representative company

  • Coca-Cola

  • Cisco

  • Texas Instruments

  • Amgen

  • Home Depot (varies depending on the period)

  • Advantages

  • Dividends steadily increase

  • Expect both dividends and stock price growth

  • Disadvantages

  • Low proportion of technology stocks

VTI → the broadest ETF that invests in the entire U.S. market

SCHD → very attractive if you value dividend growth and cash flow

VPU → a good complement if you expect a long-term increase in power demand in the AI era

SKYY → Investing in cloud industry growth

DRAM → A thematic ETF focused on concentrated investment in AI memory and semiconductors

Frequently asked questions

Which ETF is good for diversifying across the entire U.S. market?

VTI covers the broadest range of the U.S. market. Operating expense 0.03%, with about 3,500~4,000holdings.

Looking for a dividend growth ETF—what would be worth recommending?

SCHD focuses on high-quality dividend stocks and aims for both dividends and share-price growth. Expense ratio 0.06%, average annual dividend growth around 10%.

If you want to invest in cloud or AI infrastructure, which ETF do you look at?

SKYY invests in cloud, data centers, SaaS, and AI infrastructure. However, its expense ratio 0.60% is relatively high.

What are the characteristics of an AI memory and semiconductor theme ETF?

The DRAM ETF focuses on DRAM, HBM, NAND, and AI semiconductors. It pays almost no dividend and is highly sensitive to the semiconductor cycle.

Which ETF is suitable if you want stable dividends?

VPU invests in power, transmission, and generation, with a dividend of about 3% and is stable. It has a defensive-stock character.

What is the difference between VTI and VOO?

VTI has a higher weighting in small-cap stocks, so it is more broadly diversified. As a result, in some periods its return may be similar to or lower than VOO.