VTV observed max drawdown: 54.8%
Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF. From its 2007-05-31 peak, VTV fell 54.8% to the 2009-02-28 trough and needed 5.7 years to make a new high (2013-01-31). Computed from 273 months of observed fund history. Fund inception boundary (first available fund observation): 2004-01-30; the monthly analysis runs from 2004-01-31 through 2026-09-30.
Before 2004-01-30, the extended history is simulated. Observed fund drawdowns come first; simulation assumptions and results are separated below.
What is VTV's observed maximum drawdown?
VTV's observed maximum drawdown was 54.8%, from a peak in 2007-05-31 to a trough in 2009-02-28, based on monthly closes from fund prices first observed on 2004-01-30. The sample contains 273 monthly observations through 2026-09-30. Monthly closes can miss deeper daily losses.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum drawdown | -54.8% |
| Peak | 2007-05-31 |
| Trough | 2009-02-28 |
| Recovered | 2013-01-31 |
| Monthly observations | 273 |
Last verified
What is VTV's observed maximum drawdown?
VTV's observed maximum drawdown was 54.8%, from a peak in 2007-05-31 to a trough in 2009-02-28, based on monthly closes from fund prices first observed on 2004-01-30.
How long did VTV take to recover from its worst drawdown?
VTV took 5.7 years from the 2007-05-31 peak to make a new high in 2013-01-31, based only on observed fund prices.
What was VTV's worst 12-month return?
VTV's worst observed rolling 12-month return was -46.2%, in the 12 months ending 2009-02-28.
VTV observed fund drawdown statistics
2007-05-31 peak to 2009-02-28 trough.
New high reached 2013-01-31.
Share of all months spent below a prior high.
Rolling year ending 2009-02-28.
The biggest VTV drawdowns in observed fund history
| Depth | Peak | Trough | Recovered | Peak to trough | Total underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -54.8% | 2007-05-31 | 2009-02-28 | 2013-01-31 | 21 mo | 5.7 years |
| -25.1% | 2019-12-31 | 2020-03-31 | 2020-12-31 | 3 mo | 12 months |
| -15.3% | 2022-03-31 | 2022-09-30 | 2022-11-30 | 6 mo | 8 months |
| -10.8% | 2018-09-30 | 2018-12-31 | 2019-04-30 | 3 mo | 7 months |
| -9.4% | 2015-05-31 | 2015-09-30 | 2016-04-30 | 4 mo | 11 months |
Methodology: observed VTV fund prices only, first available from 2004-01-30. Monthly closing-price statistics cover 2004-01-31 through 2026-09-30; no proxy or pre-inception simulation is included in this table. Educational information, not investment advice.
Before 2004-01-30: simulated from the underlying index with assumptions
This separate series combines observed prices with a modeled pre-inception extension from 1970-01-31 through 2026-10-31. The 2026-10-31 endpoint is the legacy current partial-month bucket/month-end label, not evidence that VTV was observed through that future date. It is not observed VTV performance. The API's observed boundary is 2004-01-30; observed monthly statistics run from 2004-01-31 through 2026-09-30.
- Rebalancing convention: monthly rebalance at month-end close; drawdown statistics use monthly closing prices.
- Proxy source for VTV: IWD (proxy_etf), from 1900-01-31 to 2004-01-29.
- Proxy source for IWD: SPY (proxy_etf), from 1900-01-31 to 2000-05-25.
- Proxy source for SPY: VFINX (proxy_etf), from 1987-01-06 to 1993-01-28.
- Proxy source for SPY: SP500_TR_DAILY (static), from 1976-08-31 to 1987-01-05.
- Proxy source for SPY: spy_tr (static_monthly), from 1900-01-31 to 1976-08-30.
Modeled extended statistics
2007-05-31 peak to 2009-02-28 trough.
New high reached 2013-01-31.
Share of all months spent below a prior high.
Rolling year ending 2009-02-28.
For context, SPY (the S&P 500 baseline) had a maximum drawdown of 50.8% over the same kind of monthly-close analysis.
Modeled extended drawdowns
| Depth | Peak | Trough | Recovered | Peak to trough | Total underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -54.8% | 2007-05-31 | 2009-02-28 | 2013-01-31 | 21 mo | 5.7 years |
| -41.1% | 1972-12-31 | 1974-09-30 | 1976-06-30 | 21 mo | 3.5 years |
| -28.4% | 1987-08-31 | 1987-11-30 | 1989-05-31 | 3 mo | 21 months |
| -27.9% | 2001-05-31 | 2002-09-30 | 2003-12-31 | 16 mo | 2.6 years |
| -25.1% | 2019-12-31 | 2020-03-31 | 2020-12-31 | 3 mo | 12 months |
Monthly closing prices, peak-to-trough on total return where available. The pre-inception segment is a reconstruction, not a live fund record, and actual tracking, financing, taxes, spreads, and volatility drag can differ.
Drawdowns are the reason tactical strategies exist
Buy-and-hold VTV means living through every number on this page. BestFolio tracks published TAA strategies whose whole job is cutting these drawdowns, with out-of-sample track records.