AES Corp vs Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF — how do they compare? AES Corp trades at $14.73 (market cap $10.49B), while Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF trades at $97.16. The key difference: AES Corp pays a 4.79% dividend while Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF pays none, and Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF is trading nearer its 52-week high, AES Corp nearer its low. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| AES | VNQ | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $10.49B | — |
Sector | Utilities | — |
52-Week High | $17.28 | $100.95 |
52-Week Low | $12.51 | $87.00 |
Enterprise Value | $40.75B | — |
Dividend Yield | 4.79% | — |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
AES trades at $14.73, down slightly by 0.03%, with a bearish technical signal from moving averages but neutral oscillators. The company shows strong profitability with a 14.34% net income margin and 45.05% ROE, supported by recent earnings beats. A pending $33.4 billion acquisition by a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners and EQT, approved by stockholders in June 2026, dominates recent news, alongside a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share.
The outlook is heavily influenced by the acquisition, offering a near-term upside to the $15 buyout price, but regulatory and shareholder approval risks remain. Long-term fundamentals are solid with projected revenue growth to $13.1 billion in 2026, though high debt levels and integration challenges post-acquisition pose risks. Analyst sentiment is mixed with a buy consensus of 43%.
VNQ (Vanguard Real Estate ETF) trades at $96.745, down 0.38% on the day amid a bearish technical signal. The ETF shows mixed momentum with oversold short-term RSI readings but bearish moving averages. Recent institutional selling activity from firms like Bank of America and City Holding Co. indicates cautious positioning in the real estate sector. The fund's dividend yield remains a key attraction for income-focused investors.
The outlook for VNQ is challenged by rising interest rate sensitivity and institutional outflows, though the oversold RSI suggests potential for near-term stabilization. Investors should weigh the ETF's low expense ratio and U.S. REIT diversification against sector-specific headwinds including commercial real estate pressures and economic uncertainty.
Trailing returns across standard periods
AES is a global power company operating across 14 countries and 4 continents. Its current generation portfolio as of year-end 2021 consists of over 31 gigawatts of generation, with the generation mix composed of renewables (43%), gas (32%), coal (23%), and oil (2%). The company has 3.5 gigawatts of generation under construction. AES has majority ownership and operates six electric utilities distributing power to 2.6 million customers.
Read more on AES →The fund employs an indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the MSCI US Investable Market Real Estate 25/50 Index, an index made up of stocks of large, mid-size, and small US companies within the real estate sector. The Advisor attempts to replicate the target index by seeking to invest all of its assets in the stocks that make up the index, in order to hold each stock in approximately the same proportion as its weighting in the index. It is non-diversified.
Read more on VNQ →