Vegan Climate ETF VEGN Outperforms S&P 500

Beyond Investing’s US Vegan Climate ETF (VEGN) returned an annualised 19.87% to June 30, 2026, based on net asset value (NAV). The S&P 500 returned an annualised 16.28% over the same period. VEGN was launched about seven years ago and managed roughly USD 180 million in assets as of June 30, 2026.

Claire Smith, Beyond Investing’s chief executive, said: ‘The way we construct the index is that we screen out anything harmful to animals and the environment, particularly focusing on fossil fuels, human rights, single use plastic and weapons and if you take all of that out, you end up with a portfolio which is higher in other sectors — one of those being technology which has generally been good to us.’ Smith added that a modest overweight in US technology names such as Micron Technologies and Nvidia helped lift returns in the second quarter of 2026.

The ETF’s index excludes companies involved in slaughter, cruelty or other mistreatment of animals and screens out firms flagged for environmental harm, human rights concerns, single-use plastics, weapons and fossil fuels. Those exclusions remove exposure to traditional energy companies and increase the fund’s weightings in sectors such as technology and renewable energy.

Smith noted the fund can lag broader markets when oil prices are strong because it excludes energy companies. The strategy replaces those holdings with renewable-related firms, including companies that supply equipment for solar and wind energy production.

Beyond Investing plans to launch an international version of the Vegan Climate index in the US in September, to be listed on the CBOE and benchmarked to the MSCI World ex‑US index. The firm has run an international index since June 2022 and reports a 2.37% annualised excess return against that benchmark.

The international portfolio includes a larger share of industrials and communications companies than the US fund, reflecting market compositions in countries such as Germany and Japan, while remaining relatively technology-heavy. The international product screens out US stocks, which reduces portfolio overlap with the US fund.

The firm has received enquiries about a European UCITS version and intends to pursue a UCITS ETF in future, but will time any launch to available cash flow and organic growth, Smith added.