Hey there, it’s Hirokichi!
This is my September 2026 update on my U.S. ETFs. Long-term U.S. yields jumped in September, and the three ETFs I track fell to ¥2,912,209 in market value (down ¥189,404, or 6.1%, from August), the biggest monthly drop in the last 14 months. Even so, my unrealized gain held at ¥444,091 (+18.0%), and distributions reached ¥8,400 for the month and ¥56,003 for the year so far.
Holdings and Total Market Value
This series now tracks three U.S. ETFs: VYM, HDV and LQD. Earlier posts included two mutual funds (Rakuten SCHD and a Nikkei high-dividend index fund) for a five-holding total, but this time I narrowed the scope to the three ETFs and kept the month-over-month comparison on the same basis. For reference, the August total for these three was ¥3,101,613. LQD sits in a taxable account (SBI Securities), while VYM and HDV are held in my New NISA account (Japan’s tax-free investment account).
The chart shows a mostly steady climb from August 2025 to ¥3,101,613 in August 2026, followed by a sharper drop in September. Still, compared with September 2025 (¥2,541,834), the total is up ¥370,375 (+14.6%), so even after the pullback it sits above where it was a year ago. Here is the September 2026 breakdown:
(1) VYM (Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF): New NISA account, 53 shares, market value ¥1,299,912 (cost ¥1,034,602, unrealized gain +¥265,310, +25.6%)
(2) HDV (iShares Core High Dividend ETF): New NISA account, 215 shares, market value ¥949,758 (cost ¥764,970, unrealized gain +¥184,788, +24.2%)
(3) LQD (iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF): taxable account, 41 shares, market value ¥662,539 (cost ¥668,546, unrealized loss -¥6,007, -0.9%). I also hold about ¥15,001 in U.S. dollar cash, which is not included in the totals.
The three ETFs together come to a market value of ¥2,912,209, a cost basis of ¥2,468,118, and an unrealized gain of +¥444,091 (+18.0%).
Breakdown by ETF
VYM is the largest position at 44.6%, followed by HDV at 32.6% and LQD at 22.8%. The two equity ETFs make up 77.2% of the total, so a stock market correction flows straight through to my overall value.
The pie chart shows that the bond ETF LQD is only a little over a fifth of the portfolio, so the swings are driven mainly by the dividend stock ETFs, VYM and HDV.
In September, VYM fell ¥93,102 (-6.7%), HDV fell ¥63,104 (-6.2%), and LQD fell ¥33,198 (-4.8%). VYM had the largest decline in both yen and percentage terms. LQD now sits below its cost basis, its first unrealized loss since August 2025. Since I hold LQD for its distributions rather than for price gains, I do not plan to react as long as the monthly payouts keep coming.
One note on share counts: HDV went from 43 shares in March to 215 in April because of a stock split, not because I bought more. HDV did a 5-for-1 split on April 29, 2026 (source: roic.ai). The split multiplied my share count by five, but the value of the investment itself did not change.
Distribution Record
Distributions (the ETF version of dividends) are the best part of this series. In September I received ¥1,712 from VYM and ¥6,688 from HDV (both settled on September 25), for ¥8,400 in total. My 2026 year-to-date total is ¥56,003 (VYM ¥15,768, HDV ¥23,633, LQD ¥16,602). That is exactly ¥8,400 more than the ¥47,603 shown for the same three ETFs in last month’s post.
The bar chart shows two big peaks, ¥13,844 in March and ¥15,694 in June, which are months when VYM pays. VYM’s September payout was ¥1,712, lower than June’s ¥7,545, but HDV’s ¥6,688 pushed the month to ¥8,400, above both July (¥4,962) and August (¥5,873). The LQD payment dated September 10 is blank in my records, so it is not included in this tally.
The next scheduled payments are LQD on October 10, HDV on October 23, and VYM in December. I do not reinvest distributions right away; I am thinking of using them for family trips or camping. Even though I know index investing is the textbook best answer, getting actual cash payouts is still a real pleasure.
Market Review and Trades This Month
The U.S. stock market split sharply by index in September. Comparing the August 31 and September 30 closes, the S&P 500 went from 7,686.14 to 7,651.54 (-0.45%), the Dow from 53,185.90 to 50,906.05 (-4.29%), and the Nasdaq Composite from 26,370.89 to 26,861.06 (+1.86%). These percentages are my own calculations from the closing levels in the Associated Press market summaries (see the September 30 summary on ABC News). The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose while the Dow fell sharply, which fits with high-dividend stocks sliding.
The backdrop was rising long-term yields. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield climbed from 4.75% at the end of August to 5.26% on the morning of September 30 (Yahoo Finance). The PCE inflation report released that day came in below expectations, but inflation remains high, and traders put the odds of an October rate hike at roughly even, so caution lingers. When yields rise, bond ETFs like LQD tend to fall, and value-oriented dividend stocks are often sold too.
Currency mattered as well. The dollar-yen rate fell from 159.88 on September 1 to a low of 153.29 on September 9 and ended the month at 156.90 (source: MUFG Bank’s FX report). A yen gain of about 3 yen (roughly 1.9%) over the month pushed my yen-denominated values down by more than the dollar moves alone.
The chart shows that all three ETFs lost value versus August, and VYM had the largest drop in yen.
As for trades, I made no purchases or sales of ETFs this month. Share counts and cost basis are unchanged from August.
Outlook
My basic approach has not changed: keep distributions in cash rather than reinvesting them, and buy more when prices fall. If yields keep rising, values could fall further, but with an unrealized gain of +18.0% there is no need to panic. If the correction deepens, I would consider adding to VYM or HDV.
Summary
In September 2026, a sharp rise in long-term U.S. yields combined with a stronger yen pulled my market value down to ¥2,912,209 (-6.1% from August). Even so, my unrealized gain held at +¥444,091 (+18.0%), and distributions reached ¥8,400 for the month and ¥56,003 for the year so far. I will keep looking forward to the payouts instead of reacting to every swing in prices. Slow and steady wins. See you next time!
Previous ETF update: [Portfolio Update] My U.S. Dividend ETFs — August 2026 Results: Total Value Hits ¥3,195,623, Gains Break ¥650K
My total net worth: [Net Worth Update] August 2026: JPY 10,843,342 — Up JPY 236,733 for the Month and JPY 2.71M Year Over Year to a New High
Full record of my net worth updates since 2021 (in Japanese)
VYM vs. VOO vs. VTI comparison (in Japanese, 2026 edition)
日本語版はこちら → 【資産公開】米国ETF 2026年9月結果！評価額2,912,209円、金利上昇で前月比-6.1%も分配金は年初来56,003円に
* This article is for informational purposes only and is not investment advice. Please invest at your own responsibility.
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