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Why Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund (VFIFX) Is Among the Best Vanguard Funds to Invest In For Retirees

We recently compiled a list of the 8 Best Vanguard Funds to Invest In for Retirees. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund (NASDAQ:VFIFX) stands against the other Vanguard funds.

Every year, a significant number of Baby Boomers retire, and millennials are increasingly interested in planning their own retirement, considering the majority of people rely on their jobs as their primary source of income. Unless they have a large inheritance, it is critical to start retirement planning early and carefully, especially in a world rife with income inequity. In a 2024 study evaluating the match formulas of over 1300 employer-sponsored retirement plans, Vanguard discovered that employer contributions around 401(k)s are highly concentrated, with 44% of dollars going to the top 20% of earners. On the other hand, when it comes to retirement planning, Americans are increasingly selecting professionally managed accounts and services. To that purpose, Vanguard offers a variety of target-date retirement funds, some of which appear on our list. These funds have slowly gained traction over the years.

Numerous surveys show that Americans are inadequately prepared for retirement. A poll from the American Savings Education Council, which surveyed more than 2,000 American adults in early 2024, revealed that those aged 45-54 feel the least prepared to retire. Although 76% of Americans feel that saving for retirement is essential, just 39% of respondents had a plan in place to allow them to retire when they want. Furthermore, inflation remains a major issue for retirees, according to an Employee Benefits Research Institute (EBRI) survey, with 31% of workers and 40% of retirees citing it as a primary cause for their lack of trust in retirement funds. Alarmingly, an increasing number of Americans are continuing to work after the age of 65, which was traditionally considered retirement age. This tendency should be more visible than ever in 2025, when more Americans are predicted to reach 65 than in any previous year, according to research by the Alliance for Lifetime Income called the “Peak 65 zone.”

On a brighter note, over 80% of employees believe the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022’s provision for employer-sponsored emergency savings accounts is seen as beneficial. Recent advice from the Department of Labor and the IRS has also clarified how plan sponsors can incorporate these emergency savings accounts into their offers. Moreover, the retirement industry has invested heavily in programs to address the retirement savings gap and inadequate preparedness of many Americans. These include automatic enrollment, matching contributions, financial literacy education, and institutional programs like multiple employer plans (MEPs). Legislative policies, like the aforementioned SECURE 2.0 Act, are also involved in making retirement more accessible for long-term workers.

In addition, a large element of retirement relates to the assisted living community sector, commonly known as old-age homes. These facilities provide seniors with companionship and care in their final years. According to a report by Grand View Research, the assisted living market was valued at roughly $91.8 billion in 2022 and is expected to rise at a compound annual rate (CAGR) of 5.53% from 2023 to 2030. In that vein, the number of seniors aged 65 and over is predicted to grow from 52 million in 2018 to 95 million by 2060.

Our Methodology

For this list, we looked at Vanguard’s retirement-oriented funds and compiled a list of eight funds that retirement specialists and market watchers perceive as safe and popular. Furthermore, we have highlighted the top holdings of these ETFs, when appropriate. These Vanguard ETFs have grown significantly over the last five years, and the list is arranged in increasing order according to their five-year performance as of February 18, 2025.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

An equity fund manager on the trading floor, watching market capitalization trends.

Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund (NASDAQ:VFIFX)

5-Year Share Price Performance as of February 18: 29.08%

Rather than focusing on a single retirement year, some Vanguard funds use a five-year horizon, such as 2046 to 2050 in the case of Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund (NASDAQ:VFIFX). This technique makes the fund ideal for a more adjustable retirement planning strategy. These funds are intended to be a one-stop shop for retirement investment, becoming more cautious as the desired retirement date approaches by gradually modifying their stock and bond allocation. This implies that investors will not have to perform this balance themselves, thus making it the pinnacle of a set-it-and-forget-it investment technique.

Overall VFIFX ranks 6th on our list of the best Vanguard funds to invest in for retirees. While we acknowledge the potential of VFIFX as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that certain AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than VFIFX but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and Complete List of 59 AI Companies Under $2 Billion in Market Cap.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.

AI, Tariffs, Nuclear Power: One Undervalued Stock Connects ALL the Dots (Before It Explodes!)

Artificial intelligence is the greatest investment opportunity of our lifetime. The time to invest in groundbreaking AI is now, and this stock is a steal!

AI is eating the world—and the machines behind it are ravenous.

Each ChatGPT query, each model update, each robotic breakthrough consumes massive amounts of energy. In fact, AI is already pushing global power grids to the brink.

Wall Street is pouring hundreds of billions into artificial intelligence—training smarter chatbots, automating industries, and building the digital future. But there’s one urgent question few are asking:

Where will all of that energy come from?

AI is the most electricity-hungry technology ever invented. Each data center powering large language models like ChatGPT consumes as much energy as a small city. And it’s about to get worse.

Even Sam Altman, the founder of OpenAI, issued a stark warning:

“The future of AI depends on an energy breakthrough.”

Elon Musk was even more blunt:

“AI will run out of electricity by next year.”

As the world chases faster, smarter machines, a hidden crisis is emerging behind the scenes. Power grids are strained. Electricity prices are rising. Utilities are scrambling to expand capacity.

And that’s where the real opportunity lies…

One little-known company—almost entirely overlooked by most AI investors—could be the ultimate backdoor play. It’s not a chipmaker. It’s not a cloud platform. But it might be the most important AI stock in the US owns critical energy infrastructure assets positioned to feed the coming AI energy spike.

As demand from AI data centers explodes, this company is gearing up to profit from the most valuable commodity in the digital age: electricity.

The “Toll Booth” Operator of the AI Energy Boom

  • It owns critical nuclear energy infrastructure assets, positioning it at the heart of America’s next-generation power strategy.
  • It’s one of the only global companies capable of executing large-scale, complex EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) projects across oil, gas, renewable fuels, and industrial infrastructure.
  • It plays a pivotal role in U.S. LNG exportation—a sector about to explode under President Trump’s renewed “America First” energy doctrine.

Trump has made it clear: Europe and U.S. allies must buy American LNG.

And our company sits in the toll booth—collecting fees on every drop exported.

But that’s not all…

As Trump’s proposed tariffs push American manufacturers to bring their operations back home, this company will be first in line to rebuild, retrofit, and reengineer those facilities.

AI. Energy. Tariffs. Onshoring. This One Company Ties It All Together.

While the world is distracted by flashy AI tickers, a few smart investors are quietly scooping up shares of the one company powering it all from behind the scenes.

AI needs energy. Energy needs infrastructure.

And infrastructure needs a builder with experience, scale, and execution.

This company has its finger in every pie—and Wall Street is just starting to notice.

Wall Street is noticing this company also because it is quietly riding all of these tailwinds—without the sky-high valuation.

While most energy and utility firms are buried under mountains of debt and coughing up hefty interest payments just to appease bondholders…

This company is completely debt-free.

In fact, it’s sitting on a war chest of cash—equal to nearly one-third of its entire market cap.

It also owns a huge equity stake in another red-hot AI play, giving investors indirect exposure to multiple AI growth engines without paying a premium.

And here’s what the smart money has started whispering…

The Hedge Fund Secret That’s Starting to Leak Out

This stock is so off-the-radar, so absurdly undervalued, that some of the most secretive hedge fund managers in the world have begun pitching it at closed-door investment summits.

They’re sharing it quietly, away from the cameras, to rooms full of ultra-wealthy clients.

Why? Because excluding cash and investments, this company is trading at less than 7 times earnings.

And that’s for a business tied to:

  • The AI infrastructure supercycle
  • The onshoring boom driven by Trump-era tariffs
  • A surge in U.S. LNG exports
  • And a unique footprint in nuclear energy—the future of clean, reliable power

You simply won’t find another AI and energy stock this cheap… with this much upside.

This isn’t a hype stock. It’s not riding on hope.

It’s delivering real cash flows, owns critical infrastructure, and holds stakes in other major growth stories.

This is your chance to get in before the rockets take off!

Disruption is the New Name of the Game: Let’s face it, complacency breeds stagnation.

AI is the ultimate disruptor, and it’s shaking the foundations of traditional industries.

The companies that embrace AI will thrive, while the dinosaurs clinging to outdated methods will be left in the dust.

As an investor, you want to be on the side of the winners, and AI is the winning ticket.

The Talent Pool is Overflowing: The world’s brightest minds are flocking to AI.

From computer scientists to mathematicians, the next generation of innovators is pouring its energy into this field.

This influx of talent guarantees a constant stream of groundbreaking ideas and rapid advancements.

By investing in AI, you’re essentially backing the future.

The future is powered by artificial intelligence, and the time to invest is NOW.

Don’t be a spectator in this technological revolution.

Dive into the AI gold rush and watch your portfolio soar alongside the brightest minds of our generation.

This isn’t just about making money – it’s about being part of the future.

So, buckle up and get ready for the ride of your investment life!

Act Now and Unlock a Potential 100+% Return within 12 to 24 months.

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A New Dawn is Coming to U.S. Stocks

I work for one of the largest independent financial publishers in the world – representing over 1 million people in 148 countries.

We’re independently funding today’s broadcast to address something on the mind of every investor in America right now…

Should I put my money in Artificial Intelligence?

Here to answer that for us… and give away his No. 1 free AI recommendation… is 50-year Wall Street titan, Marc Chaikin.

Marc’s been a trader, stockbroker, and analyst. He was the head of the options department at a major brokerage firm and is a sought-after expert for CNBC, Fox Business, Barron’s, and Yahoo! Finance…

But what Marc’s most known for is his award-winning stock-rating system. Which determines whether a stock could shoot sky-high in the next three to six months… or come crashing down.

That’s why Marc’s work appears in every Bloomberg and Reuters terminal on the planet…

And is still used by hundreds of banks, hedge funds, and brokerages to track the billions of dollars flowing in and out of stocks each day.

He’s used this system to survive nine bear markets… create three new indices for the Nasdaq… and even predict the brutal bear market of 2022, 90 days in advance.

Click to continue reading…