• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Optimized Portfolio

Investing and Personal Finance

  • Start Here
  • Investing 101
    • Beginners Start Here – 10 Steps To Start Building Wealth
    • What Is the Stock Market? How It Works & How to Invest in It
    • How To Invest in an Index Fund – The Best Index Funds
    • Portfolio Asset Allocation by Age
    • How To Invest Your Emergency Fund
    • Portfolio Diversification – How To Diversify Your Portfolio
    • Dollar Cost Averaging vs. Lump Sum Investing (DCA vs. LSI)
    • How To Invest Your HSA (Health Savings Account)
    • Factor Investing and Factor ETFs – The Ultimate Guide
    • more…
  • Lazy Portfolios
    • All Weather Portfolio
    • Bogleheads 3 Fund Portfolio
    • HEDGEFUNDIE’s Excellent Adventure
    • Warren Buffett Portfolio
    • Golden Butterfly Portfolio
    • Paul Merriman Ultimate Buy and Hold Portfolio
    • Ben Felix Model Portfolio
    • Permanent Portfolio
    • David Swensen Portfolio
    • 60/40 Portfolio
    • more…
  • Funds
    • VOO vs. VTI – Vanguard S&P 500 or Total Stock Market ETF?
    • The 7 Best International ETFs
    • The 8 Best Small Cap ETFs (4 From Vanguard)
    • The 5 Best REIT ETFs
    • The 5 Best EV ETFs – Electric Vehicles ETFs
    • VIG vs. VYM – Comparing Vanguard’s 2 Popular Dividend ETF’s
    • The Best Vanguard Dividend Funds – 4 Popular ETFs
    • The 5 Best Tech ETFs
    • The 7 Best Small Cap Value ETFs
    • The 6 Best ETFs for Taxable Accounts
    • The 5 Best Emerging Markets ETFs (1 From Vanguard) for 2023
    • more…
  • Leverage
    • What Is a Leveraged ETF and How Do They Work?
    • How To Beat the Market Using Leverage and Index Investing
    • The 9 Best Leveraged ETFs
    • Hedgefundie’s Excellent Adventure
    • Leveraged All Weather Portfolio
    • Leveraged Permanent Portfolio
    • Leveraged Golden Butterfly Portfolio
    • NTSX – Review and Summary
    • TQQQ – Is It A Good Investment?
    • PSLDX – A Review
    • SWAN – A Review
    • RPAR Risk Parity ETF Review
    • more…
  • Dividends
    • The Best M1 Finance Dividend Pie
    • The 11 Best Dividend ETFs
    • The Best Vanguard Dividend Funds – 4 Popular ETFs
    • VIG vs. VYM – Comparing Vanguard’s 2 Popular Dividend ETF’s
    • 8 Reasons Why I’m Not a Dividend Income Investor
    • QYLD – A Harsh Review
    • more…
  • Brokers
    • The 5 Best Stock Brokers
    • The 4 Best Investing Apps
    • M1 Finance Review
    • Brokers with the Lowest Margin Rates
    • M1 Finance vs. Fidelity
    • M1 Finance vs. Vanguard
    • Webull vs. Robinhood
    • Stash vs. Robinhood
    • M1 Borrow Review (How M1’s Margin Loan Works)
    • more…
  • Retirement
    • The 10 Best ETFs for Retirement Portfolios in 2023
    • The 4% Rule for Retirement Withdrawal Rate – A Revisitation
    • Sequence of Return Risk in Retirement Explained
    • Traditional IRA Explained
    • Roth IRA Explained
    • 401k vs. Roth IRA
    • Roth IRA vs. Traditional IRA
    • Backdoor Roth IRA Explained
    • more…
  • My Toolbox

Improving M1 Finance’s Ultra Aggressive Portfolio Pie

Last Updated: July 23, 2023 No Comments – 2 min. read

M1 Finance provides Expert Pies that are pre-built portfolios available for you to invest in if you prefer not to choose your own investments. They are comprised of low-cost Vanguard ETF's. This is ideal for the investor who wants a lazy portfolio to be completely hands-off. M1's category of “General Investing” Expert Pies allows you to select a portfolio based on your personal risk tolerance. This is all great. The not-so-great is the fact that these portfolios have some wonky assets and allocations.

Here are my attempts at improving the other variations of M1's General Investing Expert Pies.

Disclosure:  Some of the links on this page are referral links. At no additional cost to you, if you choose to make a purchase or sign up for a service after clicking through those links, I may receive a small commission. This allows me to continue producing high-quality, ad-free content on this site and pays for the occasional cup of coffee. I have first-hand experience with every product or service I recommend, and I recommend them because I genuinely believe they are useful, not because of the commission I get if you decide to purchase through my links. Read more here.

Prefer video? Watch it below. If not, keep scrolling to keep reading.

M1 maintains that these portfolios are mean-variance optimized (think Modern Portfolio Theory and Harry Markowitz). This is unnecessary and likely just overfitting in my opinion, and makes them complicated and uneven. This specific pie isn't so bad because it contains basically no bonds, which is where the weirdness usually lies, but it still:

  1. Puts 1% in an international total bond fund, which doesn't make much sense.
  2. Underweights Emerging Markets, which have paid a significant risk premium historically.
  3. Uses small- and mid-cap blend funds rather than small- and mid-cap value where we'd expect greater returns and a convenient diversification benefit.

At the time of writing, M1's Ultra Aggressive Portfolio pie looks like this:

  • 34% VEA – Developed Markets
  • 29% VOO – S&P 500
  • 13% VB – Small-Cap Blend
  • 9% VO – Mid-Cap Blend
  • 7% VWO – Emerging Markets
  • 7% VNQ – U.S. REITs
  • 1% BNDX – Total International Bond Market

In improving this portfolio, we're basically just going to fix the things I mentioned above:

  1. Ditch the 1% bonds that aren't doing anything.
  2. Use a 1:1 ratio of Developed to Emerging Markets.
  3. Purposefully target small- and mid-cap value.

My resulting improved Ultra Aggressive Portfolio looks like this:

  • 25% VOO – S&P 500
  • 25% VEA – Developed Markets
  • 25% VWO – Emerging Markets
  • 10% IVOV – US Mid-cap Value
  • 10% VIOV – US Small-cap Value
  • 5% VNQ – US REITs

You can add this pie to your portfolio using this link.

Here are my attempts at improving the other variations of M1's General Investing Expert Pies.

What do you think of my attempt to improve M1's Ultra Aggressive Portfolio? Let me know in the comments.


Disclosure: I am long VOO and VWO in my own portfolio.

Interested in more Lazy Portfolios? See the full list here.

Disclaimer:  While I love diving into investing-related data and playing around with backtests, this is not financial advice, investing advice, or tax advice. The information on this website is for informational, educational, and entertainment purposes only. Investment products discussed (ETFs, mutual funds, etc.) are for illustrative purposes only. It is not a recommendation to buy, sell, or otherwise transact in any of the products mentioned. I always attempt to ensure the accuracy of information presented but that accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Do your own due diligence. All investing involves risk, including the risk of losing the money you invest. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Opinions are my own and do not represent those of other parties mentioned. Read my lengthier disclaimer here.

m1

Are you nearing or in retirement? Use my link here to get a free holistic financial plan from fiduciary advisors at Retirable to manage your savings, spend smarter, and navigate key decisions.

Don't want to do all this investing stuff yourself or feel overwhelmed? Check out my flat-fee-only fiduciary friends over at Advisor.com.

77 percent of millenials report their finances are a source of anxiety

Related Posts

  • JPST vs. NEAR vs. MINT – Which Active Short Maturity Income ETF?
  • Roger Gibson 5 Asset Portfolio Review and M1 Finance ETF Pie
  • Acorns vs. Betterment Robo-Advisor Comparison (2023 Review)
  • The M1 Finance Trading Window – What, When, Why, & How
  • Stash vs. Robinhood Brokerage Comparison (2023 Review)

About John Williamson, APMA®

Analytical data nerd, investing enthusiast, fintech consultant, Boglehead, and Oxford comma advocate. I'm not a big fan of social media, but you can find me on LinkedIn and Reddit.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Patreon

Join 5,372 other investors

Take control of your financial future by subscribing to receive exclusive emails with expert tips, news, and notifications of new posts and important updates.

Don't worry, I hate spam too. No ads.

John Williamson, APMA®

Analytical data nerd, investing enthusiast, fintech consultant, Boglehead, and Oxford comma advocate. I'm not a big fan of social media, but you can find me on LinkedIn and Reddit. Read More…

Most Popular

Ray Dalio All Weather Portfolio Review, ETFs, & Leverage (2023)

HEDGEFUNDIE’s Excellent Adventure (UPRO/TMF) – A Summary

Golden Butterfly Portfolio Review and M1 Finance ETF Pie

David Swensen Portfolio (Yale Model) Review and ETFs To Use

54 Lazy Portfolios and Their ETF Pies for M1 Finance (2023)

VIG vs. VYM – Vanguard’s 2 Popular Dividend ETFs (Review)

Warren Buffett ETF Portfolio (90/10) Review and ETFs (2023)

Bogleheads 3 Fund Portfolio Review and Vanguard ETFs (2023)

Paul Merriman Ultimate Buy and Hold Portfolio Review & ETFs (2023)

The Best M1 Finance Dividend Pie for FIRE & Income Investors

m1 sidebar

retirable

Portfolio Asset Allocation by Age – Beginners To Retirees

The 7 Best Small Cap ETFs (3 From Vanguard) for 2023

9 Best International ETFs To Buy (6 From Vanguard) in 2023

The 3 Best Inverse ETFs to Short the S&P 500 Index in 2023

Ben Felix Model Portfolio (Rational Reminder, PWL) ETFs & Review

Factor Investing and Factor ETFs – The Ultimate Guide

NTSX ETF Review – WisdomTree U.S. Efficient Core ETF (90/60)

The Ginger Ale Portfolio (My Own Portfolio) and M1 ETF Pie

TQQQ – Is It A Good Investment for a Long Term Hold Strategy?

QYLD – Avoid This ETF as a Long-Term Investment (A Review)

The 5 Best T Bill ETFs (Treasury Bills) To Park Cash in 2023

JEPI ETF Review – JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF

SPAXX vs. FZFXX, FDIC, FCASH, FDRXX – Fidelity Core Position

Recent Posts

Buy Borrow Die Strategy Explained – How the Rich Avoid Taxes

Whole vs. Term Life Insurance – Which Is Best for You?

“Should I Invest in International Stocks?” Yes. Here’s Why.

Return Stacking Explained – Greater Returns With Lower Risk?

RSSB ETF Review – Return Stacked Global Stocks & Bonds ETF

Fees, Trees, & Forests – Stop Obsessing Over Expense Ratios

Optimized Portfolio “Best in Class” ETFs List for 2023

7 Best Covered Call ETFs for Income Investors in 2023

Roth IRA vs. Traditional IRA – Which Is Better for You? (2023)

How To Build a 3 Fund Portfolio at Fidelity in 2023

Fidelity ZERO Funds Review – What’s the Catch?

Jack Bogle Was Wrong About These 3 Things

I Bonds Explained (US Savings Bonds) – Ultimate Guide (2023)

Sharpe Ratio vs. Sortino vs. Calmar – Risk Adjusted Return

Portfolio Risk Explained – How To Think About Risk and Volatility

View All...

Footer

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Patreon

Amazon Affiliate Disclosure

OptimizedPortfolio.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive email updates when a new post is published.

Don't worry, I hate spam too. No ads.

About - My Toolbox - Privacy - Terms - Contact


Copyright © 2023 OptimizedPortfolio.com

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Ok, Got ItReject Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT