Vanguard taps T. Rowe Price to run portions of key active equity funds

Vanguard brought T. Rowe Price Associates on board to manage portions of Vanguard Explorer, Vanguard Growth and Income, and the Vanguard Variable Insurance Fund Small Company Growth Portfolio.

It is the first time T. Rowe Price has advised Vanguard, and the three funds together hold more than $42 billion in combined net assets, based on the funds’ most recent product data.

The change goes beyond adding a new manager, because Explorer is also moving further toward growth stocks. This gives shareholders another reason to pay attention to how the fund’s portfolio and risk profile develop from here.

Three Vanguard funds got new managers but the same mandates

Vanguard removed ArrowMark Colorado Holdings from Explorer and VVIF Small Company Growth, while Los Angeles Capital Management exited Growth and Income, Vanguard confirmed in a June 29 2026 announcement. 

T. Rowe Price received individual sleeves of each portfolio, not control of the entire fund.

As of mid-2026, Explorer held roughly $22.1 billion in net assets, Growth and Income held about $18.8 billion, and VVIF Small Company Growth held roughly $1.4 billion, according to Vanguard product data. 

Each fund retains its existing investment objective and principal strategy. Vanguard also adjusted Explorer’s adviser allocations to increase exposure toward the growth investment style. 

That shift received little attention in early coverage, but it may offer more weight for shareholders than the T. Rowe brand name itself, Vanguard’s announcement noted.

T. Rowe Price’s approach still relies on quantitative tools

Early headlines framed the deal as Vanguard swapping algorithms for human judgment. Jeff DeMaso, publisher of The Independent Vanguard Adviser, called the partnership “unthinkable” in comments to RIABiz and said Vanguard’s quantitative subadvisors had failed to deliver.

That framing doesn’t match the fund documents, which show that only one of the two departing advisers, Los Angeles Capital, used a quantitative model. 

ArrowMark’s process centered on fundamental company research, according to Vanguard’s prospectus filings.

D.E. Shaw continues to manage a quantitative sleeve of Growth and Income, and Vanguard’s own Quantitative Equity Group retains a sleeve of VVIF Small Company Growth.

More Vanguard:

T. Rowe Price uses a hybrid approach, for Explorer and VVIF Small Company Growth, the firm combines fundamental company research with quantitative models.

Those models score securities on growth, momentum, quality, and value characteristics, Vanguard’s June 29 2026 press release stated.

David Corris and Prashant Jeyaganesh, T. Rowe Price’s Integrated Equity co-portfolio managers, are running the strategy applied to Explorer and VVIF Small Company Growth.

Corris described the approach as pairing an “inside view” from fundamental research with an “outside view” from quantitative research.

For Growth and Income, T. Rowe uses analyst-driven stock selection constrained by rule-based portfolio construction and sector-level risk controls, the prospectus supplement confirmed.

Vanguard has not confirmed performance was the sole trigger

Vanguard evaluates outside managers on investment philosophy, team stability, performance history, risk characteristics, and capacity, the company stated in its June 29, 2026 release. 

No public filing reviewed identifies a single reason for either manager’s removal. Los Angeles Capital had co-managed a Growth and Income sleeve since 2011, handling roughly one-third of the fund’s assets, Morningstar estimated. 

ArrowMark’s portfolio managers had been involved with Explorer since 2014, Vanguard’s prospectus supplement shows. 

Fees rise modestly on two of the three funds

Growth and Income’s expense ratio rises by one basis point, from 0.39% to 0.40% for Investor shares and 0.28% to 0.29% for Admiral shares. That translates to about $1 more per year for every $10,000 invested, Vanguard’s prospectus supplement confirmed.

VVIF Small Company Growth sees a three-basis-point increase, from 0.29% to 0.32%, or roughly $3 per $10,000, and explorer’s expense ratio is unchanged.

VVIF’s expense ratio does not include separate annuity or life-insurance program charges, which Vanguard warns can raise the total cost further, the prospectus stated.

The real test for Vanguard’s T. Rowe Price bet will take years

T. Rowe Price’s adviser compensation on Growth and Income is tied to a 36-month rolling performance window measured against the S&P 500, the prospectus disclosed.

Jeff DeMaso, publisher of The Independent Vanguard Adviser, told RIABiz that mutual competitive pressures drove two longtime rivals into an unlikely alliance.

The interesting question is what this partnership says about the industry…T. Rowe Price and Vanguard have been direct competitors for decades. The fact that they’re working together now reflects pressure on both sides

Short-term returns won’t reveal much because these funds split their assets across multiple managers.

When one manager is swapped out, the portfolio needs time to settle. Early performance numbers are more likely to reflect the changeover itself than the new manager’s skill.

Vanguard’s strategy points to four things shareholders can track: future holdings disclosures, Explorer’s evolving style-box characteristics, tracking error against each fund’s benchmark, and updated expense ratios.

The portfolio changes extend beyond a manager replacement

For holders of Explorer, Growth and Income, and VVIF Small Company Growth, the key issue is how T. Rowe Price’s addition changes each fund’s underlying holdings, exposures, and investment profile. 

Explorer’s tilt toward growth is the change most likely to reshape returns, even without a fee increase. Growth and Income and VVIF holders will pay one and three basis points more, respectively. 

The open questions the fund documents don’t answer: how far Explorer’s style box moves, whether tracking error widens against each benchmark, and when the first post-transition holdings disclosure lands.

Related: Vanguard’s global ETF fixes the S&P 500’s biggest weakness

This story was originally published by TheStreet on Aug 17, 2026, where it first appeared in the Investing section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.