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Launched

Dimensional Emerging Markets Core Equity 2 ETF

DFEMNYSE ArcaDimensionalA

$36.49+0.05 (+0.14%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

A79/ 100

Rank 3 of 27 in Emerging Markets Active Equity

A79/100Rank 3 of 27inEmerging Markets Active Equity
Intraday session: up, 79 prints from 36.44 to 36.49. Range 36.49 to 37.10. Use the arrow keys to read each point.36.6036.7036.8036.9037.0037.1010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.39%
Fund size
$8.93B
1Y total return
+12.4%
Yield · Last 12 months
2.14%
Holdings
6816
Avg volume · 30D
943K sh
52W range
low $31.48high $42.57
Launched

The ETF.net DFEM Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

A

Score 79 out of 100

Category
Emerging Markets Active Equity⁠
Rank
3 of 27
Six-pillar profile for DFEM. Scores out of 100: Cost 81, Risk 64, Mission not scored, Tradability 81, Holdings 88, Durability 92. Strongest: Durability (92). Weakest: Risk (64). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

Score 79 of 100 falls in the A band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.

  • Cost

    The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.
    A81 out of 100
    Rank 5 of 27

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    Not scored

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    B64 out of 100
    Rank 3 of 27

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A81 out of 100
    Rank 4 of 27

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    A88 out of 100
    Rank 3 of 25

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A92 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 27

Our read on DFEM

ETF.net Research

In short

ADimensional casts one giant net over roughly 6,600 emerging-market stocks, then tilts the weights toward cheaper, more profitable, higher-momentum names. Index-like breadth, active hands, at a fee well under the typical active EM fund.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation.

Why people hold it

  • 0.39% a year, against a 0.65% median for its active emerging-markets peer group. Cheap for a fund making its own calls.
  • Roughly 6,600 holdings. No single stock, sector or country gets to dominate the outcome; breadth is the main risk control.
  • Systematically active: it targets value, profitability and momentum across the opportunity set rather than copying the MSCI Emerging Markets IMI Index name for name.
  • A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, and one of the stronger implementations in the active EM group.

Worth knowing

  • Active means no index to hide behind. Returns come from Dimensional's tilts, which can drift away from a standard EM benchmark in either direction.
  • Not the cheapest seat in the room: AVEM, JEMA and AVXC run 0.33%, a touch under DFEM's 0.39%.
  • Income arrives quarterly, not monthly, and the mandate is long-term capital appreciation rather than yield.

DFEM Performance

Launched Apr 26, 2022

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.
DFEM$11,239
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,199
Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. DFEM $11,239. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000$12,000$13,000Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Returns run to the Oct 30, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.

Trailing total return for DFEM. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodDFEM
Year to date+11.8%
1 month−8.3%
3 months−2.6%
1 year+12.4%
3 yearsper year+20.2%
5 yearsFund is under 5 years oldper yearNo data
10 yearsFund is under 10 years oldper yearNo data

With distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for DFEM
YearReturn barDFEM
2026 YTD+11.8%
2025+29.5%
2024+7.5%
2023+13.9%
2022−8.7%

History from Apr 27, 2022

DFEM in the news

DFEM Dividends

Adds up every distribution paid per share over the last 12 months, divided by the last completed close. Distributions are counted by ex-date. Data through Oct 30, 2026.
2.14%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$0.78Last 12 months
Last payment
$0.30 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Quarterly

Distribution history

2022–2026

One bar per payment. 18 payments from 2022 to 2026 YTD. Jun 22, 2022 $0.07; Sep 20, 2022 $0.23; Dec 20, 2022 $0.15; Mar 21, 2023 $0.03; Jun 21, 2023 $0.16; Sep 19, 2023 $0.29; Dec 19, 2023 $0.12; Mar 19, 2024 $0.03; Jun 18, 2024 $0.19; Sep 17, 2024 $0.26; Dec 17, 2024 $0.18; Mar 25, 2025 $0.06; Jun 24, 2025 $0.25; Sep 23, 2025 $0.26; Dec 16, 2025 $0.20; Mar 24, 2026 $0.05; Jun 23, 2026 $0.23; Sep 22, 2026 $0.30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.20222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Sep 22, 2026Sep 24, 2026$0.30
Jun 23, 2026Jun 25, 2026$0.23
Mar 24, 2026Mar 26, 2026$0.05
Dec 16, 2025Dec 18, 2025$0.20
Sep 23, 2025Sep 25, 2025$0.26
Jun 24, 2025Jun 26, 2025$0.25
Mar 25, 2025Mar 27, 2025$0.06
Dec 17, 2024Dec 19, 2024$0.18
Sep 17, 2024Sep 19, 2024$0.26
Jun 18, 2024Jun 20, 2024$0.19
Mar 19, 2024Mar 22, 2024$0.03
Dec 19, 2023Dec 22, 2023$0.12

See all 18 payments⁠

$10,000 in DFEM 3 years ago paid $904 in dividends.⁠

DFEM Risk

Risk pillarB64 out of 100Rank 3 of 27 in Emerging Markets Active Equity
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
15.5%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: standard deviation

The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
0.98
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio

Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.

Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
−20.8%
54 months · trough Oct 2022
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown

The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.

Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
1.06
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

DFEM Cost

Compare DFEM and AVEM

Overpaying vs AVEM, tied cheapest in Emerging Markets Active Equity

$1,161

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • DFEM 0.39%

    $7,898

  • AVEM 0.33% Tied cheapest

    $6,737

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • DFEM 0.39%
  • AVEM 0.33%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2K$4K$6K$8K051015202530DFEM $7,898AVEM $6,737

Year by year

YearDFEMAVEMOverpaying
10$705$598$107
20$2,725$2,318$407
30$7,898$6,737$1,161

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