AFSM vs FESM: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

First Trust Active Factor Small Cap ETF

AFSMCNYSE Arca

Fidelity Enhanced Small Cap ETF

FESMANYSE Arca

Overlap

22.0%by weight

Expense ratio

FESM −0.47pt a year

AFSM0.75%FESM0.28%

Avg volume · 30D

FESM 60.4×the volume

AFSM17.5KFESM1.06M

AFSM vs FESM Performance

Nov 7, 2025 – Nov 9, 2026

+22.5%AFSM+25.8%FESM

Expense ratio: AFSM 0.75%; FESM 0.28%, better
Fund size: AFSM $129M; FESM $6.74B
1Y total return: AFSM +22.5%; FESM +25.8%, better
Yield (12M): AFSM 0.52%; FESM 0.86%, better
Holdings: AFSM 320; FESM 895
Avg volume (30D): AFSM 17.5K sh; FESM 1.06M sh, better
NAV per share: AFSM $37.88; FESM $45.75
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for AFSM, FESM, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	AFSM	FESM
Cost30% weight	F23	A96Higher
Mission25% weight	Not scored	A85
Risk15% weight	B55	B66Higher
Tradability15% weight	B61	A91Higher
Holdings10% weight	A72	A78Higher
Durability5% weight	A75	A93Higher

Rank among US Active Small-Cap funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. AFSM and FESM are both graded against the same 39 US Active Small-Cap funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Active Small-Cap⁠

Category · 39 funds

See all 39 ›

FESM ranks 2nd and AFSM 21st of 39 funds in the US Active Small-Cap Category.

Rank 1AAVSCAvantis U.S. Small Cap Equity ETFScore 88
Rank 2AFESMFidelity Enhanced Small Cap ETFScore 86
Rank 3ADFSVU.S. Small Cap Value Portfolio ETF Class SharesScore 82
Rank 20COSCVOpus Small Cap Value Plus ETFScore 47
Rank 21CAFSMFirst Trust Active Factor Small Cap ETFScore 46
Rank 21CFESCFirst Eagle Small Cap Equity ETFScore 46

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

AFSMCFirst Trust Active Factor Small Cap ETF

FESMAFidelity Enhanced Small Cap ETF

In short

AFSM Active management in index-fund clothing. AFSM runs a multi-factor quant model across roughly 300 U.S. small caps, so you get a manager's screens with broad diversification instead of a concentrated stock-picker's book.

FESM A quant small-cap strategy that has been running since 2007 and moved into an ETF wrapper in 2023 with the same mandate. It nudges the Russell 2000 rather than copying it, and charges far less than the typical active small-cap fund.

Stated mandate

AFSM The Fund seeks capital appreciation by investing primarily in U.S.-listed equity securities of small-capitalization companies through an actively managed, multi-factor quantitative approach.

FESM The fund is a diversified U.S. equity strategy focused on small-cap companies. It seeks to outperform its benchmark through a quantitative process that balances risk and return.

Why people hold it

AFSM Genuinely active, not a rules-based index in disguise: First Trust's team applies a multi-factor quantitative process to U.S.-listed small caps in pursuit of capital appreciation.ftportfolios.com
Roughly 300 names means no single small cap can wreck the portfolio, a real difference from the 40-stock active small-cap funds it competes with.
Live since 2019, so the model has a public track record through the 2020 crash and the 2022 drawdown rather than a backtest.
Pays shareholders quarterly, and the underlying holdings score well on portfolio quality measures relative to the active small-cap group.

FESM Costs 0.28% a year, roughly half the median for active US small-cap ETFs. Cheap fuel for a strategy that only needs to beat its benchmark by a little.
The strategy dates to 2007 as a Fidelity mutual fund and kept the same objective when it converted to an ETF in 2023. Long history, newer ticker.fidelity.com
A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so getting in and out tends to be straightforward. One of the stronger builds in the active small-cap group.
Spreads across roughly 600 small-cap names, so no single blowup dominates. This is a diversified core sleeve, not a concentrated stock-picker bet.

Worth knowing

AFSM The 0.75% expense ratio is the headline trade-off: well above the typical active U.S. small-cap fund, and about triple systematic rivals like AVUV and AVSC at 0.25%.
Thinly traded compared with the category's giants, so bid-ask spreads and order type matter more here than with a household-name small-cap ETF.
No benchmark index to grade it against. With an active quant mandate, results ride entirely on the model's factor calls rather than on tracking something.

FESM Small caps are the choppiest corner of the US market, and this fund lives there full time. Expect a bumpier ride than a large-cap core holding.fidelity.com
Enhanced index means small tilts around the Russell 2000, not a break from it. Results track close to the index rather than looking dramatically different.fidelity.com
Cheap, but not the cheapest in the room: top-rated peers AVSC and AVUV run 0.25% and DUHP 0.20%.

Full AFSM profile⁠

Full FESM profile⁠

AFSM vs FESM Holdings

How AFSM and FESM differ

Overlap by weight

22.0%

Shared holdings make up 53.1% of AFSM and 29.5% of FESM.

Level by level

Holdings172 in both22.0%
Sector11 Sectors91.1%
Countryby domicile98.9%
Asset classStocks100%

Sector

Sector weights in AFSM and FESM, widest gap first
Sector	Gap	AFSM	FESM
Industrials	FESM +3.4 points	11.1%	14.5%
Technology	AFSM +3.3 points	18.2%	14.9%
Materials	FESM +2.3 points	2.6%	4.9%
Consumer Discretionary	AFSM +1.7 points	10.8%	9.1%
Health Care	FESM +1.5 points	19.9%	21.4%
Consumer Staples	AFSM +1.3 points	2.5%	1.2%
Communication	AFSM +1.4 points	4.6%	3.2%
Energy	AFSM +1.1 points	7.2%	6.1%
Utilities	FESM +0.9 points	0.8%	1.7%
Financials	FESM +0.8 points	18.3%	19.1%
Real Estate	AFSM +0.2 points	4.0%	3.8%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in AFSM and FESM, widest gap first
Country	More in AFSMMore in FESM	Gap	AFSM	FESM
United States		FESM +1.0 points	98.4%	99.4%
Other countries (6)		AFSM +1.0 points	1.6%	0.6%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

AFSM8.6%
FESM9.7%

Securities held

AFSM319
FESM893

Asset class

AFSM: Stocks
FESM: Stocks

Holdings

Only in AFSM147
In both172
Only in FESM721

Only in AFSM

147 securities, 46.7% of AFSM by weight

National HealthCare Corporation0.93%
Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals International, Plc (Class A)0.93%
Matson, Inc.0.87%
TrustCo Bank Corp NY0.82%
Eton Pharmaceuticals, Inc.0.80%
EPAM Systems, Inc.0.80%
Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc.0.80%
Ames National Corporation0.78%
Teekay Tankers Ltd. (Class A)0.74%
Cathay General Bancorp0.70%
Signet Jewelers Limited0.68%
Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc.0.67%
Kohl's Corporation0.66%
Scorpio Tankers Inc.0.66%
Penguin Solutions Inc.0.60%
H&R Block, Inc.0.60%
Herbalife Ltd.0.59%
Cars.com Inc.0.58%
Northeast Community Bancorp, Inc.0.58%
Mitek Systems, Inc.0.56%
First Financial Corporation0.55%
Hamilton Insurance Group, Ltd. (Class B)0.54%
TaskUs, Inc. (Class A)0.54%
Mercury General Corporation0.53%
GigaCloud Technology Inc (Class A)0.53%
Chord Energy Corporation0.53%
Blue Bird Corporation0.51%
Movado Group, Inc.0.51%
SiriusPoint Ltd.0.51%
Bel Fuse Inc. (Class B)0.50%
Innovative Industrial Properties, Inc.0.49%
Ziff Davis, Inc.0.47%
Anterix Inc.0.45%
Liquidia Technologies, Inc.0.45%
Pediatrix Medical Group Inc0.44%
InMode Ltd.0.43%
Brinker International, Inc.0.42%
Macy's, Inc.0.42%
A10 Networks, Inc.0.40%
American States Water Company0.39%
Septerna, Inc.0.38%
The Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son Limited0.37%
LifeStance Health Group, Inc.0.37%
PagSeguro Digital Ltd. (Class A)0.37%
Garrett Motion Inc.0.37%
Vontier Corporation0.37%
International Seaways, Inc.0.36%
Climb Bio, Inc.0.36%
PVH Corp.0.35%
Comfort Systems USA, Inc.0.35%

Only in FESM

721 securities, 71.7% of FESM by weight

Securities Lending Cf2.43%
Installed Building Prod Inc0.76%
Oscar Health Inc - Class A0.75%
Commercial Metals Co0.74%
Fluor Corp0.74%
Healthequity Inc0.74%
Phillips Edison & Co0.68%
Plexus Corp0.63%
Balchem Corp0.62%
Aci Worldwide Inc0.61%
Payoneer Global Inc0.60%
Openlane Inc0.59%
Tutor Perini Corp0.58%
Navan Inc A0.53%
Home Bancshares Inc0.52%
Atricure Inc0.51%
Polaris Inc0.50%
Extreme Networks Inc0.50%
Skyward Specialty Ins Grp Inc0.50%
Wesbanco Inc0.50%
Ceco Environmental Corp0.49%
Aar Corp0.49%
Glacier Bancorp Inc0.47%
Callaway Golf Company0.46%
Life Time Group Holdings Inc0.46%
Stonex Group Inc0.45%
Cargurus Inc Class A0.44%
Workiva Inc0.43%
Skywest Inc0.42%
Wisdomtree Inc0.42%
Hinge Health Inc0.41%
Enova Intl Inc0.40%
Marriott Vacations World0.40%
Q2 Holdings Inc0.39%
Bgc Group Inc A0.39%
United Natural Foods Inc0.38%
Cavco Industries Inc0.37%
United Community Banks Ga0.37%
Eastern Bankshares Inc0.37%
Vertex Inc - Class A0.36%
Wiley (John) & Sons Inc Class A0.36%
Fb Financial Corp0.36%
Doubleverify Holdings Inc0.35%
Exlservice Holdings Inc0.35%
Privia Health Group Inc0.35%
Stepstone Group Inc Class A0.34%
V2X Inc0.33%
Northwest Bancshares Inc0.33%
Alarm.com Holdings Inc0.33%
Upstart Holdings Inc0.32%

Weight gaps

The 100 widest of 172 Holdings in both funds.

Holding weights in AFSM and FESM, widest gap first
Holding	Gap	AFSM	FESM
Par Pacific Holdings, Inc.PARR	AFSM +0.88 points	0.92%	0.04%
Glaukos CorporationGKOS	FESM +0.82 points	0.15%	0.97%
1st Source CorporationSRCE	AFSM +0.65 points	0.65%	0.00%
OneSpan Inc.OSPN	AFSM +0.64 points	0.76%	0.12%
Everforth IncorporatedEFOR	AFSM +0.63 points	0.63%	<0.01%
Chatham Lodging TrustCLDT	AFSM +0.60 points	0.61%	0.01%
Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc.HRTG	AFSM +0.58 points	0.74%	0.16%
Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.UVE	AFSM +0.57 points	0.62%	0.05%
Seneca Foods CorporationSENEA	AFSM +0.56 points	0.56%	0.00%
Griffon CorporationGFF	FESM +0.55 points	0.12%	0.67%
Krystal Biotech, Inc.KRYS	AFSM +0.54 points	0.57%	0.03%
Kforce Inc.KFRC	AFSM +0.55 points	0.64%	0.09%
CBL & Associates Properties, Inc.CBL	AFSM +0.54 points	0.57%	0.03%
Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc.RIGL	AFSM +0.53 points	0.53%	0.00%
Financial Institutions, Inc.FISI	AFSM +0.52 points	0.56%	0.04%
Amalgamated Financial Corp.AMAL	AFSM +0.53 points	0.53%	<0.01%
Myers Industries, Inc.MYE	AFSM +0.48 points	0.56%	0.08%
Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc.PTGX	AFSM +0.47 points	0.70%	0.23%
Interface, Inc.TILE	AFSM +0.46 points	0.60%	0.14%
TG Therapeutics, Inc.TGTX	AFSM +0.44 points	0.60%	0.16%
NetScout Systems, Inc.NTCT	AFSM +0.43 points	0.43%	<0.01%
Innoviva, Inc.INVA	AFSM +0.42 points	0.42%	0.00%
Materion CorporationMTRN	FESM +0.40 points	0.08%	0.48%
CONMED CorporationCNMD	AFSM +0.40 points	0.42%	0.02%
Addus HomeCare CorporationADUS	AFSM +0.40 points	0.40%	0.00%
Sonos, Inc.SONO	FESM +0.39 points	0.17%	0.56%
OUTFRONT Media Inc.OUT	FESM +0.39 points	0.31%	0.70%
EMCOR Group, Inc.EME	AFSM +0.38 points	0.38%	<0.01%
Acadian Asset Management Inc.AAMI	AFSM +0.38 points	0.69%	0.31%
The Gorman-Rupp CompanyGRC	AFSM +0.37 points	0.38%	<0.01%
Harmonic Inc.HLIT	AFSM +0.37 points	0.38%	<0.01%
Scholastic CorporationSCHL	AFSM +0.37 points	0.37%	0.00%
Viavi Solutions Inc.VIAV	AFSM +0.36 points	0.46%	0.10%
Carpenter Technology CorporationCRS	AFSM +0.36 points	0.36%	<0.01%
Clear Secure, Inc. (Class A)YOU	FESM +0.35 points	0.31%	0.66%
Cushman & Wakefield Ltd.CWK	FESM +0.35 points	0.19%	0.54%
Dorian LPG Ltd.LPG	AFSM +0.35 points	0.40%	0.05%
SPS Commerce, Inc.SPSC	AFSM +0.34 points	0.41%	0.07%
S&T Bancorp, Inc.STBA	AFSM +0.34 points	0.36%	0.02%
Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. (Class A)MSGE	AFSM +0.34 points	0.48%	0.14%
SELLAS Life Sciences Group, Inc.SLS	AFSM +0.34 points	0.35%	0.01%
AnaptysBio, Inc.ANAB	AFSM +0.34 points	0.34%	<0.01%
Phreesia Inc.PHR	AFSM +0.34 points	0.44%	0.10%
Oruka Therapeutics, Inc.ORKA	AFSM +0.33 points	0.45%	0.12%
Five9, Inc.FIVN	AFSM +0.33 points	0.33%	0.00%
Axcelis Technologies, Inc.ACLS	AFSM +0.33 points	0.44%	0.11%
PubMatic, Inc. (Class A)PUBM	AFSM +0.33 points	0.34%	0.01%
Sphere Entertainment Co.SPHR	AFSM +0.30 points	0.60%	0.30%
ScanSource, Inc.SCSC	AFSM +0.30 points	0.46%	0.16%
Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc.SBH	AFSM +0.30 points	0.43%	0.13%
FIGS, Inc. (Class A)FIGS	AFSM +0.29 points	0.51%	0.22%
Benchmark Electronics, Inc.BHE	FESM +0.28 points	0.08%	0.36%
Essent Group Ltd.ESNT	AFSM +0.28 points	0.28%	0.00%
WSFS Financial CorporationWSFS	FESM +0.27 points	0.32%	0.59%
Calumet, Inc.CLMT	AFSM +0.27 points	0.28%	0.01%
OFG BancorpOFG	AFSM +0.26 points	0.38%	0.12%
The Marcus CorporationMCS	AFSM +0.25 points	0.28%	0.03%
DHT Holdings, Inc.DHT	AFSM +0.25 points	0.35%	0.10%
Sensient Technologies CorporationSXT	FESM +0.26 points	0.24%	0.50%
Westamerica BancorporationWABC	AFSM +0.25 points	0.25%	0.00%
Forum Energy Technologies, Inc.FET	AFSM +0.24 points	0.43%	0.19%
Talos Energy Inc.TALO	AFSM +0.25 points	0.38%	0.13%
Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.BFH	AFSM +0.25 points	0.45%	0.20%
Tactile Systems Technology, Inc.TCMD	AFSM +0.24 points	0.30%	0.06%
FormFactor, Inc.FORM	AFSM +0.24 points	0.24%	0.00%
Kodiak Gas Services, Inc.KGS	FESM +0.24 points	0.20%	0.44%
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (Class A)ANF	AFSM +0.24 points	0.91%	0.67%
EZCORP, Inc.EZPW	FESM +0.23 points	<0.01%	0.24%
Federated Hermes, Inc. (Class B)FHI	FESM +0.24 points	0.22%	0.46%
The Cheesecake Factory IncorporatedCAKE	AFSM +0.23 points	0.33%	0.10%
First Financial Bancorp.FFBC	AFSM +0.23 points	0.28%	0.05%
Radian Group Inc.RDN	AFSM +0.22 points	0.33%	0.11%
HNI CorporationHNI	AFSM +0.22 points	0.24%	0.02%
ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc.ANIP	AFSM +0.22 points	0.22%	0.00%
Trustmark CorporationTRMK	AFSM +0.22 points	0.29%	0.07%
Delek US Holdings, Inc.DK	FESM +0.22 points	0.31%	0.53%
Qualys, Inc.QLYS	AFSM +0.21 points	0.21%	0.00%
Constellium SE (Class A)CSTM	AFSM +0.20 points	0.27%	0.07%
HCI Group, Inc.HCI	FESM +0.21 points	0.31%	0.52%
MaxLinear, Inc.MXL	FESM +0.20 points	0.22%	0.42%
First BanCorp.FBP	AFSM +0.21 points	0.28%	0.07%
Adaptive Biotechnologies CorporationADPT	FESM +0.19 points	0.30%	0.49%
M/I Homes, Inc.MHO	FESM +0.19 points	0.13%	0.32%
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Class B)LGND	AFSM +0.19 points	0.19%	0.00%
MAXIMUS, Inc.MMS	AFSM +0.18 points	0.33%	0.15%
Heartland Express, Inc.HTLD	AFSM +0.19 points	0.21%	0.02%
Encore Capital Group, Inc.ECPG	AFSM +0.18 points	0.80%	0.62%
PC Connection, Inc.CNXN	AFSM +0.18 points	0.36%	0.18%
Carter Bankshares, Inc.CARE	AFSM +0.18 points	0.32%	0.14%
Teekay Corporation Ltd.TK	AFSM +0.18 points	0.28%	0.10%
Cohu, Inc.COHU	AFSM +0.18 points	0.19%	<0.01%
Victoria's Secret & Co.VSXY	AFSM +0.18 points	0.44%	0.26%
Kelly Services, Inc.KELYA	AFSM +0.17 points	0.19%	0.02%
Commvault Systems, Inc.CVLT	FESM +0.17 points	0.29%	0.46%
World Kinect Corp.WKC	FESM +0.17 points	0.12%	0.29%
Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.VRTS	AFSM +0.17 points	0.17%	0.00%
10X Genomics, Inc. (Class A)TXG	AFSM +0.17 points	0.35%	0.18%
National Energy Services Reunited Corp.NESR	AFSM +0.17 points	0.23%	0.06%
Concentrix CorporationCNXC	AFSM +0.17 points	0.17%	<0.01%
Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc.HE	AFSM +0.16 points	0.16%	0.00%

All 321 AFSM holdings⁠All 632 FESM holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

AFSM vs FESM Cost

Overpaying AFSM vs FESM

$8,727

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

AFSM 0.75%
$14,482
FESM 0.28%
$5,755

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

AFSM 0.75%
FESM 0.28%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	AFSM	FESM	Overpaying
10	$1,336	$509	$827
20	$5,078	$1,976	$3,102
30	$14,482	$5,755	$8,727

Expense ratio

0.75%AFSM
0.28%FESM, cheaper

FESM0.28%AFSM0.75%

0.25%2.20%

Middle half of US Active Small-Cap funds
Median 0.55%

FESM 2nd cheapest of 39 funds

AFSM 29th cheapest of 39 funds

AFSM vs FESM Dividends

Last 12 months to Nov 9, 2026

Yield (12M): AFSM 0.52%; FESM 0.86%, better
Payout (12M): AFSM $0.20; FESM $0.39
Last payment: AFSM $0.02; FESM $0.10
Ex-dividend: AFSM Sep 24, 2026; FESM Sep 18, 2026
Paid on: AFSM Sep 30, 2026; FESM Sep 22, 2026
Frequency: AFSM Quarterly; FESM Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2019 to 2026, same scale for both

AFSMQuarterly · 24 paymentsAll AFSM payments⁠

FESMQuarterly · 13 paymentsAll FESM payments⁠

AFSM vs FESM Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: AFSM 17.7%FESM 19.6%since Dec 2023
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: AFSM 0.93FESM 0.97since Dec 2023
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: AFSM −28.3%FESM −26.9%since Nov 2023
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: AFSM 1.05FESM 1.33; Market = 1

AFSM and FESM in the news

All news⁠

Best ETFs
Schwab and Vanguard charge the same 0.03%. Their small-cap funds are 3.7 percentage points apart
Updated Oct 2, 2026FESM

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AFSM vs FESM

In short

Stated mandate

Why people hold it

Worth knowing

How AFSM and FESM differ

Level by level

Sector

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Concentration

Asset class

Holdings

Only in AFSM

Only in FESM

Weight gaps

Cost over time

Year by year

Distribution history

Fall from peak · 5 years

Risk facts

Schwab and Vanguard charge the same 0.03%. Their small-cap funds are 3.7 percentage points apart

How AFSM and FESM differ

Level by level

Sector

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Concentration

Asset class

Holdings

Only in AFSM

Only in FESM

Weight gaps