AVDE vs SFTX

AVDEAAvantis International Equity ETF

SFTXDHorizon International Managed Risk ETF

In short

AVDE Active management at almost-index prices: Avantis runs roughly 3,300 developed-market stocks outside the US without tracking a benchmark, for 0.23% a year. One of the strongest implementations in its active international peer group.

SFTX An international stock fund with a brake pedal. Horizon's Risk Assist strategy watches volatility and can pull the portfolio into Treasuries or cash equivalents, up to entirely, instead of riding a selloff all the way down.

Stated mandate

AVDE Invests in a broad range of stocks of all sizes across non-U.S. developed countries, with active portfolio management rather than replication of a specified index.

SFTX Seeks total return from developed- and emerging-market equity securities while systematically adjusting exposure to limit downside risk. Its Risk Assist framework can reallocate part of the portfolio to U.S. Treasury securities or cash equivalents during market volatility.

Why people hold it

• AVDE 0.23% a year, well under half the typical fee in its active international peer group. Active management usually costs more than this.
• Index-like breadth without an index: about 3,300 stocks of all sizes across non-US developed countries, chosen by managers rather than copied from a benchmark.avantisinvestors.com
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so getting in and out tends to be cheap and easy. It pays out quarterly.
• Sits at the top of a crowded field alongside rivals like DFIC and JIRE, priced within a basis point or two of both.

• SFTX The de-risking is built into the mandate, not left to you. Risk Assist monitors volatility and falling global equity values and can shift assets to Treasuries or cash equivalents.horizonmutualfunds.com
• Wide net abroad: roughly 200 holdings spanning developed and emerging markets, reached directly or through ADRs and other ETFs.horizonmutualfunds.com
• It did not launch as a shell. The 2025 debut came with real size and moderate daily volume, so it trades like an established ticker rather than a thin one.

Worth knowing

• AVDE Developed markets only. Emerging markets are a separate purchase if you want them.
• No index to grade the manager against, so results come down to Avantis's own portfolio calls rather than a published benchmark.
• It is all-equity and all-foreign: stock market swings plus currency moves both show up in the price.

• SFTX Downside management costs money: 0.82% a year, above the typical actively managed international fund. Pacer's PTIN runs a rules-based trend overlay for 0.02%.
• The brake works both ways. The prospectus notes the fund can sit primarily or entirely in cash equivalents, and that Risk Assist carries no guarantee against losses.horizonmutualfunds.com
• Young ETF, thin evidence. It launched in December 2025, so there is little live history showing how the strategy behaves across a full market cycle.

Full AVDE profile⁠

Full SFTX profile⁠