AVDV vs FEOE

AVDVAAvantis International Small Cap Value ETF

FEOEAFirst Eagle Overseas Equity ETF

In short

AVDV Foreign small-cap value is the thin, overlooked corner of the world market. AVDV works it with index-like breadth, roughly 1,700 overseas small caps screened for cheap prices and real profits, at a fee well under its peer group's median.

FEOE First Eagle has run this overseas value playbook as a mutual fund since 1993; the ETF version landed in December 2024. Active picking of non-US companies the team judges underpriced, with MSCI EAFE as the yardstick, for 0.50% a year.

Stated mandate

AVDV Seeks long-term capital appreciation by investing in non-U.S. developed small-cap companies selected for low valuations and higher profitability ratios.

FEOE The Fund seeks long-term capital growth by investing mainly in equities issued by companies outside the United States.

Why people hold it

• AVDV Charges 0.36% a year, well under the median for active international value funds and below peers like JIVE (0.55%) and FEOE (0.50%).
• Holds roughly 1,700 non-US developed small caps and stacks a profitability screen on top of the value screen, aimed at the cheap-for-a-reason names.avantisinvestors.com
• Live since 2019 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund that changes hands readily, which matters when the underlying holdings are small foreign stocks.
• One of the stronger builds in its active international value group: broad, cheap, and rules-driven rather than a manager's hunch list.avantisinvestors.com

• FEOE 0.50% a year, below the median for active international value ETFs and a hair under JPMorgan's JIVE at 0.55%.
• The house style isn't new. First Eagle's Overseas mutual fund has run this value discipline since 1993; the ETF is the equity-focused expression of it.firsteagle.comfirsteagle.com 2
• MSCI EAFE is the yardstick, not the blueprint. Managers buy non-US companies they judge underpriced, so the portfolio can look nothing like the index.firsteagle.com
• The firm's gold streak carries over: its first shareholder report lists gold-related names such as Wheaton Precious Metals among the fund's contributors.firsteagle.com

Worth knowing

• AVDV Small caps abroad plus a value tilt can swing harder than big-name international funds, and currency moves flow straight through to results.avantisinvestors.com
• Actively managed with no index to replicate, so holdings follow Avantis' models. MSCI World ex-USA Small Cap is the yardstick, not the blueprint.avantisinvestors.com
• Developed markets only, and it pays quarterly rather than monthly. For overseas large-cap value, sibling fund AVIV runs 0.25%.

• FEOE Launched December 2024, so the ETF's own live record is short, however long the strategy has run in other wrappers.
• Stock picking costs more than the systematic route to the same corner: AVIV charges 0.25% and AVDV 0.36%.
• Value hunting abroad means stretches out of step with EAFE, and gold-related holdings have historically swung harder than broad equities.firsteagle.com

Full AVDV profile⁠

Full FEOE profile⁠