AVDV vs WCMI

AVDVAAvantis International Small Cap Value ETF

WCMIDFirst Trust WCM International 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.

WCMI A boutique stock picker's concentrated international book in ETF form. WCM hunts companies whose competitive moats are widening and whose internal culture backs it up, holding roughly 40 non-US names rather than tracking an index.

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.

WCMI The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation through an actively managed portfolio focused primarily on equity securities of 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

• WCMI Genuinely active, not an index in disguise: about 40 non-US names chosen bottom-up by WCM, a process built around moat trajectory and corporate culture.wcminvest.com
• The prospectus commits at least 80% of net assets to equity of companies outside the US, with latitude to roam into emerging and frontier markets.sec.gov
• The strategy reached the exchange through a 2024 mutual fund reorganization, so the record behind the ticker starts with the predecessor fund, not the listing.businesswire.comsec.gov
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that changes hands actively on-exchange, which tends to keep the cost of getting in and out modest for an active strategy.

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%.

• WCMI Costs 0.85% a year against a 0.65% median for its international value peers; AVIV runs 0.25% and JIVE 0.55%.
• Roughly 40 holdings means individual stocks and countries carry real weight, and results can diverge widely from a broad international benchmark.sec.gov
• Distributions land once or twice a year at most; the stated objective is long-term capital appreciation, not an income stream.

Full AVDV profile⁠

Full WCMI profile⁠