AVES vs EQLT

AVESAAvantis Emerging Markets Value ETF

EQLTCiShares MSCI Emerging Markets Quality Factor ETF

In short

AVES Avantis starts with the emerging markets universe and tilts it: cheap valuations, profitable companies, roughly 1,800 names from megacaps down to small caps. Broad EM exposure with a deliberate value-and-quality slant, priced under the typical multifactor rival.

EQLT Most emerging-market factor funds blend several signals together. EQLT picks one and commits: quality. It tracks an MSCI index of roughly 300 large- and mid-cap EM companies screened for high profitability, low debt and steady earnings, for 0.35% a year.

Stated mandate

AVES The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation.

EQLT The fund seeks to track an index of large- and mid-cap emerging-market stocks selected for high profitability, low leverage, and earnings consistency.

Why people hold it

• AVES Charges 0.36% a year, below the 0.48% median for emerging markets multifactor funds. EM is where fee gaps usually run widest.
• Two screens, not one: it tilts toward cheap valuations and toward high profitability, so the deep-value bucket gets a quality filter on the way in.avantisinvestors.com
• Roughly 1,800 holdings across the MSCI Emerging Markets IMI Value opportunity set, meaning small caps ride along rather than getting screened out.
• Portfolio build sits in the top quartile of its EM multifactor peer group in our review, and the fund is a multi-billion-dollar, regularly traded name.

• EQLT Charges 0.35% a year, under the median expense ratio for emerging-market factor funds in its peer group.
• One factor, clearly defined: the MSCI Emerging Markets Quality Factor Select Index screens for high profitability, low leverage and earnings consistency. No black-box blending of competing signals.ishares.com
• Roughly 300 holdings across emerging markets, so the quality screen still leaves a broad spread of names rather than a concentrated bet.
• Priced below multifactor EM rivals like JPMorgan's JPEM and Hartford's ROAM, both at 0.44%.

Worth knowing

• AVES Value in emerging markets means leaning into cheaper, cyclical corners of the market, plus currency swings. A bumpier ride than a plain broad EM index.
• Cost is not the floor here: peer EMGF runs a multifactor EM portfolio for 0.26%, ten basis points less.
• Launched in 2021, so its live record is shorter than the older EM factor funds it lines up against.

• EQLT Small asset base and thin trading volume. Spreads can run wider than in the giants of the emerging-market shelf, which matters most on larger orders.
• Launched in 2024, so there is no long live record to judge how the screen holds up across a full emerging-market cycle.
• A quality tilt is a deliberate deviation from the broad EM index. Rallies led by cheap, cyclical or heavily levered companies are the ones this screen filters out.

Full AVES profile⁠

Full EQLT profile⁠