AVGE vs RFFC

AVGEAAvantis All Equity Markets ETF

RFFCBALPS Active Equity Opportunity ETF

In short

AVGE Avantis's whole-world equity portfolio in one ticker: a fund built from its own factor ETFs across US, developed and emerging markets, tilted toward smaller and cheaper stocks, at 0.23% a year with no waiver involved.

RFFC Most active equity funds ask you to trust a stock picker. RFFC leans on one hard number instead: return on invested capital, applied to an S&P Composite 1500 opportunity set, at a fee below most of its active peers.

Stated mandate

AVGE The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation through a broadly diversified equity portfolio. It invests directly or through Avantis ETFs and emphasizes companies expected to offer higher returns or better risk characteristics than a passive, market-cap-weighted index.

RFFC RFFC is designed to pursue capital appreciation.

Why people hold it

• AVGE One ticker, the whole map: it owns a series of other Avantis ETFs spanning US, developed international and emerging markets.avantisinvestors.com
• 0.23% a year, below the typical global active equity fund, and that is the real number, not a temporary waiver.
• No closet indexing. The mandate emphasizes companies Avantis expects to offer higher returns or better risk traits than a passive, cap-weighted index.ifa.com
• Sits among the strongest implementations in its global active equity peer group, and it pays shareholders quarterly.

• RFFC Stock picking with a stated rule behind it: holdings are selected on return on invested capital, a profitability measure rather than a narrative.alpsfunds.com
• 0.48% a year sits below the typical fee in its active global equity peer group, unusual for a fundamentals-first, hand-picked portfolio.
• Live since 2016, so the approach has traded through real market cycles instead of arriving with a theme.
• Measured against the S&P Composite 1500, a benchmark that reaches past mega caps into mid and small companies. Pays quarterly.

Worth knowing

• AVGE At the fund level you hold a handful of Avantis ETFs, so the stock-level diversification is look-through and one firm's research drives the entire stack.avantisinvestors.com
• The prospectus targets roughly 70% US equity (band 63% to 77%), so the geographic mix follows Avantis's policy rather than global market weights.ifa.com
• A close sibling, AVTM, covers total equity markets at 0.22% with no waiver attached.

• RFFC A small fund that trades thinly. Spreads can run wider than in giant index products, and sizable orders can move the price.
• Active by design: the manager's ROIC calls drive the outcome, and the portfolio can diverge from its S&P Composite 1500 benchmark for long stretches.
• Cheaper shelf-mates exist in the same peer group, with GSWO at 0.15% and AVGE at 0.25% running rules-based rather than hand-picked.

Full AVGE profile⁠

Full RFFC profile⁠