AVLC vs MSTQ

AVLCAAvantis U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

MSTQFLHA Market State Tactical Q ETF

In short

AVLC Active management with index-fund manners: roughly 900 U.S. large caps, with the dial turned toward cheaper, more profitable companies. Avantis charges 0.15% a year to do it.

MSTQ A Nasdaq-100 ride with a volatility seatbelt: MSTQ holds Nasdaq-100 exposure in calm markets, then adds long VIX positions when the VIX futures curve signals stress. Rules-based, and running live since 2022.

Stated mandate

AVLC The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation. It invests broadly in U.S. large-capitalization companies while using active decisions to overweight lower valuations and higher profitability.

MSTQ The Fund seeks long-term outperformance relative to the U.S. large-capitalization equity market.

Why people hold it

• AVLC 0.15% a year against a 0.65% median for active U.S. equity funds. That is passive-style pricing on an actively run book.
• Holds about 900 names against the Russell 1000, so the value and profitability tilts sit on top of broad market exposure instead of a concentrated bet.avantisinvestors.com
• One of the stronger builds in the active U.S. equity group, priced in the same neighborhood as the Dimensional core funds (DFAU, DFAC) it competes with.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades steadily, so spreads and liquidity are rarely the sticking point. Distributions are paid quarterly.

• MSTQ In calm markets it rides the Nasdaq-100 via an index fund or Nasdaq-100 futures, generally 80% to 120% exposure. When volatility stress signals fire, it buys long VIX exposure.lhafunds.comlittleharboradvisors.com
• The trigger is the shape of the volatility market itself: 30-day versus 90-day implied vol plus VIX futures, rather than a manager's gut call on when to duck.sec.gov
• Runs on a signal licensed exclusively from Thompson Capital, the shop that built it, and has traded in public markets since 2022. One ticker instead of a do-it-yourself options overlay.sec.gov

Worth knowing

• AVLC Launched in 2023. The tilt philosophy is well worn at Avantis, but this fund's own live record is still short.
• Active, not index-tracking. The Russell 1000 is a reference point, not a leash, so holdings and weights can drift from it.
• Leaning toward cheaper, higher-profitability companies means stretches where it moves differently from the plain cap-weighted market, in either direction.avantisinvestors.com

• MSTQ At 1.55% with no fee waiver, it sits above the typical active US large-cap fee, and index-style peers such as DFAU (0.12%) and AVLC (0.15%) cost a sliver of that.
• Hedging is not free: when the signal turns defensive and stocks keep climbing, the long VIX leg drags while Nasdaq-100 exposure is dialed back.lhafunds.comsec.gov
• Small and thinly traded, so the spread is part of the cost of getting in and out, not just the expense ratio.

Full AVLC profile⁠

Full MSTQ profile⁠