AVLC vs TCAF

AVLCAAvantis U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

TCAFAT. Rowe Capital Appreciation Equity 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.

TCAF The all-equity expression of T. Rowe's Capital Appreciation playbook: about 100 US large caps picked bottom-up for quality and price, no bond sleeve, at a fee well under the typical active equity ETF.

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.

TCAF The fund seeks long-term capital growth through an actively managed portfolio of equity securities.

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.

• TCAF Costs 0.31% a year, under half the 0.65% median for its active US equity peer group.
• Roughly 100 US large caps, narrowed by screening out poor capital allocators, overpriced names and businesses facing secular headwinds, per T. Rowe's own process notes.troweprice.com
• A multi-billion-dollar fund and one of the busier names in the active equity crowd, which typically shows up as tight spreads at the point of trade.
• Launched in 2023 under veteran manager David Giroux, and it stands among the strongest implementations in a crowded active US equity field.troweprice.com

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

• TCAF About 100 names, with heavier weights in the highest-conviction picks. Results can wander well away from the broad US market in either direction.troweprice.com
• Equity only, no bond sleeve. It rides the full swing of a large-cap selloff.troweprice.com
• Cheap for active, not cheap outright: systematic peers like DFAU (0.12%) and AVLC (0.15%) charge less.

Full AVLC profile⁠

Full TCAF profile⁠